Category Archives: seasonal

Paul Mahoney on XMAS Trees

Guinevere Cramer from PLUM TV stops by Jardin Mahoney for the dirt on Christmas trees – when to buy them, how to make them last, and what to do with those extra loose branches.

Best of 2011

Thanks to all of our supporters for voting Jardin Mahoney Best Garden Center/Nursery on Martha’s Vinyard for the 4th year in a row!

Hanging Baskets!

Hanging baskets are in full bloom here at Jardin Mahoney. Hangers are the perfect punch of full color to complement any home. For instant gratification, hangers can be used in containers, garden beds, or even window boxes for full color FAST!

5 Tomato Growing Tips

1. Location. Location. Location.

Tomatoes need a minimum of 5 hours of direct sunlight. If you don’t got that, you’re going to be disappointed. If you don’t have such a spot, or if you don’t even have a garden, one trick is to plant in a container on wheels, and roll the thing around to catch the sun. (Yeah, people actually do that). Either way, when you plant don’t crowd – it reduces your yield and makes plants more prone to disease.

2. Good Dirt Produces Good Gardens.

Good soil is the foundation of your garden. To determine how good your soil is, dig a hole and get your hands in the dirt. If it’s a rich dark loamy soil, then you’re lucky and you don’t need to do much. Make sure it is loose; ideally you should be able to work the soil easily with your tools or even your hands. If it’s dense or heavy add some lobster compost to lighten it up. A little peat moss is good, too. Or if you’re not so lucky and your soil is packed clay or a pile of sand, you’ll still want to add compost and peat moss – you may just need a lot more. If it’s really, really bad soil you may want to completely replace it with compost.

3. Feed Your Garden.

Compost is great, but it doesn’t have the nutrients your plants will need for the entire season. I like to add a good quality organic fertilizer such as Tomato-tone. Add some when you first plant, and twice a month throughout the growing season. You will notice a HUGE jump in productivity.

4. Mulch and Water Go Hand in Hand.

After you’re done planting spread some mulch around each plant. I like to use hay but any mulch will help retain moisture in the soil and keep weeds down. Watering must be done when Mother Nature doesn’t do it for you. Most veggies need about 1-2 inches of water a week. If they’re not getting it they will usually tell you by wilting a bit. Don’t let them go too dry as this slows production and quality of the yield.

5. An ounce of prevention…

While tomatoes aren’t hard to grow they can be vulnerable to insects, fungus and disease. The best idea is to address the problem ahead of the curve – it’s easier and more effective. My preference is a neat product called Tomato & Vegetable 3 in 1 by Bonide. It deals with all 3 issues. It’s really easy to use; just spray it directly on the plant. It not only prevents and controls fungus and disease, it also kills insects and their eggs – so they don’t pop up again later. Best of all it’s a water-based organic solution so you can use it up to the day of harvest.

Well there you go: 5 easy tips to tomato heaven. All that’s left is to enjoy yourself – don’t forget you’re supposed to be having fun. Good luck and we’re here to help you along the way if you need it.

Summer Gardening Trends

Sissy Biggers catches up with Paul Mahoney of Jardin Mahoney on the roof of the Mansion House to discuss trends for outdoor and indoor plants this summer on the Vineyard.

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day weekend is here! It’s the unofficial start to summer and things at Jardin Mahoney are in full swing! The store is packed to the brim with fabulous color, beautiful trees + shrubs, perennials, and all the materials and know-how to help you color your island. We’ve got a few cool specials to tell you about this weekend. Stay tuned for fantastic features and specials throughout the summer!

Cool New Plants for 2011

Paul talks to Plum TV about the cool new plants for 2011. Paul talks about some stunning new blossoms, including blue orchids, black petunias and bursting begonias!

Shellfish Allergies & Compost

Coast of Maine gets several calls from gardeners who are concerned about exposing themselves, or their loved ones, to possible shellfish allergens.

People who are allergic to shellfish are actually reacting to a muscle protein, called a tropomyosin, in the shrimp, crab or lobster. It’s not the shells that cause allergies. According to an article in the N.Y. Times citing research in India and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, tropomyosins are in all muscle tissue and there are specific variations within different groups of animals. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/28/health/studies-unmask-protein-culprit-behind-allergy-to-shrimp.html

Shellfish tropomyosin may cause various allergic reactions in some people, just as proteins found in milk, grains or peanuts affect others.

The good news is we’ve never had a single call from anyone reacting to our lobster compost and here’s why: By the time the composting process is complete, there’s no protein left! Composting is a systematic biological degradation of the “food” in the mix. If you have a compost recipe including lobster shell residuals and wood shavings, it’s a full meal for the composting microbes. They will “eat” the protein to get nitrogen to build their own proteins and consume the carbon-rich wood shavings to power their activities. Lots of heat, moisture, and gases are released in the process…. That’s why active compost piles are hot and steamy.

When choosing what to “eat” first, the compost microbes go for the low hanging fruit first – The proteins and sugars. The proteins in a finished and stable shellfish compost are long gone, so grab that bag of Quoddy Lobster Compost and make your vegetable garden happy!

From the Coast of Maine website.  Click the image above for a direct link.

Welcome Spring

veggie seeds

We’re back and open again for the Spring Season!  Even with a few warm days it is still a little cold out, and the warm weather of Spring may still be a couple of weeks off, but now is a great time to start getting ready for those warm days on the way.  From the annual garden clean up and preparing flower and vegetable beds, to the task of working for that perfect lawn this is a great time to plan and get organized.  We have plenty of  tips and gardening supplies for getting ready with vegetable gardens and flower beds as well as finding a smart way to work on having a nice lawn.  Don’t forget now is a great time to get started planting seeds for your vegetable garden, with a great selection of seeds, potting supplies and soil mixes, we have everything you need to get growing.

To welcome Spring we have a great assortment of flowering plants from tulips and daffodils to pansies and other Spring favorites.  We’ve also brought in a great selection of Orchids from Hawaii as well as a nice mix of other easy to grow tropical plants to brighten up your home or work place or as a nice gift for a friend.

This year there are many new plant introductions which are really kind of cool!  Proven Winners has a few new  introductions including  Supertunia ‘Pretty Much Picasso’ and a new Hydrangea called ‘Incrediball’ as well as many others, there will be plenty of new things to try out in the garden. Look for new varieties in many of your favorite perennials such as more of the ‘Big Sky’ Coneflowers which are just stunning!  We are also expanding our selection of native plants with plenty of ideas and help to find the right place to use native plants for greatest effect in the garden.

Getting started on your lawn?  We’re coming into that time for lime and fertilizer as well as finding solutions for weed, disease and insect control.  We have the solutions as well as plenty of good ideas on how to develop a care plan that works for you.  We also carry a great selection of organic products as well as suggestions on how to make organics a practical solution for your lawn care.

We welcome you to stop by and say Hi! and let us know what we can do to help make your gardening experience more pleasurable this season.

Thanks,  Paul Mahoney

Pansies and Violas Are Here and In Bloom!

Our Pansies and Violas are here and in bloom!  We have many colors and varieties to choose from in handle packs, 6 packs, flats, 4″ and 6″ pots.  Located in front of our gazebo and in our greenhouse.  Our violas and pansies are partially hardened-off and are ok to go outside but should be protected from frost.