I took an annual trip to my favorite farm market, "Baumans." This is my Mother's Day treat to myself every year. I always go to get a large hanging basket for the hummingbirds to enjoy.
This year, I got a red and purple Fuchsia plant for them. They have already arrived and are visiting the birdfeeder every day.
Take a walk with me as I wander through the 21 greenhouses filled with fabulous flowers. If you're looking for a specific one, Jim, the owner, will certainly have it.
You can purchase large pots of flowers, packs, 4" pots, or large hanging baskets.
You can see that I have already selected a few plants to take home.
The geraniums are beautiful, and I would have a hard time deciding which color to buy.
I really like this shocking pink, but I left her there. I was focusing on flowers for the hummingbirds this year.
Here is another greenhouse filled with geraniums and petunia baskets at different stages of growth.
I thought this was a new variety that I hadn't seen before. Pretty lavender with the striping sets it apart from others.
Here's another one with an interesting pattern with the yellow throat.
If I were to purchase a Petunia basket, it would have been this bright red one. I grew a lot from seed, so I don't have room for another one.
In between every single greenhouse, there are plants lined all the way down to the main building.
I have watched this farm market grow over the past 30+ years that I've lived in the area. He used to only have two hoop houses, and now you can see he is up to 21. When I ran into Jim while shopping, I could see how the years had taken a toll on his body. Also, I noticed that two of his boys were working in the houses. Hopefully, one of them will continue operating the farm.
Outside, a large coldframe had herbs and some perennial plants in it.
Can you get a feel for how expansive this market is?
It takes some time and a lot of walking to go through each hoophouse. Plus, one has to try to restrain oneself from buying too many plants, right?
The baskets of hanging Begonias almost got me, but I already had the Fuchsia plant and left that yellow one there.
This house had all kinds of lettuce, basil, herbs, and veggie plants. Since I grow all that I need, I didn't even walk through this one.
Check out the size of these tomato plants in large pots. Some of them already had small fruit on them.
Have you ever bought a hanging bag of flowers? I never have, I always thought they would dry out too fast for some reason. They sure are pretty, though, if you had the right spot to hang one.
I did buy two pots of mixed Delphinium since mine did not come back this year, and I bought a 6-pack of mixed Snapdragons.
Here are the hummingbird plants. Two types of Salvia that are different than what I grow every year. I got two Cuphea plants to put into a hanging basket, and this red Mandevilla vine. I think the Hummingbirds will be very content with this year's selections.
The Cuphea is planted along with some blue Lobelia. Now, I just have to wait for the nights to warm up a bit before hanging it outside.
For all the women celebrating Mother's Day, I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.