Finishing Touches

The bench tops are in!

Cutting them down to size.

Completed benches, some drip lines for the hanging baskets,
and way in the back is the office and public restrooms.

The tile floor is laid out. Just need to put in the fixtures,
pick a nice colored paint and curtain off the window.

Laying brick just outside the front entrance.

From the front doors, there is a lovely view of the valley.

The stone driveway has started.

Just in case you missed our sign when you drive by,
we will be open Friday April 25th. See you all soon!

Through wind, snow and ice...the garden center builds on!

Like much of CNY, Early Bird is dealing with its fair share of winter
weather. Luckily, a little snow isn't enough to slow our progress.

This extra large heater (the garden center is fitted with three of these),
everyone is able to stay comfortably warm on even the chilliest of days. 

Getting everything ready to pour concrete down the center
walkway. There are garage doors at either end, making the task
of bringing in more plants a far easier one.

Half the concrete is finished. Adding a few bricks cut at
an angle to meet the central aisle.

Just a few more...

The aluminum frames for the benches. The vinyl-coated
mesh bench tops should be arriving shortly.

Mr. Sheldrake (owner of Early Bird Farm) making sure
 everything is level.

Making sure everything is nice and tight.

Some nice stone work around the water pump. And to
think that was all just plain old river rock a few months ago...

Meanwhile in the greenhouses...this princess flower
has no idea that it below freezing outside.

Just a little something to tide you over for a little while longer. This neon geranium is bright enough to make anyone
smile on a cloudy winter day. 

Laying Down a Path to Follow

Stone is brought in to raise the ground level where
benches will later be placed.

Before laying brick, every section of floor is
painstakingly leveled by hand.

Each brick is looked over for quality and carefully
laid out.  Make sure those aisles are straight!

Almost finished...

A section of the herring bone design that was done.

Interesting fact: all these bricks were taken from State Street
right here in Ithaca. When you walk through, you might see
a few with yellow paint on them still.

The Garden Center Continues to Grow

Here's a glance at what's been going on at the new garden center. Progress continues and we're looking forward to the coming season. 

For an exclusive look behind the scenes, and advance notice of promotions and sales, visit our website and join our email list. This coming year is sure to be full of events you won't want to miss!

This is our green water system. Rainwater is collected in the
eves and travels down into underground water tanks, for later use.

All of the electrical and water components are now
 solidly planted in the floor.

Retractable shade cloths should help provide some
relief on those hot summer days.

Crushed stone is being added out front and to the side of the greenhouse- this will be our new parking lot.

Additional stone is placed inside for the benches to stand on. Once
this is finished, brick will be laid for paths throughout the garden center. 

Modified garage doors have been added to both sides of the
greenhouse- these will allow for easy access when restocking.

Look at 'em grow!

 All our flower beds are in full bloom. Please feel free to share pictures of your  own gardens- we love seeing your creativity and how much everything has grown since spring. Today may not feel much like summer, but our flowers don't show it!

Just part of one of our beds along Route 13.

Spring colors of aster, zinnia and marigold.

And the impatiens continue to thrive!

So much color! Look at that coleus, rudbeckia, zinnia.
cleome and hibiscus!

Even a simple green and white color
scheme are beautiful here.

Nothing beats farm fresh!

A new variety for us this year: Indigo Rose. A truly black
tomato with a juicy red center.  When ripe, they will be totally
black and not quite as shiny.

Ginormous green bell peppers! Perfect for stuffing.

Eggplants make a great splash of color in the vegi garden.

Big beef tomatoes- sooo big. Just a little
while longer before they reach the stand.

Another beautiful day overlooking some of
Ithaca's best sweet corn.

George and crew inspecting some of the vegetables
planted down at Ithaca Brewery. Next time you stop by,
you'll know just how local the vegis in your salad really are.

Pepper overload! Shown above from left to right: habanero,
thai hot, jalapeno, cubanelle, ghost (bhut jolokia), garden salsa,
hungarian wax & cherry hots. We also have a ton of gorgeous
green bell peppers. When you visit the vegi stand, be sure to
take a look at our Scoville Scale to give you an idea for
each pepper's heat index. 

Yes! It's melon time. A refreshing treat during
those hot summer days.

Don't forget about the sweet corn! If you haven't had any yet,
we offer several different yellow and bicolor varieties throughout
the season. Have you ever had corn that was good enough to eat raw?

Working on the Water Situation

A considerable amount of the work we've done lately has been on the water and electrical components of the new greenhouse. The boys have been working very hard, but all the soggy weather we've had lately has been making it difficult. Hopefully the weather holds out for us. Some of the things we will be working on next are: to finish leveling the surrounding areas, put in the glass walls and to add a shade covering to keep the guys (and future plants) cool.

As seen from the back of the greenhouse.

George checking on the new water tanks.

Yay! All the hoses are covered...makes it a lot easier
to walk around inside without jumping over their trenches.

An almost roadside view. We need to add some stone fill to
bring up the sides before we can start adding the glass walls.