PIES and PLANTS

Hi Everyone--Our Wavecrest trip is over now, and I hope you all had a terrific time. There were 15 of us altogether that made the trek, and I thank EVERYONE for coming. I hope you felt it was a worthwhile way to spend what turned out to be a beautiful Sunday. If anybody has photos they want to share or even if you want to write your own account of the trip, just get it to me and I will be glad to put it up here. Text documents should be Microsoft "word".
There are many additional photos already in the "Members Gardens on Parade" section. Just click on the link in the lower left hand column with that name.

Where to begin--oh yeah---PIE!!!!!!!!!! Now you have all been to one of Rob and my favorite places, and now you all know WHY we like it so much. If the decor weren't enough, the food is wonderful, and I hope you all loved your pie and ice cream. Marianne was the out of the box thinker when it came to dessert and she tried the sundae made with apple butter ice cream and caramel. Rosie came away determined to make some of the same at home. From the salads served in apple shaped bowls, to the homemade bread, to the pie that made Ronnie smile and remember his cherry picking younger days, it was a fun start to a great day. Bobbi loved the Civil War items and explained the "ninja jacks" the soldiers threw to cripple horses to us. Everywhere you look in that place is a history lesson. We all ate too much and then remedied the situation by buying MORE food to take home with us. I know the people at Rob's work are enjoying PIE today. I was sad to see the box leave the counter--but sometimes we have to sacrifice for others :-)

Then it was on to the main reason for the trip:

This sign welcomed us at the entrance to the antique barn that houses the garden shop at Wavecrest. We were met by our guide for the Nursery Tour, Jason. Jason's friendly, irreverant and knowledgable attitude were just what we were hoping for. The nursery had provided refreshments, although I don't think anyone had any, since we were all overcome with PIE. But it was a welcoming, considerate gesture that I suspect is the norm with this wonderful place.

Jason started us out by explaining that as a "Nursery", Wavecrest propagates their plants on site.They take a sort of "Cradle to Grave" approach at Wavecrest (I guess its more like "Grafting bed to Composter"); meaning that they stand ready to help with any aspect of including their plants in your yard from design inception on through. Then he began showing us some examples of their grafted stock. The things he told us about ginkos in particular and grafting in general were fascinating and very informative. Then we moved onward to see more examples of their craft--ending with the grand finale--a grafted larch that I think he told us was about 40 years old. This tree illustrated some of the principles of grafting that Jason explained to us, and was simply an amazing sight to behold. They are justifiably proud of their skills at this form of propagation, which is an art, a craft and a science all at once. Stepping inside its soft welcoming canopy that enclosed you within its friendly grasp took us all back to our childhoods.

From there we revived Hayden from the awestruck state he was in, and moved on to see the nuts and bolts of how these wonders are achieved. We strolled past production beds where we saw a number of beautiful Wavecrest developed hollies that are either on the market now or awaiting introduction. These are taller forms of hollies for northern zones; "Blue Wave" is on the market now, and we also saw "Stormy" among some others. If you go shopping for these hollies, they have names that all pertain to Lake Michigan in some way.

Jason showed us the grafting house and explained their ingenious method for growing grafts on through the winter--a method of root zone heating that was developed here at Wavecrest and is now the industry standard. Another Wavecrest innovation--a leaf valve that senses moisture and automatically controls the mister system in the cutting house--is also widely used in the industry now.

And true to their nature--the folks at Wavecrest don't grow their stock plants out in a field where their beauty would simply be wasted--they keep many of them in a lovely area that forms the yard of the home on the property. These gardens are also part of the overall nursery, and we walked and looked and admired full grown specimens of a great many things. It is always helpful to see full grown plants, especially woody plants, to get a better mental image of how they will look in our own gardens. The people at Wavecrest understand this, so they make a real effort to show people mature plants in a natural setting. This also means they have a knowledge of the plants they sell that goes far beyond reading a pot tag that comes from a wholesale grower. They live with these plants every day and can help you make informed choices that will succeed in your own yard.

After viewing this lovely area, we crossed to road to see why Wavecrest is called Wavecrest. Part of their property is on the lake, and from the Nursery office you can look out and see a breathtaking framed view of Lake Michigan. The sound and smell of the water, and the breeze coming off the lake was a perfect end to the tour. We all stood on the bluff and watched the lucky bathers on the private beach below. How fortunate these people are to be able to live in such a place, and how lucky we are that some of them have chosen to build a place like Wavecrest, where we can come and spend some very enjoyable time.

THANKS WAVECREST and JASON! THANKS PIE PANTRY!

We will see you again!