May Update - Shipping, New Plants, Apparel and OPEN HOUSE!!!

Just a quick update for everyone. We're still chilly here in the north and haven't started shipping yet. We're hoping to start in 2 weeks or so, based on how plants are looking. Last year's plants are just now emerging from dormancy and this year's plants are still growing and rooting in. We have a record number of orders this year, so please be patient. If you have questions about your order, please let us know. 

We did just add 17 varieties of witch hazel to the store. If you didn't notice, check them out! We're usually adding things throughout the season, it's worth checking in occasionally. 
Hamamelis - Witch Hazel | Botanophilia LLC

We've also updated our logo design and therefore our shirts etc. You can buy them here

We're having our first open house! June 4-6, 2021. 10am-5pm. Directions here Come by to shop some plants. Our gardens aren't much to look at since they're so young, but you're welcome to see them. Masks required and distancing encouraged. 

Spring!

The official first day of spring is a few days away now. Soil, pots, and miscellaneous supplies arrive on Monday and our first plants arrive later next week. Tags for those plants have already arrived and we're getting excited!

Last year saw unprecedented sales for the horticulture industry. Retailers sold out of stock as quickly as it could be gotten. This year is no different so far and our sales are up tremendously even from last year. THANK YOU to everyone who has already placed an order! Increased sales nation-wide has led to shortages in the industry - even for mundane items like soils, mulches, tools, etc! We've already sold out of some plants. If you're browsing the website and thinking about placing an order, I encourage you not to wait too long. If we don't have something you're looking for, get in touch; it might be something we're interested in selling! Even if we can't get it this year because of shortages, we already have shipments of new plants booked through July of 2022! 

We are still adding items to the site for spring. We just added some of the Feathered Friends Ajuga series. There are some other plants that we'll add once they arrive next month and we get a look at them. And I'll be placing an order for a few more yet this week and will add them as soon as I can. 

The Covid-19 pandemic is still a problem but is slowly getting under control. We are offering nursery pickup by appointment this year. I am still immunocompromised after last year's chemotherapy; masks and distancing will be required regardless of vaccination or health status (I'm hoping to get mine soon!). If you can't or don't want to wear a mask to pick up plants, then please select the shipping option when checking out. We are also looking forward to participating in events that follow public safety guidelines. We're happy to announce that we'll once again be at the Green Bay Botanic Garden Garden Fair in June! If you organize or know of an event that we should participate in that will follow masking and distancing guidelines this year, please let us know. I'm hoping in 2022 we can have more normal events, so feel free to contact us for those future events too! 

Nick

A big thanks to all my customers and their patience this past season! The website is more or less up to date. We may add a few things yet and crop failures and shortages can still happen. I'm feeling the Christmas spirit (or perhaps just the THANK GOD 2020 IS ALMOST OVER spirit), so we're offering free shipping on all orders over $100 placed before January 2nd. Use code FreeShip21 at checkout to get the discount.

Fall Updates

 2020 has been quite a year. We were frozen until May which really delayed shipping, we also had a fair bit of winter mortality because of the late freezing weather which meant refunding quite a bit. The Covid-19 pandemic cancelled pretty much every plant event in the country. We underwent a platform change for Square which caused some technical issues. On top of all that, I was diagnosed with stomach cancer and underwent surgery and treatment, which caused further shipping delays. Despite all of that, we didn't have as bad a year as we could have; thanks to wonderful and patient customers and suppliers! 

2021 is already shaping up to be a better season. I'm ordering more plants to make available and slowly working on getting the website updated. The pandemic hasn't gone away and there's no telling what the events schedule will look like, but I suspect in person events will be a ways off. We're hoping to have limited pickup available at the nursery for any who want to stop by.

I'm including the entire tentative new plants list here, but some highlights include Cypripedium orchids for fall shipping, Primula Belarina series, Aquilegia Kirigami Mix, and of course more new Heuchera and Hosta! We are, of course, done shipping until May now, but Gift Cards are available in the meantime. 

This list is very much subject to change as there are industry-wide plant shortages, some of them won't be available until Fall. I'll post another update when this is finalized and the website is finished.

