The shirt Maddy picked out.

Kim had a birthday a few weeks ago and one of her presents was a shopping trip with her mom. So they made a girls trip of it and took Abby and Maddy along too. They had a good time, and Kim found some new jogging shoes. The girls were troopers for the day. When you are 5 and 8, popping in and out of stores is not usually on the top on your list of things to do. But the girls were content to tag along, try on shoes and clothes and enjoy the day together.

Our girls aren't big about asking for things when out shopping, but towards the end of the day, Maddy did have one request. It was the t-shirt pictured at right. That's it, that's all she wanted. A shirt about gardening. We don't often cave to random requests, but in this case, it wasn't too expensive and was perfect given our business. It has quickly become her favorite shirt and you'll find her in it day after day.

Exactly what it takes to make your garden grow.

But the real reason that it is has become her favorite shirt is pretty funny. Look at the top picture. Then look at the bottom picture. What do you see that's different? Yup. There is a poop emoji on the shirt. But in the top picture, the size sticker is directly over it. Maddy didn't pick the shirt for that reason, it was covered up at the store. But it has become her favorite shirt because Mommy bought her a shirt with poop on it. If you've been a regular reader of this newsletter over the last few years, then you know that Maddy is our little jokester. This shirt fits her personality perfectly. Flowers, rainbows, bumblebees and a poop emoji thrown in for good measure.

And the shirt isn't lying. You need all of those things to make your gardens grow: nice rain showers, plenty of sun, pollinators and if you're really into your gardening, then a little manure thrown in too. Fortunately, we've had plenty of all of them lately so your gardens should be doing nicely.

This weekend, we're going to help you work on your butterfly gardens. With the mild winter, the butterflies were active early this season, devouring milkweed and feasting on pentas just as quick as they pleased. It's the perfect time to get a butterfly garden planted so on Saturday at 10am please join us for the Butterfly Gardening Seminar. We'll go through the life cycle of a butterfly and show you how to turn your garden into a butterfly hangout. Also, with Easter on its way, don't forget about the 9th Annual Easter Egg Hunt on April 20th at 10am sharp. Come see how many minutes it takes for the kids to find 3000 eggs. I promise, it's fun to watch. 

The Weekly Special
BeeBright Pentas
2 for $10
6" Pot, Regular Price - $6.99
Offer valid through 4/14/19

You know pentas are butterfly magnets. But this penta is extra special. It only grows 12 to 14 inches tall and blooms continuously almost all year long. Add butterfly magic to your garden and save a little money at the same time. This week, they are just 2 for $10.

Add butterfly magic to your life and garden.

Garden Tip
Gardening for Butterflies

There is nothing like seeing the first butterfly of the season in your garden. If you are new to butterfly gardening, or just want to attract as many as possible, check out the tips below and don't forget to join us this Saturday at 10am for the Butterfly Gardening Seminar.

1) Start with Nectar Plants - Nectar plants are food for the adult butterflies. Pentas, salvia, firecracker, firebush . . . there are so many to choose from. Before you head on to host plants like milkweed, make sure you've got plenty of flowers for the butterflies to feed on.

2) Hide Host Plants - Host plants are food for the caterpillars. Design your garden so that host plants like milkweed are hidden by other prettier plants. When caterpillars start eating, they can be voracious and you may not have much of the host plants left.

3) Don't use pesticides - on or near your butterfly garden. Even organic insecticides are intended to kill insects and, as pretty as they are, butterflies are still bugs. We often get asked about aphids and milkweed bugs. Control aphids by pruning and disposing of affected branches and leaves, or by introducing ladybugs into your butterfly garden. For milkweed bugs, it's the old flick and squish that tends to work the best.

4) Plant a variety - To attract butterflies of all shapes and sizes, plant flowers of different shapes, colors and sizes. A butterfly's feeding appendage is called a proboscis and each species has one of a slightly different size, so a variety of flowers creates the best opportunity for all types of butterflies to find food.

5) Be a little wild - Your HOA may not approve, but leaving some of your yard wild and overgrown provides shelter, wild food sources and puddling opportunities for butterflies. You'll have the most consistent butterfly populations if there are wild areas near or in your yard.
Now get out and enjoy!

Store Hours
Monday - Saturday,  9am - 5:30pm
Sunday,  11am - 4pm