January 18, 2026

Last week, we started taking hardwood cuttings of our plants and taking stock of what we need to do before spring sales (it’s a lot). Yes, we are open to the public this year in April and May! I’m also hoping to have one or two preview sales at the end of March.

We have several trays of Cascade Blackberry (large, tasty berries great for jams and pies) and Escallonia (fast-growing, evergreen hedge plant) cuttings waiting to take root from last week’s efforts. In addition, we have scads of rooted cuttings and starts ready for potting up, which we’ll start on in February after our potting mix delivery. We had a few casualties (trays of cuttings or seedlings that didn’t fare well), but surprisingly fewer than I expected. We spent much of last week on various repairs and maintenance tasks—a never-ending list for sure.

In case you’re wondering why we didn’t start taking hardwood cuttings sooner: I’ve found that for us, the perfect window for hardwood cuttings is late January through late March. If I take them earlier, they tend to rot or otherwise fail. I always love to hear about everyone else’s experiences, so please tell me yours in the comments.

Lessons learned: Hmm, this week was less about lessons learned and more about getting back into the swing of things. November and December always provide a welcome rest period after wrapping things up for the previous season, but it’s always so nice to get back into propagation. I find preparing a tray of cuttings to be meditative, giving me a chance to dream of the future. It’s a pleasant, chill way of getting back into the rhythm of the season.

This week: more cuttings, some wintersowing, cold stratifying some seeds, and tackling more items on our To Do list. Maybe a little daydreaming about this year’s garden. I love this time of year! But then, I love everything that comes with the cycle of the seasons, saying good-bye to one set of tasks and hello to the next.

Keep on growing!
Andrea