Are you looking for that perfect Christmas Gift for the gardener who has everything? This year, in Febuary, Greenhouse Garden Center is offering two very special seminars amd a weekend workshop on Landscape Design for the homeowner. Pick and choose or make reservations for all three classes.

Feb. 6, 2010 "Growing Oyster Mushrooms", Guest Speakers - Dan and Rachel McClure owners of Nevada's own Perennials, 1:00 P.M. to 2:00 P.M. Dan and Rachel will discuss growing Oyster mushrooms for home use with some great recipes included. The cost of the seminar is $30.00 and includes an organic Oyster mushroom kit that will produce up to 5 pounds of mushrooms in 2 to 3 flushes. Seating is limited and reservations are required. To make reservations or for information call Greenhouse Garden Center at 775-882-8600.

Feb. 20, 2010 "Bonsai-Getting Started", Guest Speaker-Travis Unruh Co-Owner of Green Lizard Landscape, 11 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. Travis has wide experience in creating unique and unusual Bonsai plants and gardens. This class is free, however, there will be a full range of Bonsai pots, supplies, and plants for sale. Seating is limited and reservations are required. To make reservations or for information call Greenhouse Garden Center at 775-882-8600.

David Ruf, owner, Greenhouse Garden Center is constantly searching out products that can provide our customers with people, pet and environment safe alternatives to harsh chemical alternatives. This year we are pleased to add a new column to our E-mail newsletter and web page where we can introduce our readers to some of these products as well as to new seasonal products sure to enhance the quality of our customers gardening and shopping experience.

YARD GARD ELECTRONIC PEST REPELLER

This weather-proof, motion-activated, electronic device is designed to be installed directly in areas where the homeowner is experiencing critter damage. The REPELLER can protect an area up to 4000 ft. sq. It can be powered either with batteries or an AC adapter. For maximum effectiveness it is recommended that the area to be affected by the REPELLER be cleaned of all animal droppings and inducements (ie garbage, nesting material, food products, etc.). Also, by using another product in combination (ie. netting, bird tape, organic repellents such as Liquid Fence or Messina) the homeowner can create a synergistic effect further increasing the effectiveness of this product. The frequency range of the sound emitted is usually not detectable by the human ear. Since this is a behavior modification tool it can take several days to completely deter the "pest critter" from the targeted area.

SHAKE-AWAY COYOTE URINE GRANULES

This product provides a natural alternative to harsh repellents. Animals use urine to communicate in the wild. When "Pest Critters", such as deer or rabbits, repeatedly smell coyote urine in an affected area they will avoid that area. SHAKE-AWAY is designed to be used as a perimeter repellent and a 48 oz. container will cover 1440 linear feet. This product should be applied once a week for the first two weeks and twice a month for maintenance. Do not apply SHAKE-AWAY directly to edible plants but in an area bordering the vegetable garden. Allow 2-3 weeks from initial application for maximum effectiveness.

Click Here to receive updates from the North Pole and play games. Track Santa's progress toward your house this Christmas Eve!

While the poinsettia remains the most popular of the holiday plants, a healthy Christmas cactus in full bloom is a great gift idea for that special gardener. It is easy to care for and can be grown indoors throughout the year. The flowers range in color from yellow, orange, red, salmon, pink, fuchsia and white or combinations of those colors. Its pendulous stems make it a great choice for hanging baskets.

The "Christmas cactus" that is grown commercially is actually several closely related species of forest cacti that grow as epiphytes between 3,000 and 5,000 feet above sea level in the Organ Mountains north of Rio de Janeiro in southeast Brazil, South America.

We typically think of cacti as being heat tolerant, but Christmas cactuses will keep their blossoms longer in cooler temperatures. It is important to keep plants in a well-lit location away from drafts of heater vents, fireplaces or other sources of hot air. Drafts and temperature extremes can cause the flower buds to drop from the plant before they have a chance to open.

The Christmas cactus is a tropical type plant, not quite as drought tolerant as its desert relatives and, in fact, may drop flower buds if the soil gets too dry. Water thoroughly when the top inch or so of soil feels dry to the touch. The soil should be kept evenly moist for best growth.

Christmas cactuses will do best in bright indirect light. They don't need to be fertilized while in bloom, but most gardeners enjoy the challenge of keeping the plant after the holidays for re-bloom the following year. While plants are actively growing, use a blooming houseplant-type fertilizer and apply monthly until blooms set the following season. If taken care of properly, a single plant can last for many years, providing many seasons of enjoyment.

