Breaking the Winter Blues

Visited the New Jersey Flower & Garden Show in Edison, NJ on Friday. Although it is not as large in scope and scale as the Philadelphia Flower Show, I like that it is not overcrowded. There were a few landscaping companies competing for best in show and various vendors, some of them plant and flower related, others not. This is my second time visiting the show and some of the vendors that were there the first time I visited, were missing for my second visit. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to call it the New Jersey Home and Garden show since there was an equal number, if not more vendors who sold products related to the home, than flowers and plants. Even still, I managed to come away with some interesting plants:

dendrobium anosmum

Stephanotis floribunda

Sempervivum Raspberry Ice?

Hawaiian Plumeria (White)

Eremurus hybrids, Foxtail Lily

On Saturday, C and I visited RareFind Nursery in Jackson, NJ for their Hamamelis and Winter-Blooming Plants Festive talk. We were a bit late due to the snow and sleet, but fortunately did not miss it and people were still enjoying the refreshments. It was a worthwhile trip and I learned about some interesting plants that I've never heard of before, some of them fragrant. Now, I'm thinking of trying a witch hazel this year. Daphnes, Camelias and White Forsythia (Abeliophyllum). We didn't buy anything this time around since the ground is still frozen out, but hope to make our way back in the early spring, perhaps in May. Saw some Skimmia japonica, which looked pretty good and was thinking it might look nice by the back of the house.