Winter Rose Pink

This is another poinsettia like the Winter Rose Red with tight curled bracts. another one of my favorites.

Free Wrapping

We are offering free wrapping with a hand tied bow of any 6.5" or larger poinsettia at regular price. This offer is for our customers who read our blog only. So you need to tell who ever is helping you that you want the deal you saw on our blog.

Thank you for supporting us.

Have a blessed Christmas!

Winter Rose Red

This is my favorite poinsettia. It is a Winter Rose Red. It has bracts that are pulled in to make it a much tighter bloom, more like a rose or camellia bloom

Open House Today!

Don't forget, our open house is today. Come see 67 varieties of poinsettias, and vote for your favorite ones.
We will draw for doorprizes,have hot apple cider, coffee, soft drinkss, cookies, homemade chicken salad, and pimento and cheese sandwiches, and other refreshments.
We hope to see you!

Fox 8 WGHP is featuring us tomorrow morning

Shannon Smith from Fox 8 WGHP is featuring us tomorrow morning on the news. It will air sometime between 5:00 and 9:00. If you missed seeing us on News 2 on the "Made in the Triad" segment Tuesday night here is the link to see it http://www.digtriad.com/money/made_in_triad/article.aspx?storyid=150794&catid=255

"Made in the Triad"

News 2 will feature us on "Made in the Triad" tonight on the 6:00 news.

10% CAMPAIGN PASSES $2 MILLION SPENT FOR LOCAL FOOD

News
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY
Nov. 23, 2010
Media Contact: Teisha Wymore, campaign manager, tlwymore@ncsu.edu or 919.515.0244
10% CAMPAIGN PASSES $2 MILLION SPENT FOR LOCAL FOOD
Since July, North Carolinians participating in the 10% Campaign have spent more than $2 million on food from local sources. The 10% Campaign is an effort to educate and encourage consumers to spend 10 percent of their food dollars on locally sourced food.
The campaign is an initiative of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems, with support from N.C. Cooperative Extension and the Golden LEAF Foundation. Because North Carolinians spent $35 billion on food each year, if just 10 percent went to local sources, more than $3.5 billion would be available in the state’s economy.
"We are excited that the 10% Campaign has reached the $2 million milestone in its first four months. I believe this is a reflection of the true commitment that North Carolina consumers have shown for their own local food systems," said Teisha Wymore, 10% Campaign manager. "As campaign participation grows, the dollars spent on local food also will continue to grow."
"Businesses and individuals have responded enthusiastically to the launch of the 10% Campaign. As all of those businesses begin to report their local food spending, we will see that number continue to grow," said Nancy Creamer, CEFS director and horticultural science professor in the N.C. State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. "The economic development and job creation potential of this campaign is huge."
Through the campaign website – www.nc10percent.com – North Carolina consumers and businesses sign up and pledge to buy local food. Each week, participants receive a campaign email, asking them to report how much they spent on local food that week. The results are tallied on the campaign website.
More than 1,700 individuals and 161 businesses have signed up for the campaign. The businesses and institutions that have pledged to spend 10 percent of their food dollars on food from local sources include restaurants, grocery stores and co-ops, universities, corporate food service programs and state agencies.
Cooperative Extension is supporting the 10% Campaign by providing an extension agent in each county office to serve as the local food coordinator, providing education and supporting businesses that want to participate in the campaign. N.C. Cooperative Extension is based in N.C. State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
The Center for Environmental Farming Systems is a program of N.C. State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, N.C. A&T State University and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The center provides education, outreach and research related to sustainable agriculture and food systems.
-Written by Natalie Hampton, natalie_hampton@ncsu.edu or 919.513.3128.

Poinsettia Display

Melissa has finished setting up the poinsettia display. she put 3 of every variety on the ends of the benches, in groups by color. 67 varieties!!!!!!!!

Ruby Frost

Ruby Frost was a trial Poinsettia last year. It ranked 5th out of 19 in our novelty class, which helped to get it on the market this year. We only had a few last year because it was a trial variety, now that it is on the market, we order alot more cuttings last spring to have them ready for the Christmas season.

National Poinsettia Open House

Save the space on your calendars for our Poinsettia Open House (2010). It will be Sunday, December 5, 2010 from 12:30 to 4:30.We are one of two greenhouses in the state to hold poinsettia trials.

We are growing 9,000 poinsettias and more than 67 varieties. An ocean of color growing in one huge greenhouse! You will enjoy seeing new varieties, voting on your favorites, and free refreshments.

We are one of 33 greenhouses in the U.S. and Canada that grow these trials. The information that we collect will be sent to the national poinsettia breeders to decide which new varieties will be put on the market and which ones will be cut for next year.

Hope to see you there!
Jim, Judy, & Jay Mitchell

Tapestry

We have Tapestry Poinsettias again this year. They are a small short poinsettia with varigated leaves. We sold out quick last year, so if you have you heart set on Tapestry, you will want to get by soon.

Shimmer Pink

Stop by and see the poinsettias if you are in the area. They are beautiful this year. This one is Shimmer Pink. It is the first year we have carried it. It is a pretty dark pink, with light pink speckles.

