Happy New Year January 2023
January 2023
I hope everyone had a great couple of Holidays! There are some new changes here at Mini Forest. Sky, owner and head horticulturist has officially retired. After over 35 years, she is ready to spend more time with family and friends. She has been a great mentor and teacher to me for the last 6 years and I hope I can continue her dream and make it my own. Hi, my name is Shanna. I am the new owner and head horticulturist of Mini Forest. I obtained my AAS in Horticulture in 2018 at CCC (Clackamas Community College). I have always enjoyed being outside gardening and enjoying nature. I have spent the last 6 years with SKY acquiring as much knowledge as possible to run the nursery.
As we enter the winter equinox, I am excited for the days to be longer and the plants to wake up. The weather here in Oregon has not been too extreme. We had our usual December ice storm, sending everything into a deep freeze following an extreme windstorm whipping through the nursery blowing off the greenhouse cover and knocking down some bonsai that were recently created. Nothing that couldn't be repotted or saved. Just a huge mess.
There won't be many changes here at the nursery, eventually I will need to relocate all the plants, but for now it will stay in Mulino. Over the last few years, I have been propagating several different varieties from rare specimens in the show garden. I am excited to be able to put some of them online when we get closer to spring. I do have certain varieties and species of plants that will come from local Oregon wholesalers. The most recent shipment I received is Jeans Dilly Spruce, Valley Cushion Pine, and Slow Mound Pine, all of which are miniatures, but what I am most excited about showing everyone is Mr. Twisty!
Mr. Twisty is a Mugo pine that has been trained to grow with twists and turns, making an excellent bonsai. Foliage on the Dwarf evergreen is dark green and dense. This evergreen pine is a hardy slow grower, reaching 5ft tall at 10 years if planted in the ground and unpruned. It will make a great conversation piece for any garden or landscape. For more information, please visit our website. Hardy to zones 2 through 8. We have a limited supply.
Mini Forest was able to attend a few shows last year, Gardenpalooza, Master Gardeners Faire and McMinnville Garden show. It was the first year back since covid, it was tons of fun! Look for me this year at the upcoming garden shows, more info coming soon for these events as they are still in the works. I hope everyone had a Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year.
Head Horticulturist
Mini Forest
Shanna D.