Earth Day & Arbor Day!!!

They are coming up - our favorite days of the year!!! Earth Day is this Sunday, April 22 & Arbor Day is Friday, April 27!!! We have big plans this spring to plant trees with 9 area grade schools.  Please click on our ARBOR DAY CELEBRATION 2012 link to find out more. Here is a list of our upcoming celebrations. Come join us - it's lots of fun!!!

• South Wilmington Elementary School Mon, April 23 10:15am
• Gardner Elementary School Mon, April 23 11:40am
• Dwight Grade School Mon, April 23 3:10pm
• Mazon-Verona-Kinsman Elementary School Fri, April 27 10:30pm
• Immaculate Conception Elementary School Fri, April 27 12:30pm
• Seneca Elementary School Fri, April 27 2:00pm
• Braceville Elementary School Mon, April 30 10:00am
• Coal City Elementary School Mon, April 30 11:45am
• Saratoga Elementary School Mon, April 30 1:30pm

There has never been a better time to plant a tree. We invite you to celebrate with us this spring!!!

Notes from the Field

WOW! Who could have predicted the spring we have had so far this year! Record early temps here at the nursery have led to record digging & spring sales this season so far.  We have already dug, shipped, & yarded more trees this spring than we ever have in the month of March!  Check out our APRIL VIDEO produced by the "Kids of Spring Grove Nursery" to see a quick glimpse of what's been going on in the field.

Despite the weather challenges to get trees dug & out of the ground before breaking dormancy, our digging crews have kept up well in the field.  We have already shipped many of our field direct trees & by the end of next week, they will all be out & to our customers.  Due to the early warm-up, we moved up our Field Direct Special deadline to 4-15-12.  By then, everything will be settled nicely into our holding yard for supply throughout the rest of the season.

Our holding yard is filling up quickly with fresh dug trees fron the field.  On top of quickly getting our customer orders dug, we have been able to dig an ample supply of additional trees to supply projects for the rest of the season.  We only have about another week or two depending on weather & species to dig any additional deciduous trees.  Our window of digging evergreens will be probably through the rest of April.  If you are still waiting to place your spring order, now is the time to insure we will still have what you need!

On another note, it's also time to PLANT TREES! We have a terrific selection of new trees that are waiting to be planted.  We will be getting those in the ground over the next week, and we can't wait to start work on shaping your trees for the future!  If you have ever wanted to see how the planting or digging process works, this is a great time to visit the nursery.  Please stop by this spring & join in the fun - just a warning we will probably put you to work though!

"Grower's Choice" Trees & "Utility Friendly" Varieties

Here's a short list of great trees to go along with Becky's presentations this week on Selecting Trees for Tomorrow's Urban Forest.  Check out our picks in this link below:

"Grower's Choice" Shade Trees & "Utility Friendly" Trees

Selecting Trees for Tomorrow's Urban Forest

Next week, Becky will be presenting at 2 Tree City USA Conferences in Illinois. The first will be in Springfield to the Central IL Tree City communities.  The second will be in Zion to the Northern IL Tree City communities.  Becky will be speaking on "Selecting Trees for Tomorrow's Urban Forest".  Click the link below for a sneak peak at the presentation!

Plant Some Diversity This Spring!

At Spring Grove Nursery, we are committed to the health of urban forests in our local communities.  Planting a diverse selection of trees can reduce the threat of pests & diseases that target specific tree species, such as the Emerald Ash Borer beetle which kills Ash trees. We recently created a document  to help customers select good shade tree alternatives to Ash in the landscape.  We promote planting a diverse selection of trees in any project & this resource can be helpful in the decision process.

Shade Tree Alternatives to Ash PDF File 

Another recently published article in American Nurseryman magazine addressed this same issue.  The article titled "Ash Alternatives" was written by Jeff Iles from Iowa State.  We are proud to be growing many of the trees on his list.  "Ash Alternatives" Article in American Nurseryman

For a complete list of the diversity we grow at our nursery, check out our SGN Species Diversity List which can always be found on our Availability page of our website.   We are also proud to be digging several new tree varities this spring.  Check out the complete list in our Website Availability.

Another great way to try out some new trees this spring is with our exclusive SGN Tree Diversity Special.  Call us for more info on some terrific ideas & savings! 

Please call us anytime with questions on selecting the best trees for your projects.  We are happy to help! If new tree planting projects use a diverse palatte of trees, the landscape will thrive & flourish for many years to come!