Greenhouse Garden Center is excited to bring a wider variety of beneficial insects to our Spring 2010 inventory. Chemical pesticides can be bad for us and bad for the environment. All pests have natural enemies. What we as gardeners are striving for is a balance of bugs, both good and bad. The bad bugs provide the food for the good bugs and in this way Mother Nature has been keeping this balance for thousands of years. We humans by providing a chemical control for insects upset this balance, often decimating beneficial insects so the bad bugs have no natural enemies. Our goal is to work with Mother Nature instead of against her by allowing the beneficial insects to do their job and then giving a little help when it becomes absolutely necessary. Traditionally, we have carried Ladybugs, Praying Mantis, and Beneficial Nematodes. In our quest to provide more organic approaches to battling bad insects in our customers lawns and gardens we are very excited to add the following beneficial insects to our arsenal.

MASON BEES:

The Blue Orchard Mason Bee, Osmia lignaria, is an excellent pollinator and will be available to Greenhouse Garden Center on or around March 15, 2010. Mason Bees are out earlier than honeybees and work better in cooler spring weather. Each Mason Bee is capable of doing the pollinating work of 120 honeybees. They are a solitary bee which does not have a queen and a hive and do not make honey. Because they are not a social bee the Mason Bee tends not to sting and are not susceptible to the Varroa mite which has caused so much havoc to honey bees in North America.

COST: Mason Bees 6 Pupae In Cocoons

(More good bug bad bug info to follow in next months newsletter.)

• The first commercial Christmas cards were commissioned in London, in 1843, by Sir Henry Cole, with illustration by John Callcott Horsley. President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued the first official White House card in 1953.

• "Rudolph" was actually created by Robert May for Montgomery Ward in the late 1930's as a holiday promotion. The song was written later by Johnny Marks, and recorded by Gene Autry in 1949; it promptly sold about 2 million copies.

• Christmas became an official national holiday in the USA on June 26, 1870.

• Poinsettias are the most popular Christmas plant and are the number one "flowering" potted plant in the United States.

• Franklin Pierce put the first Christmas tree in the White House (in 1856), for a group of Washington Sunday School children. Benjamin Harrison is credited with starting the tradition of the White House tree, being the first to have a decorated family Christmas tree in the White House in 1889, and Calvin Coolidge put the first National Christmas Tree on the White House lawn (not in the White House) in 1923.

• The first reported electrically lit Christmas tree was in December, 1882. The world's first practical light bulb was invented by Thomas Edison in 1879, and a mere three years later, in 1882, an officer of Edison's electric company, one Edward Johnson, electrically lit a Christmas tree for the first time. In 1917, after a tragic fire in New York City that was caused by Christmas candles, Albert Sadacca (fifteen years old at the time) invented safety lights for Christmas trees. Decorating a live Christmas tree outdoors became popular, and eventually moved to indoor trees. The outdoor lights also moved onto houses, and decorating houses in lights became (and has remained) popular.

• Christmas trees are grown in all 50 states, including Hawaii and Alaska.

• In 1979, the National Christmas Tree was not lighted except for the top ornament. This was done because of the American hostages in Iran.

• According to the Guinness World Records, the world's tallest cut Christmas tree was a 221' Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) erected and decorated at Northgate Shopping Center, Seattle, Washington, USA, in December 1950.

• By the way, NORAD tracks Santa around the world every Christmas. If you'd like to find out how they do it, and how you can follow along, check out NORAD's website here.

The Christmas rose is actually a Helleborus niger; the common name is Hellebore or Lenten Rose. In our area where winter flowers are a rarity, hellebores are a delight. While not being tall in stature, the flower heads are large for the size of the plant and depending on the cultivar the flowers may stand up or nod. These long-lived perennials love shade or dappled sun and moist, organic soil; there are thousands of cultivars in a range of colors from white and cream to pink, rose, burgundy and light green. USDA Zones 4 to 8. This perennial blooms during the winter months depending on the type and the temperature. The plant desires protected areas in ones yard and has lovely foliage year round. The plant is free of browsing by animals so go ahead and give them a try. You will be glad you have this wonderful plant in your yard.

Question:
Do birdhouses have to have bird seed in them? How do you make it comfortable enough for birds to nest in them?

Answer:
Bird feeders have seed in them and bird houses should not have or need seed in them.

Birds also like to have a house which does not sway in the wind too much for them to find it comfortable to nest in.

Happy Birding!