TIME TO START A NEW CROP OF SEEDLINGS

 Redrock News  Comments Off on TIME TO START A NEW CROP OF SEEDLINGS
Jun 132016
 
Nov 172013
 

I’ve noticed that many/most of the other Christmas tree and wreath mail order/home delivery farms/companies are now offering “free shipping.”

Since there is a huge disparity in shipping costs between coasts (for example, a 7 foot tree to Boston from here is about $29, to Los Angeles $57)  then those customers near their farm are getting screwed and those far away are making out like bandits.

They are just raising their prices to cover the average of all shipping costs…

nothing in life is really free!

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Nov 162013
 

Santa’s Songbird November News

Just a quick bit of cheer. Santa’s Songbird is here!

The Secret of Santa’s Songbird by D. S. Jackson is now in print.

Meet Chipper the songbird, a tiny Northern Cardinal who is rather slow at growing his feathers.
Little does he know he will deliver a Christmas gift not even Santa sees coming!
This beautifully written narrative poem shares the spirit abiding within

No other book of it’s kind has such compliment among ACEO artists world wide!

This soft cover book is printed in Charleston, South Carolina, USA!
It may also be printed much closer to you for faster delivery.
It has a 6″ x 9″ glossy cover with large print & bright white pages.

There is only a little embellishment to each page.
The layout is intended to invite personal touches 🙂
Who knows what creative folks will make of their copies!

To find it on Amazon.com Search: Santa’s Songbird.
The first few lines are shared right in the listing.
Grab your copy. Then you will know!

The Secret of Santa’s Songbird

Link to buy:  http://www.amazon.com/The-Secret-Santas-Songbird-Jackson/dp/1492243418

Front cover by Robert Sauber Design:

Santas Songbird

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Nov 022013
 

We are teaming up with Grand View Farm for a farm stay and Christmas tree/wreath package.  If you want to have a great getaway weekend, come on up to Vermont and stay at Grand View Farm.  We’ll be happy to visit you when you come to cut your tree or choose your wreath to take home.

Vermont Christmas Tree Special Package

Grand View Farm  http://www.grandviewfarmvt.net/rooms-rates.html has joined with our farm in Chelsea, Vermont to bring you a holiday tradition you will not want to miss! Your special package includes: 
-two nights in our Farmhouse Suite
-a trip to Redrock Farm to choose and select your Christmas Tree or a decorated balsam fir wreath
-hot cider and cookies to enjoy by the woodstove upon arrival back to our farm

Reservations must fall between December 2-17, 2014.  Rates are as follows:  $475 for up to 4 people and $370 for up to 2 people. We are happy to add a farmhouse dinner for an additional $30/person.

Vermont Christmas Tree Special Package

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Aug 032013
 

songbirdThis was shared with us by a customer and friend:

Excerpted from:The Secret of Santa’s Songbird © by D. S. Jackson:

 

“Chipper the songbird hatched early one spring,

To discover that life is a wondrous thing.

He wanted to see the whole world from the sky, 

So he sat in his nest growing feathers to fly.

 

The wind swept his hillside tree upward and down,

As he stood watching over his old country town. 

He heard children singing and watched them at play,

And gathered such gifts in his heart every day.

 

Spring turned to Summer and Summer to Fall.

He grew splendid feathers but this was not all.

Chipper had taken to singing at night,

And each time he did, he lit up like a light.

 

A gift of the kind only heaven can send,

Had come from above with a heavenly friend.

Other birds said, “Chipper’s ways are not right,”

“No night singing birds, turning on and off light!”

 

Flocking and squawking they called Chipper “strange”.

They said he should live outside normal bird range.

Then starlings forced Chipper to fly away north,

Just as the chill of the winter came forth.

 

Chipper flew many hours to be safe and free.

He stopped for a rest on an evergreen tree.

Below him a town square was fully in view.

And people were doing things festive and new.

 

The Spirit of Christmas was traveling round,

In kindness and faith, in sights and in sound.

