February 2024 Newsletter
If you’ve visited or driven past Unity Church Hill Nursery in the past couple weeks, you may have noticed a flurry of activity down in our main retail parking area as we’re making moves to update the retail space for the 2024 season! Our first move has been to extend our watering system across the very front of the property to supply water to our new shrub showcase area coming this Spring. Last year, the area between the highway and our greenhouses was created and used to showcase our ceramic planters all in one location and as additional production space for shrubs. For 2024, we’re hoping to showcase the full potential of our entire shrub catalog, both sourced and Unity-grown, with their own dedicated retail area where you’ll be able to see seemingly endless rows of woody plants with plenty of space to really see what each plant has to offer. While this project is still underway, stay tuned for more information a bit later in the spring!
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In addition to our new shrub showcase, we’re having a ton of new tables fabricated to allow us to display a larger volume and variety of perennials with increased accessibility! Previously our main retail area just beyond the parking lot was split between a few cramped tables with potted perennials and a shrub showcase area. We’re hopeful that for 2024 the addition of a higher number of waist-height tables will allow for a more open and easily accessible retail area dedicated solely to our perennials that puts our plants within easier reach of everyone who comes in to shop Unity’s catalog.
Mason Broderick, Nursery Sales & Production Associate
This time of year, our heated greenhouses are filling up quickly. We have been hard at work seeding for native perennials and grasses plus some herbs and vegetables. Right now, we have many trays of small seedlings that have just germinated. (Photo to left is Asclepias tuberosa.) In a few weeks, we'll start potting these up into larger containers - the perennials and grasses will go into our 50-count plug trays and herb and vegetables will be potted into our 4" pots for sale this spring.
Once again, we are offering the option to pre-order your herb and vegetable plants and schedule them for pick-up later when you are ready to plant your garden. We've just finished loading all of them onto our new website, so they are now ready to order. If you have any questions, please send them our way.
We've been overwintering rooted shrub cuttings that we took and propagated last summer in one of our greenhouses to protect them from extreme cold, but soon they will be moved to make room for the new perennial plugs and herb plants to grow out. Itea virginica (bottom right) and Ilex glabra (bottom left) rooted easily, but we also had some success with some new ones this past year including Blackhaw viburnum (Viburnum prunifolium) and Carolina Silverbell (Halesia carolina).
Theresa Mycek, Production Manager
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Unity Landscape Design/Build
January brought some cold, wet weather to our area, but our team has remained busy, focused, and excited.
In early January, members of the Unity team attended the Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show (MANTS) in Baltimore. This event was a great opportunity to reconnect with existing vendors and meet new growers and suppliers, as well as gain insight into the latest nursery and landscape products and trends. There were many beautiful displays – many of which included native plants.
Spring is right around the corner, and Unity Landscape Design/Build is ready to assist with all your landscape projects. We look forward to working with you again in 2024!
Sandy Appel, Chief Operations Officer
