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GREETINGS FROM THE NATURAL GARDENER
NATIONAL AWARD WINNING NURSERY

Our first batch of TOMATO TRANSPLANTS has just arrived. They'll go quickly, so come in soon to get a head start on your fall garden!

Just in time for preparing fall gardens: FARMSTYLE COMPOST IS BACK. Add a few inches of Farmstyle over your existing garden soil and till in. Farmstyle Compost, along with a few other Natural Gardener tips and tricks, will help you have the best garden ever.

20% OFF ALL GARDEN FURNITURE: After landscaping your yard, it’s time to create a stylish outdoor living space to sit back and admire all your hard work. Choose from Adirondack chairs made of recycled plastic in fantastic colors, metal café style sets, colorful benches, colorful cushioned hanging chairs, hammocks, and much, much more. (See the IN THE STORE section for details. Sale ends Thursday, July 24th.)
 
20%–30% OFF ALL PLANTS. Trees, shrubs, and vines are all 30% OFF! (Sale ends this Sunday, July 20th.)

30% OFF SELECT STATUARY: Red Dot clearance. Add a cat, a pig, an angel, a Madonna, a St. Francis or a Quan Yin to your garden at great prices. (Prices good until sold out.)

25% OFF ALL SEEDS: Flower, vegetable, herb seeds, and bird seed, too! It’s time to start tomatoes and other fall veggies indoors in flats so come stock up and save. (Sale ends Thursday, July 24th.)

(All sales are limited to stock on hand and cannot be used or combined with any other offer.)

PRETTY PERENNIALS:  The Natural Gardener has a wonderful selection of native and well-adapted perennials in stock. Choose from a wide variety of Lantanas and Verbenas, and a large assortment of Salvias for both sun and shade. Butterfly Iris and Bicolor Iris bloom through the summer and have beautiful, grass-like foliage. We also have Copper Canyon Daisies, Purple Coneflower, Rock Rose, Rudbeckia, Plumbago, Firecracker Plant, Turk’s Cap, Texas Primrose, Gaura, Blackfoot Daisy and many more.  Be sure to mulch your newly planted perennials and water them regularly with Maxicrop Seaweed.

GLORIOUS GRASSES: Once established, ornamental grasses are very tolerant of the heat and drought. Not only are they tough, they provide a wispy beauty and texture not found in other plants. The Natural Gardener has a wide variety of ornamental grasses including several varieties of Maiden Grass. We have Little Kitten, Yaku Jima, Adagio, Gracillimus, Variegated, and Zebra. There’s Muhly Grasses including Bamboo, Pine, Lindheimer’s, El Toro, and Gulf Coast. Our Fountain Grass selection includes Dwarf White, Hamelin, Moudry and Purple Fountain Grass. Inland Sea Oats is a beautiful native ornamental grass that grows well in the shade. Its delicate, drooping seed heads look beautiful blowing in the wind. Sedges are not technically grasses, but Sedges do have a similar look. Line a pathway, or create a lovely border with Bronze, Berkeley, Blue Grey, Cherokee, or Evergold Sedge.  

PLANT PALMS NOW:  Palms look tropical but they can be quite tough and drought tolerant once they’re established. The Natural Gardener carries several palms, including Mexican Fan, Windmill, Mediterranean Fan Palm, Ornamental Date Palm, as well as our native Texas Palmetto and Dwarf Palmetto. Although it’s not a true palm but rather a Cycad, we also carry the ever-popular Sago Palm. To ensure the success of your new palms, use TreeSaver beneficial mycorrhiza at planting time, and water often with Maxicrop Seaweed.

GARDEN FURNITURE: Come to the Natural Gardener to see our unique collection of outdoor furnishings – there’s something to complement any style of garden. We have recycled plastic Adirondack chairs in bright, no-fade colors; colorful retro-style metal chairs and tables; metal benches; benches made of recycled wood; cushioned hanging chairs; colorful hammocks; ceramic Zen garden seats and more. Whether it’s a hammock underneath shade trees, chairs and tables on the patio, or a colorful bench among blooming plants- outdoor furniture adds function and beauty to any garden.

