Roses Are Blooming

Well, lots of things have been going on at Ironstone gardens. We changed from bulbs to azaelas and now we have changed to summer color. So many flowers blooming, the roses have never looked better. All the road roses have bloomed at the same time, that has never happened before. All my miniature roses are also blooming. I've included some pictures of them. The girls have gotten all our summer flowers planted and everything fertilized...that's a huge job! I really have the greatest crew of people working with me, smart and hard working.
Between all of the normal yard work we are doing, we have 5 weedeaters working 6 hours a day to help fireproof around the winery. Sara, the dog is helping to keep the roads watered in our water truck.
We had our first concert last Sunday, it went really well, everyone worked extra hard to get everything ready. It shows when things go well and everyone works together. Just some small damage to the gardens, mostly from the stage set up crew. It can't be helped with lots of cords to run and they move very fast. But since the gardens should look beautiful all the time, we put them back in order and move on to the next event. We modified a spot in the garden to give concert tents more room, nobody will even notice. After concert season it will make a nice seating area. Well that's all for now, thanks for checking in...the garden guy.

Azaleas In Full Bloom

Hi, spring is in full force, the azaleas are almost in full bloom, color is everywhere. Dogwoods are blooming, Dutch Iris, Bearded Iris and much,much more. Have been busy getting ready for the concert series that starts in June. Larry M. and the guys are working hard enlarging our food court areas. The girls are busy planting summer color even though winter color is still looking great. Just fertilized the lawns, boy did they turn green fast!
Still pruning the maples. We had our first baby geese born, they sure are cute little puff balls, too bad they grow up to be big geese that poop everywhere. Mick is getting ready to harvest the hay, be nice to get it harvested. Good to fill the barn with new hay (the horses like it too).
Come see the azaleas and say hi. Thanks for checking in, bye for now, the garden guy.

The Azaleas are Blooming

Hi, things have been really busy, still pruning maple trees, takes lots of time when you have hundreds of them. I love those trees, each one has its own character. Azaleas are at 25%, should be more, but weather has been cold except last weekend. Now it's raining AGAIN! Dogwoods are 85% in bloom, tulips, daffodils and dutch iris are still looking good. On cold days Boots is always looking for the warmest car to take a nap on. Some of our bushes we have in half barrels needed to be replanted. We don't want them to become root-bound, so we pull them, trim the roots a little and replant them. They always seem happier afterwards
We are all getting ready for the concert season, everyone is working very hard, but thats part of the fun working at Ironstone. Come up and see everything in bloom and say hi. Thanks for checking in, bye for now, the garden guy.

Snow....Again!!

Hi, well it happened again, Monday we put everything under cover because of the rain, good thing, because Tuesday morning it not only rained but it snowed! Can't take a chance on things freezing, especially the summer flowers...never be fooled by early warm days, if you plant too early you may be replacing what you planted.
It rained so much that I lowered our lake 4 inches, best not to take a chance. I had to bring a load of wine back to Lodi, so we left early and spent the rest of the day working at John Kautz's yard and gardens. Still lots of flowers to see so come up and see us. Bye for now, the garden guy.

More Flowers Blooming

Hi, the tulips and daffodils are still holding on. This last week there has been so many people up looking at the flowers. The joy they bring to people makes the work worth it. I'm so lucky to be working for a family willing to fund such a beautiful garden.
I was pruning trees last week, I got a kick out of how much brush my guys can put in a gator and trailer, so I took this picture. The flowering cherries are blooming now, beautiful small multi-ruffled pink flowers. I added a couple pictures of tulips, these colors are spectacular!! Still pruning maples, the azaeleas will probably be in full bloom if the weather stays warm, but they are expecting rain this Tuesday and Wednesday, this may change their schedule. Dogwood are getting ready to bloom, we have pinks and whites..this is a very popular tree when blooming.
Well, that's all for now, thanks for checking in, the garden guy.

The Sunshine is Back!

Hi, flowers are back out until the next storm, still looking beautiful, lots of Dutch Iris, Tulips and Daffodils. As you can see by my picture, the Azaelas are starting to open. If the weather stays warm, it won't be long until they are in full bloom. Looks like they will look good for Mothers Day, so don't forget to come up for Mothers Day Brunch!
Boots the cat walked up to me this morning after a hard night of hunting...ha ha, and told me to take some pictures of him in front of the flowers, I said ok just to prove we still have lots of flowers. John Kautz went to visit a grower friend of his and came back with a whole bunch of beautiful orchids. We put them in the tasting room, I think we are going to sell some of them while they last.
Got sidetracked while pruning maples after that last wind storm, had to fix and prune the Italian Cypress. They don't do well in wind and have a tendency to spread and separate. Make sure you check out Ironstone's website to see everything that is going on, the concerts are all listed now.
Thanks for checking in on me, bye for now, the garden guy.

Rainy Day Sunday

Hi, Friday and Saturday, another great day at Ironstone gardens. Today, Sunday, rain, high winds, glad I put the flowers under cover AGAIN, wind and rain don't do well with tulips. Maybe this will be the last time this year. The crew started planting seeds and baby plants from plug flats to 4" pots to get them started, that way we can put them under cover if it snows or freezes. Sarah, the dog, is watching the progress, she would rather be planting than watching, she is smart enough.
We're giving our ivy geraniums in baskets a much needed sunning, they have been inside all winter. The geranium plants are about 10 or 12 years old now and still looking good. Our baby roses are all leafed out now, hope there isn't any more freezes, no room to put them inside. Next week going to start pruning Japanese Maples, lots of them to prune..several hundred. Well, bye for now, the garden guy.