Our bareroot berries have just arrived with the promise of delicious summer harvests. Choose from strawberries, blackberries, raspberries (red and yellow), and gooseberries. Pick up copies of our FREE Guides for variety descriptions as well as training and pruning information.  

Strawberries are divided into 2 groups, the spring-bearers and the everbearers. The spring-bearers bear more heavily but for a shorter period. They depend on length of daylight for signals of when to flower and fruit. Everbearers are "day-neutral," which means once they start blooming they flower and fruit all through the warm season. So far, we have received only one of each type but more are expected by the end of the month. 

Click here for descriptions of the strawberries we have ordered.

Blackberries and raspberries are closely related cane berries. We offer 4 blackberry varieties and 8 different raspberries. This year we also have Poorman gooseberries and jostaberries, which are a gooseberry/currant cross. 

Click here for descriptions of our cane berries. 

You can incorporate berries into your garden more easily than you might think. Strawberries can be grown as a groundcover or in pots, and cane berries can be grown against a fence, taking up little space while delivering bountiful sweet rewards. Come to Yamagami's Nursery and let us show you how to succeed with your berry own berries.

Stop Crabgrass Before It Begins! 

Every summer we get customers cursing the tough clumps of coarse grass that have conquered their lawn. Removing those low spreading clumps leaves big scars in your lawn and is a real pain in the back! The culprit is often crabgrass, which may have it gotten its name from making you so "crabby." Luckily, crabgrass can be prevented.

On of the keys to preventing crabgrass is understanding how it grows. This in turn will help you decide which cultural and chemical control options to use against it. Crabgrass is a warm-season annual grass that dies off every winter. It can only reappear the following year from germinating seeds that were created before the mother plants died. 

Crabgrass will not start germinating until soil temperatures consistently reach and stay at 60 degrees. This can be as early as February here and as late as May in the Northeast. (In a few very warm areas like South Florida and Hawaii, it can germinate year-round, so count your blessings!) 

Culturally, crabgrass prefers full sun, lots of moisture, and thin lawns that allow light to hit the soil. The thicker and more vigorous your lawn is, the less favorable an environment it is for the crabgrass. This means you should also keep your mowing height to between 2-3 inches for fewer crabgrass plants in your lawn. Also, avoid frequent lawn watering. As temperatures rise, water more deeply but less frequently.  

Crabgrass can be easily prevented with an application of Scotts Crabgrass Preventer Plus Lawn Fertilizer in January. It jump starts your lawn's spring growth while keeping crabgrass and other early germinating weed seeds from sprouting. If spotted spurge has been a problem, apply Scotts Crabgrass Preventer Plus Lawn Fertilizer again 8 weeks later to prevent late germinating weeds (like spurge and oxalis). Save your lawn (and your back) with Scotts Crabgrass Preventer Plus Lawn Fertilizer.

Dormant Sprays--A Spray in Time Saves Nine! 

Powdery mildew, peach leaf curl, aphids and other pests are lurking on the bare wood of dormant roses and fruit trees just waiting to attack tender new growth as it emerges in spring. Now is when those pests are most vulnerable and accessible to spraying. Dormant sprays are a one-two punch of Monterey Liqui-Cop to control a range of fungal problems and Vegol Year-Round Pesticidal Oil (canola oil based) to conquer over-wintering insects. 

For fruit trees, apply them both in January, first the Liqui-Cop, then when it is dry, the Vegol Year-Round Pesticidal Oil. Re-apply the Liqui-Cop in February as flower buds swell and just begin to crack open. This last spraying is especially important when battling peach leaf curl. It will help if you prune and remove any "mummies" (dried fruit from the previous season) before spraying.

For roses, pruning before spraying is important.  Additionally, you should remove any foliage that is still hanging on as it looks bad and will deflect the spray. Again, you want to apply the Liqui-Cop first, then when it is dry, the Vegol Year-Round Pesticidal Oil. 

Dormant sprays are more effective as preventatives than repeated growing season sprays are as curatives. Apply a dormant spray when we have a  48-hour window of dry weather anticipated, as a hard rain will wash it off and you will need to spray again. For more information about fruit trees, pick up a copy of our Fruit Tree Care Calendar. 

