<data:blog.pageTitle/>

Fall Sale Preview..

Well it is still summer and it is still hot but the evenings are getting shorter and fall is around the corner. Here at PAO we are getting ready for annual Fall sale. The farm looks great and we have gotten rid of a lot of product. We drove around the farm this morning and started to choose items for the fall feature promotion. We have ordered the tent and the chairs and balloons! What is a sale without balloons? While on the drive through the farm I noticed the highbush cranberry still red with ripe fruit. Some of the burning bushes are starting to turn a few red leaves and some maples as well. Pretty soon it will be a riot of colour here and action too - everybody will be getting into the fall season. Here are a few of the items we will be putting on sale..

Shademaster Locust

Sunburst Locust

Skyline Locust

Deborah Maple

Emerald Lustre Maple

Emerald Queen Columnar Maple

Baby Blue Eyes Blue Spruce

Redmond Linden

Blue False Cypress

Sargenti Crabapple

Ornmental Pear

Crimson King Maple

Shangri La

In one of my previous posts I wrote about the highest trees in Toronto. Twenty six of our Hornbeam trees were lifted to the 65th floor of the Shangri La Hotel in downtown Toronto. We have since planted them in June as the construction progressed. Now, as the hotel is nearly finished so was the final part of our installation. We had to install some large Sculptured Pines to the third floor and the sixth floor. This installation also included installing some large granite rock. Not any rock mind you - this took weeks of preparation and searching southern Ontario's quarries to find the perfect pieces. Many quarries were searched with the final selection coming out of Havlock Ontario - east of Peterborough. It was not just one trip to the quarry - it was several. It was necessary to place the rock before it left and cut it so the pieces would fit in the precise manner required on the the third floor. And then there were the trees. They were sourced last fall from a nursery on the west coast. They came to PAO early in the Spring and were healed in the ground and maintained and pruned until the construction of the third and sixth floor were complete. Which was last weekend. Then there was the prep work of the actual installation. These rocks weigh 10,000 lbs - not easy to move. So with the coordination of several people, we finally were ready to install. We required an extra large crane for this as the rocks were so heavy. We finally got a permit and were able to close down two lanes of University Avenue for the weekend. The crane was set up and then it was show time. The rocks went up first followed by the trees. Once the trees were up they they then had to be manoeuvred into position. These trees are very valuable and have distinct formations so the placement of them is crucial. Once they are in position they will not be moved again. It was exciting and neat to see it all come together (didn't need the rain though!). The crane operators were amazing - the coordination between the two of them was tremendous. Think of it -the crane guy (Michael) on the ground can't see a thing on the third floor or sixth floor - yet he is operating the crane. So the the guy on the third floor (Scott) is directing him literally every inch of the way. Pretty spectacular. And of course there are our guys - who just adapt with each obstacle. It doesn't matter how well you plan things in this industry, there is always something unforeseen. I think the pictures are self explanatory - and there are alot of them - hope you enjoy!

Changing....

Yes things are changing. Everything has changed since we got rain! Yahoo! As much as I like the sunny days the plants needed the rain. The Pee Gee Hydrangeas are in full bloom and just down the road from the them the Yellow Bird Magnolias are putting out their second flush. There are lots of buds so they should look great next week. The nursery looks good even with the drought. Of course some trees are suffering and showing signs of burnt tips on the leaves - but we are hoping they will pop back in the fall. In the heat of the summer not much is happening bloom wise, and just as I was thinking that, I see some Viburnam Wayfarer bushes all covered in berries. It looks so vibrant in the sun. The lady I work with in the office pointed out the sumacs the other day. She is waiting for them to ripen to she can pick them - apparently they are edible. I can't rememeber what she does with them and she is on holidays so I can't ask her. I will find out though. There also some lovely Tiger Eye Sumacs that look funky. She also pointed out some knarly Black Pines in the island bed - she loves them - not my favourite but I can see them in a cottage setting. Speaking of changing - I am starting to see the small changes happening around the yard. We are moving our location down the road and for the life of me, I dunno how we are going to do it. But today it struck me. We are starting to get prepared. The polyhouses are coming down and are to be moved down the road. The Ash trees are being cut down as we can't sell them due to the ash borer. It is a shame to see the process. They have been growing for years in the back field and when you are under the canopy of the leaves you can't tell that they are sick. But alas, they have to be destoyed. The orange tape signifies trees to be cut and the roots lifted up and removed from the ground. As much as I like to photograph the happenings of the nursery, this made me a little sad. It's a day in the life...