Thyme, Patchouli, Rosemary, Lavender and more! Here’s an inside look at some of our herbs that are big enough to be repotted into their new homes! We’ve been growing our crops for months now, starting from seeds that sprout in our germination chamber, and eventually grow big enough to replant into larger pots. ( If you read our previous blog, “Tis The Season To Plant Seedlings“, you’ll enjoy the before and after pictures of some of our plants! )

They’ll continue growing in our approximately four inch pots until they ship directly to your door! Do you see any plants that you’ve ordered for your spring garden in these pictures? We’ll begin shipping in Mid March, starting with  zones 8-11, so they’ll be arriving before you know it! Wondering when your plants will ship? Click here!

Here’s a close up of our little Patchouli plants. At about two inches tall, they’re ready for to be repotted this week. Such beautiful, green growth! The process of growing plants is still an amazing experience to me. It’s truly a proud moment when you see your finished product, a lush, healthy herb plant, that you’ve known since it was a tiny seed, and you know that it will really make a difference in someone’s home or garden because of the care you’ve given it. We feel like proud papas down in the greenhouse when we begin to ship these little guys!

While everyone is running around finishing holiday shopping, we’re busier than Santa’s elves in our greenhouse. Introducing a few new techniques and tricks of the trade, we’ve been hard at work planting and preparing our herbs and flowers for their debut this spring. Hand-planted and all grown in our greenhouse, we get to know the different personalities of these plants like old friends. For instance,we know that though aromatic and beautiful, Lavender can be cranky about too much water. Or that Horehound, a medicinal herb and cousin to Mint, is easy going and grows quickly. Knowing our plants from the time they germinate allows us to have the best quality control over what we sell, and we have high standards for our plants because if we wouldn’t want it in our own garden, we won’t ship it. This is the benefit to a family-owned nursery versus a big box store or corporate grower. We care about the plants we grow. Like an anxious, proud papa, I eagerly check the germination chamber constantly each week to see if any “due dates” have arrived early.

Looks like some of the first Betony seeds are beginning to sprout!

Stay posted for more pictures and news on how your favorite herbs and flowers are growing! You can actually watch the progress of your order, from their inception in our greenhouse, to their maturity in your garden. Order these babies now and reserve yours for spring shipping, because the early bird does get the worm!

Here at The Growers Exchange, we’re excited to say we have officially started our annual employee vegetable garden!  We have started our early spring greens, broccoli, and cabbage, and have added a few herbs to the mix as companion plants.

Broccoli and the entire cabbage family (including cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, collards, and brussel sprouts) grow wonderfully with aromatic herbs such as dill, chamomile, sage, rosemary, hyssop, and thyme.  All members of the cabbage family are heavy feeders, and will greatly benefit from nearby, healthy, herb plants– plants who will double as insect repellents!  Although the white cabbage butterfly is not harmful and can help pollinate, its pesky caterpillars are the ones who will chomp away at and destroy your crop.  Aromatic herbs will help keep these hungry little guys away.

White Sage is one of our most popular perennial herb plants.  Native to Southwestern United States, the whitish leaves contain oils and resins that become released when rubbed.  Bees love this aromatic herb and its flowers so much, it is sometimes called Bee Sage.

We’ve been thinking about white sage here in the greenhouse for months!  One of our slowest-germinating plants, we started sowing these guys all the way back in November.  We’ve nursed them all winter, and we are proud to say they are finally ready to graduate to your garden!

White Sage is a water-conserving plant and therefore does not require a lot of water.  Water only when dry, and be sure to provide well-drained soil and full sun.  The hardiness and low-maintenance of this plant makes it a great player in stabilizing degraded areas.

White sage is pretty easy to prune.  Remember that it should grow into a bush, and not a trailing plant.  To encourage your plant to grow up, and not out, pruning trailing vines will encourage new, bushier growth.

The Stevia plant is native to South America, and has long been grown for its sweet leaves.  Stevia extract contains up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar!  This beautiful little plant is quickly becoming a popular natural sugar substitute.  Although it is sweet, stevia is also known to contain natural insect-repelling properties, bypassed by aphids, grasshoppers, and other harmful pests. (The production of their super sweetness found in the plant’s leaves, is actually a deterrent to insects who can’t stand such an overdose of sugary flavor!)

Stevia is difficult to grow from seed because many places do not carry stevia seeds and it can be difficult to germinate them at home- so let us do all of the hard work for you!  Our stevia plants are well-established and ready to be added right to your garden.  Stevia is relatively sensitive to cold climates, so be sure any threat of frost has dissipated and soil temperatures are above 50 degrees before you plant outside.  Stevia likes well-drained, rich and loamy soils.  Add some compost to the top of your beds– the shallow roots will soak the nutrients right up.

Are you a container-gardener?  Stevia is quite versitile and will grow great in pots on your porch, balcony, or windowsill as well.