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Ideas & Inspiration

Blooming Basket Workshops | March 2024

Join us March 25th, 28th or 30th for our blooming basket workshops! Register online (links below) to save your spot.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

You will have two options for basket style (handle or no handle), and each basket will have a blooming plant plus green plant elements. Plants will vary based on availability. Your design will be dressed with final decorative touches including moss and a bow!

The class will take about an hour, and all supplies will be included with the cost of the class ($65). There will be a limit of 8 guests at each session, so please secure your spot below.

We hope to see you at the potting bench!

SIGN UP TODAY:

March 25th @ 2pm

March 28th @ 2pm

March 30th @ 1pm

 

Transform Your Yard

How to get projects started in the yard.

Making a house a home takes similar effort as making a yard a garden. The end product of your efforts is the pride of sharing with your neighbors, friends and family an ideal place to hang out.

Identify what you like to be surrounded by to feel relaxed and at peace. Start transforming with inspiration from a book or magazine or visit the garden center to talk with someone who whispers to plants professionally. The best advice I can give to a homeowner looking to redesign their yard is to designate just one or two smaller areas for your 2024 transformation and jump in head first. The effort needed to get a perennial, tree or shrub established into its new home may take the entire growing season, so don’t bite off more than you can chew.

Plant thoughtfully, taking the time to add nutrients to the soil with compost (most urban soils are desperately void of proper nutrients). A trick to gauge watering, set your new plant into the hole and see how long it takes for your hose to fill that hole with water. When plants are planted, repeat that deep soaking water 2-3 times a week to make sure you are supplying what the plant needs. Another trick when choosing an area, make sure the newly planted areas can fit the reach of your sprinkler–this will ensure the maximum return on your investment without overtaxing your care efforts.

Don’t forget the fun textile additions like new cushions for your patio chairs or an indoor outdoor rug to bring a pop of color to you seating area. Flickering citronella candles give instant ambiance.

Expect to manage your plantings a few times a week, just like keeping up with the bathroom towels.  Maintaining a beautiful home takes effort and so does maintaining your beautiful garden areas—I think it’s worth it!

Join Us For This Season’s Tree Top Pot Classes

Curious to see the process behind how our team builds our lovely holiday tree top pots? Sign up for one of our two tree top pot classes with our designer, JP, to learn all the secrets for yourself!

tree top pot sunny special
tree top pot sunny special

Join us at 4 PM either Thursday (11/30) or Friday (12/1) for a fun course as we show you how to construct your own 10″ tree top pot in a plastic container.

Class free is $150 and includes container, fill material, spruce tops, all accent greens, twigs & berries, as well as refreshments, red & white wine for sipping! JP will teach you how to make our most popular design we call the Sunny Special with birch and red winterberry.

We guarantee you’ll have a great time and will learn tree top pot design tricks you can use for years to come.

[REGISTER HERE] Tree Top Pot Class – Thursday, Nov 30 – 4PM

[REGISTER HERE] Tree Top Pot Class – Friday, Dec 1 – 4PM

What Is the Difference Between Fraser, Balsam Fir, and Canaan Fir Christmas Trees?

Though the debate between fake Christmas trees and real trees continues to rage strong, anyone who’s serious about Christmas cheer knows that investing in a real, live, fresh tree is the best way to set the mood in any home.  Real Christmas trees smell nice, look nice, feel nice, and they’re better for the environment. Hard to beat that, right?

It’s deciding on which type of tree to invest in, though, that’s really the hardest part of this annual dilemma. Understanding the differences between the main three types of trees you’ll come across this holiday season – Fraser, Balsam, and Canaan firs – can help you make the best decision for your home.

Fraser Firs

Fraser fir Christmas trees are the perfect option for those looking to get the biggest and best out of their tree. It’s one of the strongest and long lasting options out there, making it ideal for décor-lovers who have endless amounts of ornaments to fill the branches with. The branches angle slightly upwards, giving the tree a perky, cheery look that’s sure to impress. Fraser firs:

  • Grow up to 50 ft. tall
  • Have bluish-green needles
  • Give off a mild fragrance
  • Are some of the most common Christmas tree finds

These trees lack the strong fir smell some people look for in a tree, but make up for it with thick, strong branches and a fullness that’s hard to find anywhere else. They’re easily available and fit well with any décor.

Balsam Firs

The Balsam fir Christmas tree is likely the first option that comes to mind when you begin thinking about holiday trees, even if you’re not aware of it. These small-to-medium-sized trees are immediately noticeable for their conical shape, marking them as the iconic Christmas tree that they are. Their dark green needles are also interspersed with natural hints of silver, which bring a bigger sparkle to your Christmas décor. These hints of color and the tree’s beautiful green shade are why branches of these trees are so often used for wreaths, garlands, and bouquets. Balsam firs:

  • Grow up to 82 ft. tall in the wild
  • Have dark green, thin needles
  • Give off a strong, sweet-spicy fragrance
  • Have an iconic look and feel that complements any décor scheme

These classic trees have the perfect conical shape and fragrant, deep green needles most people want from a tree. However, they’re usually somewhat smaller than both Canaan firs and Fraser firs, and its branches may not be quite as sturdy.

