C
Ohio’s Country Journal
Mid-SepteMber 2009
49
ountRy Life
Perennial plants make life worth living at Wade and Gatton
By Matt Reese erty enhances the on-site retail business
From towering tulip trees to stately featuring numerous shade trees,
oaks, life without shade trees is certain- conifers, shrubs, hostas, daylilies and
ly possible, though definitely not as other perennials. Customers can peruse
pleasant. Shade trees provide a buffer the gardens, stroll through the green-
from the elements, pleasant place to sip house area, and visit and study thou-
lemonade on a hot summer day, a stur- sands of plants identified with plant
dy limb for hanging a swing, a place to labels and signs. Picnic tables are
climb and a home to wildlife — all of available for customers who bring
which benefit the people around them. along a lunch.
“Shade trees and perennials of all Wade’s business revolves largely
kinds make life worth living and are around the sale of shade, ornamental
the building blocks of any healthy com- and evergreen trees sold to cities,
munity,” said Van Wade, owner of parks, golf courses, housing develop-
Wade and Gatton Nurseries and Wade ments, landscape contractors, and indi-
Botanical Gardens near Bellville. vidual customers. Tree sizes range from
“Every home needs trees, shrubs, small, potted trees up to large caliper
perennials and evergreens.” trees, 4- to 10-inch caliper B&B
Wade lives up to this statement on trees. Trees are also sold retail from the
his 700- to 800-acre Richland County site, and through their landscape
perennial paradise nestled among the department; hostas and daylilies are
Van Wade, owner of Wade and Gatton Nurseries and
non-glaciated hillsides. The beautiful, sold on site and by mail order and
Wade Botanical Gardens, holds the leaf of a large
meticulously cared for gardens on the through their Web site. hosta, one of his favorite plants.
site attract a lot of attention with scenic “I think I have something like 30 dif-
vistas and charming secluded corners.  ferent price lists for all of the things we
required, and the entire operation
The extensive gardens on the prop- sell here,” Wade said.
receives an annual treatment for pest
erty were started as early as the 1930’s The trees they plant are often about
and disease control. Treatments do not
by Pearl Gatton, Nell Wade and Adelia 6 feet tall and two to three years old,
do much for the worst pests, however,
Gatton, each with their own small pri- and are grown for five to 10 years
“We have around $70,000 in deer
vate gardens surrounding the two before selling. The trees are planted in
losses every year,” Wade said. “I lose
homes on the property. Wade and his 8-foot rows with 8 feet between them.
5% to 10% of my trees to deer. I don’t
wife started to add to the gardens in “We do that so we can mow around
lose trees from much other than deer
1983, and have added additional fea- them and that allows them to grow into
and mechanical damage.”
tures each season through the years to a nice specimen tree,” Wade said.
In addition the live tree sales, Wade
enhance their business. “Most of our trees are field grown and
also has a cut Christmas tree and
Visitors come just to wander the balled and burlapped. Some of the root
wreath business that accounts for a
wooded slopes, hear the trickle of a balls are anywhere from 18 inches
small portion of his annual business.
stream and waterfall on the property, across to 5 feet.”
Green Mountain Sugar Maple and
and enjoy the charm of the large In general, 50 to 300 trees of each
Red Sunset Maple are the two biggest
Victorian-style family home that was variety are planted each year in blocks
sellers for Wade, but he offers a wide
built in the late 1880s. of 600 trees. Each tree receives an annu-
array of 300 types of shade trees,
The undeniable appeal of the prop- al topdress of fertilizer and trimming, if
conifers and shrubs. Trees account for
roughly half of the business, with land-
scaping being another 20% of the busi-
ness for Wade and Gatton.
Wade and Gatton customers can take their pick of rough-
While trees are the bulk of the busi- ly 3,500 types of hostas and 2,000 types of daylilies.
ness, it is most often the dazzling sea of
hostas, daylilies and other small perenni-
ruffled leaf edges and white leaf bot-
als coating the hillsides that retail cus-
toms and margins are always popular.
tomers and visitors remember, Wade
The daylilies sold by Wade and
said. Though only about 10% of the total
Gatton have been obtained from the
business, Wade and Gatton customers
nursery’s current polyhouse and dis-
can take their pick of roughly 3,500 types
play garden inventories. The daylily
of hostas and 2,000 types of daylilies.
descriptions that help customers select
The hostas on the site range from
the perfect plant include variety;
cultivars with giant leaves as large as
hybridizer; year hybridized; informa-
22 inches long on down to dwarf culti-
tion about the daylily indicating height;
vars with half-inch wide leaves and
bloom size; season of bloom; color;
every size in between. The plants’ leaf
foliage habit; and fragrance.
colors range from deep green to bold
Both hostas and daylilies can be bought
gold and blue hues with just about
on site or ordered and shipped. For
every possible variation of variegation,
more information about Wade and
colored streaks and multi-hued leaf
Gatton Nurseries, visit
edges. The more unique hostas with
www.wadeandgattonnurseries.com.
A combination of small perennials and large trees makes the landscape around the nursery appealing for customers.
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