Chipper was twinkling, thrilled by the view.

The Spirit came to him, and onward he flew.

 

He flew to the realm where angels sing,

To hear from the giver of every good thing.

Then one special song was placed in his heart.

Earthbound he returned, to continue his part…”

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Jul 152013
 

First and foremost, hello and thanks to all of our fantastic customers and supporters out there.  It is a pleasure for Steph and me to grow and make Christmas trees and wreaths for your homes and businesses, as well as grow evergreen seedlings for your weddings, events, and other planting of trees.

Like every year now, it seems, the weather is one of our main stories.  Winter was fairly normal with the usual amount of snow and cold.  Then early spring came and it was dry.  April came and went with virtually no rain.  There was fire danger and I was scared to plant anything for fear that it wouldn’t get adequate rain.  Then the rain came and it hasn’t stopped.  Most of Vermont set all-time records for rainfall in both May and June.   July has been the same so far.  Lake Champlain, although not near us, is at an all-time high for July, nearly at flood stage.  We have many places that I will not drive a tractor because I don’t want to make huge ruts and mud and cause further erosion later.

So how does all this rain affect a Christmas tree farm and evergreen nursery?  Since moving seedlings started last July outside to the shade structure they have received  continuous watering by Mother Nature.  That “always wet” state causes things to grow that would not normally be there if they were drying out as they should every day.  Constant watering also causes nutrients in the growing media to be flushed out.  Hopefully Mother Nature will see fit to turn off the spigot and allow me to fertilize the seedlings.  We will overcome.  The seedlings still look very good and healthy at this point, so I may be worrying about nothing….

Also, it is time to begin shearing Christmas trees.  In order to do that, first I most mow the grass (now thick hay) in the rows between the trees so that I can shear without tripping, etc.  In order to mow grass we prefer that it be dry!  It’s also nice to be able to get my tractor and wagon relatively near where I’m working to haul the equipment I’ll be using, drinking water, etc.  That said, the trees seem to have adapted to what I now often call our Northern Rain Forest and look quite good overall.  They do have some slight problems from being wet all the time, but unless one knows what to look for, one doesn’t see it. In other words, I know it’s there, but you won’t see it unless you are a tree grower yourself.  We do not use any pesticides or fungicides in our Christmas trees because they are just too nasty and dangerous, so we have learned to live with a few problems and they aren’t really noticeable to our consumers. 

Since we began growing seedlings in 2007, the seedling part of our business has grown each year and takes more of our time each year.  Since we are both approaching middle age (we’re both 61) and need to slow down a little, seedlings are a better option for easier work than Christmas trees.  We are still going to grow Christmas trees in hopes that in 10 years or so some young, strong family will want to take over the whole operation, but we will focus more efforts in the seedling side of the business.   In other words, we will still be sending out Christmas trees, wreaths, garland, etc. by FedEx Home Delivery and Ground, but will not be upset if that part of the business doesn’t grow and won’t advertise it quite as much.

Since I’m on the subject of Christmas trees and shipping, you should know that shipping rates go up about 5% every year.  It has also been a few years since we’ve raised our prices to offset the cost of doing business, so you’ll note about an overall 10% increase in price of goods and shipping over last year.  We will still ship you only our very best trees and wreaths so remember, when it comes to trees, the early orders get the very best trees.  As of right now we know that this year our best six foot balsam fir will go to New Mexico!  Who will get the best 5, 7, and 9 footers?

One of our new offerings for this year will be Christmas Gift Seedlings.  Order seedlings for a friend or family member for spring 2014, and we’ll send a gift Christmas card to the recipient informing them they will receive a seedling gift from you.  Look for those in our secure on line shopping cart in September.

In the fall every year we enjoy spending four days at the Tunbridge World’s Fair.  Stephanie is the Superintendent of Vegetables.  She manages the display of all vegetables, the judging of those, and fields vegetable judging and growing questions from the multitudes that pass through the Gilman  Building.  I manage the Christmas tree display for the NH-VT Christmas Tree Association and run a booth inside the Gilman building where we answer Christmas tree questions and sell seedlings to support the association.  If you are ever in Vermont in the fall try to attend a day of the Tunbridge World’s Fair…you’ll enjoy it!  This year it’s September 12 to 15.