Anemone Wild Swan
Aquilegia Kirigami Mix
Astilbe Ostrich Plume
Athyrium felix femina Lady In Red
Calycanthus Athens
Carex appalachica
Cypridpedium Schoko
Cypripedium Barry Phillips
Cypripedium Emil
Cypripedium Frosch's Mountain King
Cypripedium Gisela
Cypripedium Michael
Cypripedium Sabine
Cypripedium Tilman
Cypripedium Victoria
Epimedium Pink Panther
Fothergilla Blue Mist
Geranium Crane Dance
Hamemelis mollis Pallida
Helleborus California Dreaming
Helleborus French Kiss
Helleborus Maid of Honor
Helleborus Rio Carnival
Helleborus Vegas Nights
Heuchera Bronze Wave
Heuchera Frilly
Heuchera Frosted Violet
Heuchera Green Spice
Heuchera Paris
Heuchera Peachberry Ice
Heuchera Pink Panther
Heuchera Stainless Steel
Heuchera Timeless Night
Heuchera Toffee Tart
Heuchera Wild Rose
Hosta Ambrosia
Hosta Appletini
Hosta Crumb Cake
Hosta Fruit Loop
Hosta Guardian Angel
Hosta Hudson bay
Hosta Lakeside Paisley Print
Hosta Lemon Zinger
Hosta Millennium
Hosta Parthenon
Hosta Pixie Vamp
Hosta Poseidon
Hosta Waterslide
Hosta Wonderland
Hydrangea serrata O Amacha Nishiki
Iris pseudata Yarai
Ligularia Britt Marie Crawford
Parrotia subaequalis
Podophyllum Kaleidoscope
Polygonatum odoratum Ruby Slippers
Primula Belarina Blue Champion
Primula Belarina Lively Lilac
Primula Belarina Nectarine
Primula Belarina Pink Ice
Primula Belarina Valentine
Schizophragma hydrangeoides Moonlight
Syneleisis aconitifolia
Thalictrum Black Stockings
Tiarella Pink Skyrocket
Vitis vinifera 'Purpurea'

Shipping Delays

Just a heads up that because of our cold weather up until now, we haven't started shipping yet. Plants are still mostly dormant to just emerging, so we're looking at closer to June for shipping. New plants are equally behind and may need extra time to develop root growth. Warm weather has arrived so I'm hoping plants explode into growth and we can get a bunch of orders out by the end of the month. I'll try to keep you updated!

Online Shop Now Open!

Our web store is now open for orders. As always we start shipping in May as plants become ready. We live in the north so some plants may be ready later than others. For a list of what's new, visit this post: http://www.iloveshadeplants.com/2020/03/spring-is-almost-here.html

Spring Is Almost Here

Spring is nearly upon us! Plants arrive soon, last year's plants will start waking up in about a month, and the online store will be open starting sometime next week! We've got most of our vendor contracts in or in process for the season, see our events section for details!

Here's a list of new plants and plants returning after a brief absence:

Acer pseudoplatanus 'Esk Sunset'

Achillea 'Sassy Summer Sangria'

Actaea (Cimicifuga) simplex 'Chocoholic'

Actaea (Cimicifuga) simplex 'Pink Spike'

Aralia cordata 'Sun King' (2020 PPA Perennial of the Year)

Astilbe 'August Light'

Astilbe 'Beauty of Ernst'

Astilbe 'Maggie Daley'

Athyrium felix-femina 'Dre's Dagger'

Athyrium niponicum 'Crested Surf'

Cirsium rivulare 'Trevor's Blue Wonder'

Corydalis flexuosa 'Porcelain Blue'
Cystopteris bulbifera

Davidia involucrata 'Kylee's Columnar'

Dicentra spectablis 'Goldheart'
Eupatorium 'Polished Brass'

Ginkgo biloba 'Folkert's Select'

Ginkgo biloba 'Thelma'

Hamamelis x intermedia 'Arnold Promise'

Hamamelis x intermedia 'Diane'

Hamamelis x intermedia 'Jelena'

Hamamelis x intermedia 'Primavera'

Helleborus 'Flower Girl'

Helleborus 'Romantic Getaway'

Helleborus 'Sandy Shores'

Helleborus 'Tropical Sunset'

Heuchera 'Black Pearl'

Heuchera 'Mahogany Monster'

Heuchera 'Timeless Glow'

Hosta 'Blue Lettuce'

Hosta 'Blueberry Waffles'

Hosta 'Gypsy Rose'
Hosta 'Hasta Manana'

Hosta 'Skylight'

Hosta 'Snake Eyes'

Iris x robusta 'Gerald Darby'
Ligularia dentata 'Pandora'

Phlox stolonifera 'Sherwood Purple'
Polemonium 'Heaven Scent'

Salix petrophila

Thalictrum delavayi 'Hewitt's Double'
Veronicastrum virginicum 'Queen of Diamonds'