Chad Tucker w/ Fox 8

Chad Tucker with Fox 8 News came out last night and had us on the 10:00 news. They also replayed it this morning along with some segments they didn't play last night.

http://www.myfox8.com/news/wghp-story-plant-101115,0,2856921.story

Fall Leaves

Be sure to take advantage of the leaves in your yard. Use them to mulch your garden. As leaves fall, bag them up with your mower or you can use your mower to chop and blow them to the center your your yard to rake them. Your mower chops the leaves, allowing them to compost faster. you can either compost them or use them as mulch in your vegetable and flower gardens.

Fall is the time to plant

We are fully stocked with fresh plants. The trees and shrubs that we potted up last winter are rooted out and ready to be planted. Some of the plants for fall color are Sassanqua Camellia, Firepower Nandina, purple Encore Azalea, ginkgo, burning bush, Knockout Roses, and Orange Pyracantha.

With the cooler weather of fall, it is the perfect time to spruce up your yard. Jim offers this advice- any month with the letter ‘R’ is the best time to plant. There are hundreds of trees and thousands of shrubs. We have one of the largest and most varied selections in the Triad. We are known for our quality and knowledge. Jim and Judy both graduated from NCSU in horticulture and Tammy studied horticulture at Forsyth Tech. Jay worked at a large greenhouse in Raleigh before returning to help in the family business. Bring a picture and measurements of the area you want landscaped and we will help you choose the right plants for your yard.

Thank you for coming out and making our open house a great success. Bill and Hallie served about 180 hotdogs. Mary Kiger from Rural Hall came by Monday morning to pick up the 2 pansy planters she won from Saturday's drawing. Other winners were Wallace Williamson, who won the mums, also of Rural Hall and Phillis Hill of Pinnacle won the pansy bowls.

Open House Today!

Come by this morning for our open house and have coffee and donuts. And don't forget to register for the door prizes when you come by today. We will also have hotdogs and other refreshments 11:00 till about 1:00, but we will still have the door prizes open till we close at 4:00

Mums

The mums are begining to bloom well. We grew 1800 of them this year.

Open House

Saturday, October 2, Mitchell’s is welcoming in fall, celebrating 31 years in business, with an Open House. Jim will teach a free class at 10:00 on the proper planting of trees and shrubs. He will give tips on how to keep the newly planted plants living and will demo the planting. Hallie will be cooking free hot dogs from 11-1. We are fully stocked with fresh plants. Plants for fall color are orange pyracantha, purple beautyberry, ginkgo, burning bush, sassanqua camellias, Knockout Roses, and Firepower Nandina.

Fall Pansies

We have been busy potting pansies every week. The early ones are ready to sell now and look good.

Geramium Sale

We have taken our $7 geranuims, put them on sale for $5, and now thruogh Monday they will be $5 each, Buy One Get One Free. Limit 20. You MUST tell us you saw it posted on our blog to get the buy one get one.

Salad planter for your porch

I’m lovin daylight saving time. I just came in from planting lettuce at 8:00. I just planted a strawberry jar with some spinach, mesclun mix lettuce, and some leaf lettuce. I started with an 18” plastic strawberry jar
with 12 holes around the sides. I drilled 4 holes ½” in the bottom. Then I filled it with dirt to the first set of holes in the side. Use a high quality soil, I prefer Fafard Complete potting mix with fertilizer and water trainer. I then put a plant in each hole and filled in the rest of the hole with straw. The straw keeps the loose dirt from washing out when you water it; you can use pine needles, rotted leaves or what ever you have around to hold the dirt in. I add more dirt and repeated the process for the 2nd and 3rd row. I like to stop about half way with the dirt and water it in good until water runs out the bottom holes. Sometimes it is hard to get a strawberry jar watered well to the bottom the first time. When I get to the top, I plant two plants to the outside edge of the large top opening. I like to put a little straw around those plant also to keep the dirt from splashing on the lettuce and it will also hold in moisture. Putting lettuce in a planter or pot on your deck or close by your house will make it more convenient to pick a few leaves for a salad or to go on a sandwich.

Our broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, red & green leaf lettuce, spinach, collards, and mesclun mix lettuce has been out of the greenhouse since March 5, and is ready to sell and plant now. The price is the same as last year, $1.50/4-pack- $13.50 a flat for all the same or mix and match 4-packs in a flat for $15.00/flat. Romaine lettuce, buttercrunch lettuce, great lakes lettuce, brussels sprouts, and swiss chard will be ready in a couple of weeks.

Pansy sale

We have some beautiful blooming pansies on sale - $10.00/flat till March 20th.

Get ready, spring is coming!

It may not feel much like spring right now, but it is coming.

Now is the time to reflect on your garden. What did well? What did you have problems with? What do you need to change for spring? What do you need to grow more of? What did you have an overabundance of?

Be sure you turn under all of the remains of last year’s garden stalks. Add leaves to compost and turn them under the soil also. The composted leaves help the soil retain moisture and makes the soil work easier.

February is the time to prune summer flowering shrubs such as butterfly bushes and roses. Cut back lirope or monkey grass and other ornamental grasses at the end of February. Prune out any dead limbs or limbs that rub in your trees.

Do not butcher your crape myrtles! They really don’t need pruning. Goldfinches love the old seed pods if you leave them on. Just like most other trees you should cut any dead limbs or limbs that rub and you can also prune the small sprouts off the bottom of the trunks if you want to.