Seasons Greetings!

We wish all of you a wonderful holiday season with friends and family and a healthy and happy 2020!

As the year comes to a close we would also like to thank you for your continued support and business. We truly appreciate it and feel extremely fortunate to have such an incredible customer base. 
Christmas Trees Arriving Soon!

Selecting Christmas trees 
Our fresh cut Christmas trees will be ready for sale starting Nov 29th.

Come pick out a beautiful tree and enjoy a cup of home-made spiced cider by the warmth of the fire. 

We're proud to source local trees from Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley. We've even hand-selected many of them this year!
Bringing the outdoors in
Nature-inspired decoration: simple yet beautiful.

Climate change and sustainability have both been hot topics in 2019, and many of us are doing our best to reduce, re-use and recycle. 

As the holiday season draws closer and we start thinking of bringing some festive cheer into our homes, why not think sustainably and bring the outdoors in by using natural winter greenery to decorate. There are so many beautiful materials right in our own gardens which can be used in a multitude of ways

A wreath on your door, a beautiful table centrepiece or a bough over the fireplace  are all wonderfully traditional ways to use festive branches, boughs and berries.  Or go out on a limb and create something different this year, letting nature be the inspiration

If you need ideas or supplies come in to the nursery. At this time of year we sell all kinds of beautiful greens and berries. We also have wire, floral foam and wreath forms as well as vases and other containers to create arrangements in.

Need help? We still have space in some of our wreath-making and festive centrepiece classes in December. Click here for more info.

Speaking of Festive Greens...


If you are having hedges or shrubs pruned, please keep us in mind. We re-purpose garden greenery into unique natural wreaths, swags and centrepieces for the holiday season. 

We would love to get: Cedar, Fir, Cypress or Holly. We also need branches with colourful bark, berries or variegated foliage. 

If it is convenient, please drop off clippings at the nursery. If it's not, or there is a lot of material, please call us at 250-656-0384 to arrange for us to pick it up.
Don Juan
Don Juan climbing rose

Winter is the best time to prune climbers. It's easy to see what needs to come out and what needs to be cut back or tied in. 

Tree in bud
Apply dormant oil in late winter.
Hoping to get a head start on pest and disease control this winter?
 Try dormant oil to protect your fruit trees and roses.

Click here for more pest control ideas.
'State of Grace'
New for 2020
Bare root roses arrive in February and the Rose Catalogue  is on our website. 

Have a look and send us an email if you would like to pre-order. 

Gifting Nature

The holidays are a wonderful time to treat ourselves to good food, nostalgic music and time with those who are important in our lives. 

This time of year also includes the tradition of gift giving but for many of us it can be difficult to dream up just the perfect gift, especially year after year!

If your loved ones have any inclination toward plants and/or gardening, we may have just the solution

What if you could give a versatile gift that could take the shape of a beautiful specimen tree, quality gardening tools, greenhouse supplies, a Russell Nursery membership, a gardening workshop/class or home consultation? 

That is just what our gift certificate offers. The denomination is up to you and there is no expiration date. If you can't make it in to see us, no problem. We can take payment over the phone and hold onto the gift certificate for the recipient or even mail it to you or them.

Hiking the Camino de Santiago
Brian on the Camino de Santiago

Curious what Brian Russell has been up to? He officially hung his boots up almost two years ago, but like so many retirees has been busier than ever. 

This has included fulfilling a long held dream to hike the Camino de Santiago. While we were slogging away in the rain he was enjoying amazing views of the Pyrenees and walking across Spain!

Putting the Garden to Bed, Lasagna Style!
By Faye 

With shorter days, colder nights and the last glorious fall colours fluttering to the ground, my veggie beds are tucked in for their winter sleep. Most of us know about 'lasagna gardening' (just Google it) for building new beds but I decided to use this method to give my hard-working soil an extra treat this year.
1. Lime and straw

After emptying out the remnants of summer bounty, and working around the areas still laden with carrots and beets, I limed the soil then topped the empty beds with a layer of straw.

2. Manure and leaves
My first 'green' layer was well-aged chicken manure from Firbank Farms on Island View Road, then for the 'brown' ingredient I added a thick layer of precious leaves. Lasagna gardening focuses on alternating layers of 'green' (nitrogenous) with thicker layers of 'brown' (dried, carboniferous) amendments. 

On top of the leaves I put a 2-3" layer of my own freshly dug compost. Having been too busy to dig it last spring, I left it and the summer warmth produced my best compost ever! Yes, good black compost is considered 'green', as is manure.
3. Top with compost and leaves

With a final, generous frosting of more autumn leaves, my soil beds are now piled higher than the raised beds themselves, but the army of microorganisms, earthworms and their friends working beneath the surface will have this digested and shrunk down by planting time in mid spring. What isn't broken down by then will provide extra humus and help keep the soil moist all summer.
4. Bed ready for its winter sleep

I anticipate much gratitude from my newly-restored soil in the form of bountiful crops next year.

*NOTE: If you didn't get to do this yet and winter arrives, save those leaves and start layering in the spring! It's never too late. If done in spring, consider adding some top soil so you can just plant right into the layers.

www.HallsGreenhousesBC.com                                  russellnursery@telus.net
   Call us at 250-656-0384                               russellnursery@telus.net

 
   www.russellnursery.com