By Sprout Home Brooklyn, April 29th, 2012, Brooklyn
With such a mild winter, garden pests will be out in full force this year. Some of you may have already noticed an early outbreak of aphids on your roses, tulips, ivies — you name it. Aphids are leaf-sucking insects that can do permanent damage to your plants, and, if left untreated, can kill them.
What is the best, most organic, and least invasive treatment for your garden when these pests invade?
LADY BUGS!
Lady bugs were named by Catholic farmers who prayed to the Virgin Mary when pests attacked their crops in the middle ages. These colorful insects showed up and were thought to be a miracle. They are, in fact, a wonder of the insect world. They pray on garden pests without doing any environmental damage themselves. During their 3-6 week life cycle, they can feed on up to 5,000 aphids.
Lady bugs are quite crafty. Their red color signals to predators “I don’t taste good!” When threatened, the insects secrete “fake blood” from their leg joints that smells and tastes bad. They also “play dead” in sticky situations with birds and other predator insects.
Plus, if one lands on you, it’s good luck.
We sell refrigerated bags of these beneficial insects in our store. Take them home and sprinkle them near shrubs and plants where you have seen aphids, scale, or plant mites. They will eat up and move on with no residual effect to your garden.
By Sarahrae, April 28th, 2012, Chicago
Mother’s day happens every year, but if you’re like most folks, it still sneaks up on you. Finding gifts for moms is hard work. For the most part they buy what they love and we’re left trying to figure out something they’d love and don’t have without gifting them something we just want to buy for ourself. What Mom? You don’t want comics and organic tea? Well, maybe if your mom is cooler than mine, but you get the idea.
So to help, we’ve put together a Sprout Home gift guide that will keep you looking like the awesome son or daughter you hope you are.
And Here We Go:
The Mom Who Has Everything
The Mom who has everything can either be the type who simply buys herself what she wants when she wants it or the type who collects everything from here to kingdom come. Either way, there’s a good chance that finding them something they like or need — don’t already have — might come at the expense of many hours of shopping. Even if it’s done online from the comfort of your pajamas, it can still be rough. So for the Mom who has everything, here’s a few of our favorite picks:
Dish Towels $24-$29
Plant Houses from $65
Hand Painted Black Floral Cup Set $36
The Mom Who Has A Green Thumb
Moms who love to plant and garden are a true blessing when it comes to birthdays and holidays. They’re easier to shop for and anything that has a leaf or can be used on one can be given. We have several items we think are super special, so take a look below!
Half Denim Apron $27
Denim & Leather Work Gloves $27
Soboten Heirloom Trowel $8.50
The Mom Who Kills Every Plant She’s Ever Owned
Some Mom’s just don’t have the attention span for plants. It’s ok, some of us don’t either. The specific care that some plants need, like daily misting, just isn’t for everyone. If your Mom falls into that category all hope isn’t lost, in fact, she just needs to be pointed towards plants that dig neglect and don’t require a great deal of muss and fuss.
Air Plants starting at $3.95
Succulents & Cacti starting at $2.95
The Mom Without Time To Spare:
Life gets busy. Moms especially are on the go and are in between soccer practices, school plays, meetings and all that other awesome Mom stuff. The time they have to spend at home isn’t always time spent polishing their ficus, it’s usually spent getting kids ready for a bath or wrapping up projects for their assorted activities. If this sounds familiar, here’s a few ideas that can help bring a little green into the home without the hassle.
Self Watering Planters from $22.50
Porcelain Milk Carton Vase $16.50
The Mom You’re Trying To Bring Into The 21st Century
Some moms need a little push to bring their homes and lives in general into the modern age. They probably don’t use a horse and buggy, but they might in fact still have a corded phone in existence or a sweater with a cat on it (and not in the cool ironic hipster way). A great place to help them bring a little hip and cool into their home is with plants. Their containers are the perfect place to use their favorite colors but apply modern textures and designs to help lived up the place.
Ash Apron $47
Nkuku Birdhouse $29
Come see us this week and we’ll be happy to pot up any plant, answer any questions or help guide you to the perfect Mom gift if none of these seem quite right. We also make custom floral arrangements for tradition, hip and modern and even the occasional mod mom!
By Sprout Home Brooklyn, April 27th, 2012, Brooklyn
After a long stretch of drought in the Northeast, our plants are enjoying some spring showers.
By Sarahrae, April 24th, 2012, Chicago
We have several new faces around the Chicago store and we thought it was a good time to start introducing them to the public. First up is our outdoor man Russell.
Russ might have started out as a small town guy from West Virginia, but he’s taking Chitown by storm. He’ll be the one you find outside in the garden more often than not as his plant knowledge knows no bounds. He’s our jack of all trades and is especially appreciative when you ask to see his muscles. No seriously, he loves it.
If you’re looking to have Sprout Home come to your place for a design consult or install, Russ will usually be the man at your door. He loves buildings without elevators (it builds character) and is more than willing to pretty up your patio, darling up your deck or gorgeous up your garden — and no none of those were code. He’ll sign your babies, but not your boobies, though you’re welcome to ask.
By Greg, April 23rd, 2012, Brooklyn
We just got in a bunch of new lithops, most of which are in the springtime process of splitting open to reveal the new set of leaves emerging. . . a slow but fascinating spectacle!
