The New Spruce Gear is Here...

I think Pat is wearing every piece of new gear we got! Thanks to Dave for sprucing up our clothing line...
Can't believe it, I just wrote an article for a September newsletter and I talked about the changing colors on the trees and shrubs. Another summer season will be winding up before we know it, and then out comes the Christmas stuff.
A lot of our spruce 'kids' will be headed back to school soon, so it will just be us 'lifers' left. Thanks go out to all of our staff this year - best season ever! As they head back, I look forward to next season as I complete all of my pre-orders with our suppliers. Pat gears up her buying and receiving as she also looks towards next season. She will be headed to Philly this week to capture a wonderful order of 2010 fountains and pots that we will be showcasing in the near future. Aaah, one year just rolls into the next....
Have a fabulous Monday...

Holidays...

Penelope Trunk wrote a couple of days ago that if you love your life, there is no need to take a holiday. I guess I can appreciate her points, yet coming from someone who loves her job, it would be so nice to take a trip far away from it for a couple of weeks. As my Dad would have said - "where did the summer go?"...
I guess we all took a trip to Edmonton this past week, so that should be good for a while... It was so interesting to see how other garden centres work - the good, the bad and the ugly. It actually made me very proud of what we have built at Spruce. I mean, we can always improve on the little stuff, but I believe we are all dedicated to achieving the best we can be, and the best part is, I think we have a pretty damn nice store...
As we move towards September, we all believe that since summer was 4-5 weeks late, we will have a fabulously long fall season, which is always good for people who want to complete their outdoor projects this fall rather than waiting until spring. September and October are fabulous times to plant if the weather stays decently warm, and then maybe, just maybe, the stars will align and I will be able to take the vacation I am yearning for...

Where Have You Been???

My apologies for being so weak at posting. I think its called the August burn-out time! We all go so hard through the season, and as it starts to slow down a bit, you find yourself coming home in the evenings and not wanting to do anything but watch some crazy reality show. Or maybe that's just me?!??!

As we head into my favorite season of fall, I'm noticing some of the leaves on the shrubs and trees starting to turn color. I'm also enjoying the Black-eyed Susans and the Autumn Joy Sedum starting to showcase their color. I love the colors of fall! Got our first shipment of fall Mums in this past week and they are stunning - next week will be Kale, fall Lilies and Sedum - it should be a great week.

Last Wednesday we finally made it out to a home in the NW, where seven of us planted up a backyard for a family that just lost their young father. A good time was had by all, and thanks to our hosts, who kindly provided beverages for the evening. The picture is a good one - thanks you guys for helping me out!

A group of us are headed to Edmonton this week to a gift show, and also to take a look at some garden centres up there. Pat and Kathie are gearing up for our Christmas giftware shipments - can't believe we are at that point already - one season seems to just roll into the next. September will see us all head off to Vancouver to the CanWest Show and also tour some of our nurseries out there, so it will be a busy once again preparing to place orders for next season.