We've  decided to use  air-pruning containers  for  the majority of  our nursery production. Wondering what an air-pruning container is ?  Would you like  your plant material growing in  a pot that  v irtually eliminates transplant shock resulting in less plant loss and faster first year growth ,  provides  360˚    aeration  which  produces a dense, fibrous root system ready to explode with new growt h, produces s trong and fibrous root growth  which  encourages rapid nutrient uptake ensuring stronger, healthier plants ,  maximize s  root health which translates into bigger, healthier plants and trees ?  Us too!  

 

This month   w e  are   continuin g  to construct  and  prepar e   our  new plant production areas here at the nursery .     The  ar ea   adjacent  to  our main office and showroom  where the large specimen   trees   were previously located  has  been transformed and   is now solely   dedicated to growing  native  specime n  container  trees .  W e've  re - graded  the entire area ,  installed  landscape fabric , and next we will  update our irrigation system .

We are just about to fire up the heaters in our plug production greenhouses   and

begin  production of native herbaceous perennials , but first   David is working hard to  upgrad e the  watering system  with  automatic irrigation  to increase efficiency and reduce our cost of production  in the long run .  In the month s ahead ,  we will shift from  construction and improvements to  production of herbaceous plugs, perennials, ferns, shrubs and trees.  

As  Spring  is just around the corner, now is a great time to  plan  for  additions to your landscape.  We currently have trees and shrubs in stock and available for sale, and we will soon be bringing in more inventory to supplement what we plan on growing ourselves. As an additional incentive, t here are  currently two rebate programs available  which  make it more affordable to plant native trees  and more .  For residents of Maryland,  the  Marylanders Plant Trees  program offers   $25 off the purchase of  a   qualifying  native  tree with a retail value of at least $50.  Also ,   ShoreRivers   is

offering a River-Friendly Yards  40%  Rebate Program  for residents of Kent and Queen Anne's Counties .   Receive a rebate of 40%  with a rebate cap of  $200 per person on purchases of native plants  purchased at partner businesses. For more information contact us or visit  https://www.shorerivers.org/river-friendly-yards .  Rebates are offered on a first - come, first-served basis while funding lasts .  

Attached is a  list of  native trees and shrubs  currently  available at Unity which reflects the sale price with the reba te and/or the Maryland  Plants Trees discount applied.  You can call in or stop by to make your selections while supplies  and  rebate funds are sti ll a v ailable .  (UCHN Native Tree and Shrub Availability List)

 

Our landscape design and build team is steady  at work putting together designs, permits and proposals for  many upcoming projects.  Right  now  the range  of  projects  in progress  includes  large scale  s hor e line  erosion contr ol  projects, storm water man age ment  projects,  native meadow installs and renovations ,  comprehensive residential pr ojects, patio renovations, new hardscape   installations , low voltage lighting systems,  planning for updating irrigation systems with soil moisture monitoring systems  to reduce water usage and more.   Now is the ideal time to get  together with our design ers  and estimators to get your project on the schedule for the 2020 season.   

	Cliff training our team on new equipment

Cliff and Ole have been busy at  work

putting the 2020 schedule together and filling up the calendar with upcoming projects and our many annual maintenance customers.  Additionally ,

they have been   streamlining  the  

workshop and grounds , getting our trucks and equipment in top condition and

stocking  up  supplies for the Spring .  All the while Cliff, Ole, Fernando ,  Samy and the Unity team  continu e making

progress on  installation projects with

the mild weather we continue to

experience.    

The tea m has been making great progress with our weekly English class taught by Sergio. After a vigorous training period, Chris Sade is on stand-by ready to load all of your bulk material, large trees, and pallets of stone.  Our   in - house  training program is  expanding ,  and we will continue to offer advancement and  opportunities to   all of  the employees  on team Unity.