It's Springtime in my mind

Hello everybody, just a few more short weeks and we'll all be able to get outside and do the things we love! Until then I wanted to share with you some exciting news. We, Swindler and Sons Florists, are getting ready for a great business expo at Roberts Arena (March 5-6). We will be featuring our new Garden Center offerings for Spring 2010. Over the next few weeks I will introduce you to many of these annuals, perennials, vegetables and even a "square foot garden kit".

One of the biggest changes for us this spring will be the number of different tomatoes that we will be growing. In years past we have grown as many as 20 different tomatoes, but because of the incredible passion we have seen from many of you we will attempt to grow more than 70 different varieties of tomatoes.

For an old-time tomato taste we selected over 35 new (to us) heirloom tomatoes. With names like Black Krim, Box Car Willie, Radiator Charlie's Mortgage Lifter, Amish Paste, Great White, Hillbilly, Arkansas Traveler, Brandywine and Caspian Pink, you know they are going to be good.

We will still be growing our established hybrids Better Boy, Early Girl, Jet Star, Heartland, Yellow Boy, and Beefmaster, but will add new varieties like Brandyboy, Big Beef, Pink Girl, Scarlet Red, Red Defender and Moreton.

Over the next few weeks I will go in greater detail on some of these varieties as well many others not yet listed. I will also talk about our Bicentential plans for the Main Street plantings, new selections of annuals that take our July-August heat as well as top performing perennials.

We welcome all your gardening questions and if we can't answer them we'll make something up! Just kidding, we'll be happy to research your question.