CARRUTH SCULPTURES: Carruth stone plaques and figures are cast from original designs hand-carved by George Carruth. Whimsical, sweet and uplifting, they’re perfect for your home or garden and to give as gifts. People say that George Carruth’s work makes them smile, and he says that means “they are sharing just a small part of the joy” he feels when creating his sculptures.

MOSQUITO CONTROL: It seems the recent rain was just enough to give the mosquito population a boost. Luckily, the Natural Gardener has plenty of all-natural controls for them. To prevent mosquitoes from breeding in birdbaths, gutters, rain barrels, or any other area of standing water, try Mosquito Dunks or Mosquito Bits. We also have products that will repel adult mosquitoes from your lawn and garden, and our incense-like products can help keep mosquitoes at bay while you’re sitting or working outside.

WATER-SAVING MULCH: Are you thinking about mulching your newly planted or existing garden beds? You should be. Mulch conserves water, keeps soil cooler, and helps prevent weeds. We have several types of mulch available. Whichever one you choose, apply a two-inch layer; your landscape will look prettier, and the plants will be happier, too.

Our Sylvan Formula mulch/compost blend was originally created for trees, but we have received tremendous positive response from customers who use it in all of their gardening beds. The rave reviews are no surprise, since the combination of compost, mulch, and beneficial additives will work wonders for any plant. Our Texas Native Hardwood Mulch is by far our most popular mulch. It's a finely shredded, chocolate-brown mulch with a very consistent color and size. Our Landscaper's Mulch is a wonderful, local resource made of double-shredded cedar. Pine Bark Mulch is a lovely, dark mulch that's made of shredded pine bark instead of those awful nuggets. We also carry Pine Straw in bales. Pine Straw makes a great mulch, especially for the vegetable or rose garden; some rosarians won't use any other mulch!

BULK PRODUCTS: We offer these mulches, as well as all of our bulk products for delivery or pick up. Call us for delivery times and prices, or bring your truck or trailer and have us load it. If you don't have a truck, come bag up what you need. We have the bags, buckets, and shovels- you provide the muscle to fill 'em. If you're not in the mood to sweat, many of our bulk products come pre-bagged, too.

Yes, it’s that time again - time for free, fun, informative classes at The Natural Gardener. Attend a class and receive a coupon good for 10% OFF that day’s purchases! (Excluding any bulk products from our soil yard and cannot be combined with any other offer.)

Classes are held Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m., unless otherwise specified. No registration is required. Arrive early for best seating. Seating is limited, so you are welcome to bring your own chair. Classes are held outdoors under a shade canopy, so be sure to dress for the weather. All classes are subject to change- please call first to confirm.

July 19: Carol Ann Sayle, of Boggy Creek Farm, presents “Raising Backyard Chickens.” Boggy Creek Farm (www.boggycreekfarm.com) is Austin’s beloved urban organic farm, the origins of which were started by Larry Butler and Carol Ann Sayle in 1981. We are very pleased to host the Third-Annual Free Chicken Seminar here, in front of our very own hen house. Chickens not only provide tasty, nutritious eggs, but they are also great pets: interesting, communicative, smart in their own way, and very humorous! The topics to be covered include: recommended size of flock, breeds of layers and their attributes, starting new chicks, feed sources, hen house design, chicken tractors, predators, roosters, and more! Knowing Carol Ann, and the subject matter, this class is sure to help you connect with your inner chicken!

July 26 AT 10:00 AM: Tom Spencer will guide us in “Creating a Sanctuary Garden.” Tom Spencer wears many hats! He is an award-winning independent television producer whose career at KLRU has spanned more than 20 years. He is the host of “Central Texas Gardener.” Tom has been answering gardening questions on KLBJ-AM 590 since 1983, on The Greenthumb Hour. Tom is creator of the award-winning www.soulofthegarden.com, a beautiful and inspiring website. Just this year, Tom has added another hat to his collection: he is now the CEO of the Austin Area Interreligious Ministries.

August 2: Mark Klym, of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, presents “Hummingbird Gardening for Beginners.”

August 9: Rosina Newton, Horticulturist of the Natural Gardener, presents “Gardening 101.”

See John's schedule, radio show information, television appearances and more.