Unfortunately, since Steph is the super, she can’t enter any of the great vegetables she grows in her greenhouse and garden.  But that just means we get to eat and enjoy more of them!

Back to the weather again.  Last winter the deer did a lot of damage to mostly Fraser firs in the field because there was little real food in the woods for them.  The late frost of the spring of 2012 killed all the apple buds and many other buds, making apples and other deer food really scarce.  The deer herd also seems to be growing.  Come and hunt here! 

This spring we had two late freezes that killed some of the buds on budded out balsam firs.  One of the freezes was during a snow on Memorial Day weekend.  Three days later it was 90.

Speaking of critters, we have also had a kit of foxes under our Christmas tree shed, groundhogs in the rock wall above our pond, and skunks eating cat food on our porch, as well as big blue herons eating the fish in the pond.  Birds and their nests are thick in our tree fields, but robins and crows tend to break off the very top leaders on the growing Christmas trees.  Wildlife abounds and we live with it and sometimes battle it.

If it sounds like I’m whining about the rain, I am.

Thanks again for reading this and for being a customer or friend of Redrock Farm.  We look forward to receiving your email or phone call (and especially your order) for Christmas or in the spring for seedlings.

Stephanie’s comment after reading this is that “you sure sound winey this year.  Maybe you should tell them that you are writing this on a depressing day.”  I think I admitted to be whiny earlier!

It is now July 15 and the rain has finally stopped.  True to July its 90 degrees and humid.  As I mowed the hay in the tree fields and looked over the Christmas trees as I went, I thought about how much I prefer the cooler weather of the fall and cold in winter!

If we don’t speak directly to you before the Christmas season, we hope you have a Blessed and wonderful holiday season.

PS   ONE MORE THING…the code to save 5% if you order Christmas items before November 1st is VERMONT

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Jul 262012
 

 

NEWS FOR 2012-written on July 26

This is the first day in a long time that rain has caused outside work to be vetoed, making it a good time to write the news.

Last year’s Christmas season (2011) went well.  Nice trees, nice customers, nice weather, hard work and the proper rewards.  The best part of Christmas is always the kids, especially those in the 4 to 9 age group who get excited about my tractor, helping their Dad with the sawing of the tree, giggle at watching the tree shaker, and express appreciation in receiving a candy cane or little ornament when they are leaving the farm.

We also appreciate the letters and emails we get from our mail order customers praising their tree or wreath, or both…that also gives us great satisfaction.  We had only one or two minor shipping glitches with FedEx.  UPS had one chance and they beat up the one box we sent with them.  We stay with FedEx and pass on the discounts they give us to you.

Speaking of shipping, it goes up every year and fuel surcharges are high.  Unfortunately, the shipping of a 7 foot tree to California is almost as much as the tree, and for a 9 foot tree, the shipping is more than the tree!  Please understand that we have little control of shipping prices because we are not Amazon.com or one of the others who offer free shipping because they have mega-deals with shippers.

Get this: (to California from here in Vermont for a 9 foot tree) Oversize charge for the large box = $55, dimensional shipping charges= $88.48, fuel surcharges = $12.42, residential charge = $2.55, Total $158.45   We will charge you only $130.

Back to chronological news. The winter of 2011-2012 was very mild by Vermont standards and the snow totals were low.  It was an easy winter that ended early. We had a week of 80 degree weather in March.  I think the warmth of that week brought out the bugs early, and then they were killed by the freezing weather after that, because there have been fewer pests, except for ticks, this year.

Christmas trees broke bud a little early and that is also worrisome because they could have been frost damaged, but that didn’t happen.  THEY LOOK GREAT! So far this summer has been too warm (for me) and drier than the last several years.  I think the trees appreciate not having wet feet all the time and are rewarding us with good looks. We are fortunate in that we are not getting the severe drought that is happening in much of the rest of the country.