Canaan Firs

Canaan firs are closely related to Balsam firs. They look much the same in some aspects but are bigger, heartier, and stronger than their Balsam counterparts. In this way, it’s much like a hearty Fraser fir, effectively making this tree a hybrid of the two other options. Unlike the other two, though, this tree is relatively new to the Christmas tree market, making it difficult to find in some areas. Canaan firs:

  • Grow up to a whopping 98 ft. tall in the wild
  • Have bright, rich green needles
  • Give off a medium fragrance
  • Feature an ideal combination of both Balsam and Fraser firs

Canaan firs are the best of both worlds. They have the heartiness and branch-strength of a Fraser, but the conical shape and rich green needles of a Balsam. However, their smell is milder, and in most areas, these trees will be more difficult to find than both other options.

Find Your Perfect Tree

Canaan, Balsam, Fraser, or something else entirely, you’ll find the perfect tree when you shop at Sunnyside Gardens. Contact this established gardening retailer to learn more about what these tree varieties have to offer your home this holiday season and find the perfect color, shape, height, and fragrance that appeals to your holiday plans.

Sip & Shop at Sunnyside for the 2023 Holiday Season

Kickstart your holiday shopping & decorating with a Sunnyside sip & shop! November snuck up on us, just like it always does. We’re transitioning from pumpkins to winter greens and making a list and checking it twice for the holiday hosting & gifting season.

We want to reward you for getting a head start on your holiday shopping and decorating. Join us for one of our two Sunnyside Sip & Shops! On Tuesday, Nov 7 and Thursday, Nov 16 from 5-7PM, stop in to browse and shop and grab a complimentary glass of prosecco on us. It’s really that simple.

Feel free to share these events with your friends and invite them along. If you’re able, let us know you’re interested or attending on the Facebook event page so we can ensure we have plenty of Prosecco to go around.

Tuesday, November 7 | 5-7PM
RSVP Here!

Thursday, November 16 | 5-7PM
RSVP Here! 

Succulent Pumpkin Care

Succulent Pumpkin

The perfect autumn centerpiece is here! These Pumpkin Succulent Gardens will add beauty to all of your fall celebrations, but the best part may be that the succulents can last much longer. With proper care, you can replant these little beauties and enjoy them for months, if not longer.

First, you must mist the Pumpkin Succulent Garden daily with clean water. The succulent roots will begin growing into the moss, and eventually into the pumpkin itself as the shell softens.

Once the pumpkin starts to deteriorate, carefully cut off the top of the pumpkin containing the succulents. Plant the succulents, including the moss and pumpkin, into the right-sized pot with soil.

That’s it! Easy and fun. Enjoy your succulents this fall and beyond.

Tree top pot time!-CARE INSTRUCTIONS

The temperatures are just right for assembling your outdoor containers! The winter season is the longest here in MN, so keep in mind that these pots will sit the longest on your doorstep….without water or care! (That’s a bonus!)

 

South facing? Add a spritz of wilt stop or wilt pruf to your pots to keep them extra green.

Tree Tops and Living Evergreens-Tips to prevent WINTER BURN
Stop your greens from browning out. Spritz on your living arborvitae, boxwood or other evergreens in the landscape, or use on your cut seasonal stems of greenery.
Wilt Stop/ Wilt Pruf is an all natural product that will protect evergreens through the sunny winter days when they are busy photosynthesizing.
Additionally, keep watering the base of your landscape plants until the ground freezes solid. This helps to give your landscape plants enough moisture to make it through the winter. If you have cut greens and the temperatures are above 40 degrees, sprinkle some water over the tops of the greens to keep them from drying out. (For tree tops we use a watering can or a hose on spray mode.)

Best Use of Straw Bales

The best use of straw bales-

Straw is traditionally used to add a protective layer to perennial beds for winter. MN can have a mix of winter extremes from harsh cold to sunny thaws, and depending on the depth of snow, your perennial plants can experience extreme temp fluxes that will damage roots and could kill the plants. Ideally we have several feet of snow for an insulation layer that will keep perennials uniformly cold through freeze and thaw. History tells us that snowfall isn’t necessarily reliable, so we have turned to adding a layer of straw to our beds for some plant life insurance.

When should you apply straw to a garden bed? When night time temperatures are below 30 consistently add a layer of straw a couple inches thick.

When should re remove straw? When night time temps are no longer below the freezing point rake off straw and discard. This is a great time to mulch and add preen to discourage weeds in the coming season.

Other uses for straw are more obvious. Decorating for fall. Additional seating around the fire pit. Soaking up a muddy corner of the yard so Fido doesn’t track in. An archery target. Use intact, wet bales to grow potatoes when spring comes.

 

Ficus elastica ‘Shivereana’

Ficus elastica ‘Shivereana’

Nicknamed “Moonshine,” this Ficus variety can be a fun addition to your indoor plant collection. If you know Ficus, this one does not behave differently than its relatives the Ficus Burgundy or Tineke. These plants grow upright, putting on new leaves from the top, they prefer very bright light and ask that you water them well when dry (letting the plant get fully dry will result in leaf drop). The Ficus Shivereana can acclimate to full sun, but start slowly. In Minnesota, the best placement of the Ficus Shivereana indoors would be a south or west window, with an added emphasis on turning the plants a quarter turn every couple weeks in the darker winter months (otherwise you will start to see a mean lean as the plant reaches for the sun). Feed monthly in the active growing months, March-September.

The Ficus Shivereana is known for its unique coloration, speckled green on ivory leaves. The fantastic newer growth will have pink sunrise/sunset tones with a significant pink vein running down the middle.

Repot your Ficus when the plant needs a larger base for stability, when you are struggling to keep it watered or soil volume seems to be depleted. In general, most Ficus like to be a bit root bound, so let her grow!

This plant is toxic to pets, as are all Ficus.

Ficus elastica 'Shivereana'