Steadfast & Stalwart Semi-evergreens

Happy December! Wow, what a year it’s been! It’s hard to believe we’ve rotated through the seasons and we are once again at the cusp of an entirely new calendar cycle. Despite many of the festivities that we all have to look forward to this month, it’s right about the time of year where things start to look a little bleak and everything begins to turn inward. People are busy gathering tinsel, poinsettias and evergreen trees to decorate their homes. Obviously, evergreen conifers and even broadleaf plants like hollies have quite a presence this time of the year, and that’s not just because they smell and look nice. 

Beyond the Garden Gate

…Step by step from town to town, sweet like justice: gardens are a queen, gardens take all my friends to the summit, gardens are the plot on the green, blooming straight home to me…

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last couple of months, and more specifically the last week, then Taylor & Travis have probably been monopolizing your screen time. You probably thought you were safe here, in the comfort of the weekly Pleasant Run email. “Surely, the crossover between horticulture and Taylor Swift has to be minimal,” you think to yourself wearily, eyes heavy from scrolling through endless feel-good videos of a pop icon finally living out her fairy tale dreams. Guess again!

Brawn & Beauty: Plants of the Badlands

In honor of the brave folks who put their lives on the line to protect our vast and beautiful country, from the amber waves of grain to the purple mountain majesties, this week we’re doing something a little bit differently. Without the unwavering fortitude and valor of our Veterans, American citizens might not be able to enjoy some of their country’s most spectacular natural parks and landscapes, amongst other things. There’s a lot to celebrate this weekend - with November 10^th marking the 45^th anniversary of Badlands National Park’s official designation as a national park, we’re praising some of the special species that make up this diverse and ecologically critical habitat. Let’s start with some quick facts about the Badlands and what makes them so special.

Flowers of the First Frost

The precipice of winter is upon us: this week, we saw our first hard frosts of the season, greeting us each morning as a shimmering blanket of delicate ice crystals clinging to any greenery that remains. The sun seems to be scarcer and scarcer by the day, barely peaking above the treetops as the first vehicles begin rolling down the driveway and already threatening to set by the time our doors close for the evening. The inevitable truth is that winter is coming, and it’s predicted to actually, maybe, be a REAL winter, snow and all. From the day of this email being written, there are exactly 48 calendar days left before winter’s arrival. But before that happens, let’s bask in the remaining days of autumn for a little while longer: starting with our first inaugural Pleasant Run Pumpkin Carving Contest, which kicked off Halloween a little bit differently this year.