Seedling sales and the growth of our seedling business have also been good and rewarding for us.  We are busy all day, year around and kind of like that!

This year we started our 6th crop of plug seedlings.  Every year we learn a little more about what to do and what to not do.  For example, algae and moss inhibitor I applied last year was toxic to the Fraser firs and killed most of them.  Why only them? Don’t know, but I won’t be using that product again.  By germinating different seed in different places within the greenhouse, we’re learning what seedling likes it where (there are wet spots, hot spots, and brighter spots because of the sun angles and ventilation)   I’m learning that some seeds need stratification as suggested by the seed supplier and that some don’t. Anyway, we’ve gotten to the point after the first few years where we can grow some really nice seedlings!

What else?  I’m going to mention again in case you all out there didn’t know this.  Steph and I are the only ones who do all the work here.  When you buy trees, wreaths, or seedlings from us, we grew it, made it, taken your order, packed it, and so on.  We have right sized this farm to the point where we can do all the work and thus, control the quality of everything.

We are very small and only want to make enough to keep things going and give our good customers a fair price. Therefore our web site and shopping cart do not have all the bells and whistles that the big guys may have.  Apologies for that…we do the very best we can.

It’s only five months to Christmas and we still have fair season to go.  I’ve sheared about ¼ of the 10,000 or so Christmas trees we grow and again, they are looking good…better than normal!  Hopefully the weather the rest of the year will be as good as it has been.

We will no doubt win blue ribbons at many of the Vermont fairs.  We now only have time to participate fully in the very nearby Tunbridge World’s Fair.  Steph spends a week of long hours as the Superintendent of Vegetables and I spend the four days of the fair promoting the Christmas tree industry and our farm in a booth inside Steph’s Gilman building. We have a nice tree and wreath display and competition outside the same building.

Is this what you’ve been looking for?  You can get 10% off any Christmas tree and holiday season related item by using the code EARLY10 when you check out of the shopping cart.  This coupon code will good through October 30th, 2012 for early Christmas orders.  Fromm November 1st and through November 20th you can still get 5% off your Christmas order by using the coupon code LATER5.

Like every year, those that order early get our very best trees.

This is the 10th year of operating Redrock Farm after retiring from the US Navy.  It will be the 22nd year that Redrock Farm has been shipping trees in boxes to your door!

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Mar 292012
 

Steph and I are ready for the challenges of late spring and summer.  The winter of 2011-2012 had no challenges with little snow and no very cold spells.  What does that mean?  The mice were active girdling some of the seedlings and probably more than a normal amount of bugs survived the winter.

Spring has been interesting as well.  The week of March 18th we had six consecutive days of 70 degrees or higher (a couple in the 80s).  Maple sugaring season was over almost before it began!  No doubt buds will open early this year with all those heating degree days so early. Then we pray for no killing frosts.

April is a busy month sorting, packing, and shipping our seedlings for Earth Day events and early weddings.  And some go to growers for their Christmas tree plantations as well.

April is also the month where we dig transplants for sale and planting, cut stumps down from the previous Christmas tree selling season, do some spraying of pre-emergent herbicides, and, if time, planting and fertilizing in our fields.  That may have to wait until May this year!

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Oct 302011
 

Pictures of our 2nd snow fall this year.  We definitely don’t need any more moisture in the already saturated ground!

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Oct 302011
 

If you are a previous customer who had an account and are having trouble logging in to the new store, please do the following:

Go to the store’s home page https://www.christmastrees.net/shop/  and on the lower left sidebar there is a “login” area. Put in your email address (which is now your user name) and click on “forgot password?”  A link to reset it will be emailed to you.  Unlike the last shopping cart, this works.  I can’t see your password so I can’t send it to you..more privacy for the user!

We sent an email to everyone back in March with this information and much more, but many were not thinking about Christmas back then!

Thanks a bunch!

Rich

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