Roses aren't the only bloomers planted in the dormant season. Old-fashioned lilacs and peonies should be planted dormant for a glorious show later this spring. They're not much to look at now but in just a few months they will burst forth with beautiful blossoms. 

Our lilacs are Descanso hybrids, which means they were hybridized in Southern California. Descanso hybrids are not dependent on getting a hard frost to bloom well (like the varieties grown back east) and are more tolerant of dry heat. Look for Lavender Lady, Blue Skies and Angel White. Plant them in a sunny area for best flower production. 

Peonies are prized for their spectacular flowers. Tree peonies lose their leaves in the winter and grow slowly to 5 to 6 feet tall. Herbaceous (bush) peonies die all the way back to the ground and grow to 3 to 4 feet tall. Both perform especially well near a deciduous tree that will offer a little filtered shade during the blooming season but will allow maximum frost exposure in the winter. Bush forms need exposure to frost and can be grown in large pots. Just move their pots to an open area in the winter then back to a little filtered shade during their bloom. Tree peonies are less dependent on cold for blossoming.

Come into Yamagami's Nursery while selection is good for a spectacular spring display. Let one of our knowledgeable staff help you find a place in your garden for one of these old-fashioned beauties.

Brush up on your winter gardening skills with a little help from Yamagami’s Nursery. Resident experts and a couple of local professionals share their expertise in pruning and winter garden maintenance. Classes generally last between 1 and 2 hours with plenty of time afterward for questions. Although classes are held under cover, we recommend dressing warmly and bringing a cushion for your folding chair. Space is limited so prepaid registration is requested. Walk-ins will be allowed only as space permits.  

Winter Rose Care Class with Lorena Gorsche. Lorena, Yamagami’s rose expert, will cover pruning, dormant spraying and general rose care for healthy plants and spectacular blooming. Lorena emphasizes a natural, least toxic possible approach to rose growing. Fee of $20 is rebated as a $20 coupon for merchandise good for a week after the class. Space is limited so prepaid registration is requested. Walk-ins will be allowed only as space permits. Sessions offered Sat., Jan. 12 at 10 AM, Wed. Jan 16 at 10 AM, Sun, Jan. 20 at 2 PM and Sun, Feb. 3 at 2 PM.  

Winter Fruit Tree Care with Bradley Strawhorn. Bradley, a pruning specialist trained at Melbourne University in Australia, will demonstrate basic fruit tree pruning techniques and tools, then discuss dormant spraying and general fruit tree care. Fee of $20 is rebated as a $20 coupon for merchandise good for a week after the class. Space is limited so prepaid registration is requested. Walk-ins will be allowed only as space permits. Sessions offered Sat. Jan 12 at 2 PM and Sunday. Jan 13 at 2 PM. 

Pruning 101 with Alan Tagami, Landscape Consultant. Many plants benefit from winter pruning, but some do not. Learn from an expert what and how to prune in winter. Alan will cover tools and techniques for the home gardener. Fee of $20 is rebated as a $20 coupon for merchandise good for a week after the class. Space is limited so prepaid registration is requested. Walk-ins will be allowed only as space permits. Sessions offered Sat. Jan. 19 at 10AM and 2 PM and again Sun. Feb 10 at 2 PM. 

New! Advanced Fruit Tree Pruning and Shaping with Mark Barton, Certified Arborist. Learn how to lower an overgrown, previously unpruned tree; how to espalier a tree, and how to maximize harvest in limited space. Fee of $20 is rebated as a $20 coupon for merchandise good for a week after the class. Space is limited so prepaid registration is requested. Walk-ins will be allowed only as space permits. Sessions offered Sun. Jan 27 at 2 PM, and Sat. Feb. 2 at 10 AM and 2 PM. 

The ever-popular Pruning Japanese Maples with Alan Tagami, Landscape Consultant. Learn how to bring out the natural beauty of your trees. Fee of $20 is rebated as a $20 coupon for merchandise good for a week after the class. Space is limited so prepaid registration is requested. Walk-ins will be allowed only as space permits. Sessions offered Sat. Feb. 16 at 10 AM and 2 PM, Sun. Feb. 17 at 2 PM, and Sat 2/23 at 10 AM.

FREE Citrus Tasting hosted by Van’s Nursery. Sample various winter-ripening citrus fruit to discover which you want to grow in YOUR garden. Saturday, Feb. 9 from 10 AM to 2 PM.