Southern Branch Nursery

06/04/2026

Hypothetical question for our Virginia Beach customers... 👀🌿

One of the most common things we hear is that Southern Branch Nursery is a bit of a drive for some folks.

If we had a small Virginia Beach location focused on native plants, gifts, workshops, consultations, and online order pickup, which would be most useful to you?

🌱 I would stop by regularly for plants and gifts
📦 I would use it primarily for online order pickup
🎓 I would attend workshops/classes there
🛒 I would visit occasionally, but still make most trips to the nursery
🚗 I would continue shopping primarily at the Chesapeake nursery

Feel free to elaborate in the comments—we're curious what would be most valuable to our community!

06/01/2026

📣 Williamsburg / Yorktown… we hear you 💚🌿

We know many of you have a hard time making the trip to Southern Branch Nursery, but you’re looking for native plants — and we’d love to help make that easier.

So here’s our question:

If we organized a Williamsburg-area native plant delivery day, where could we do it?

We’re looking for a host location that could accommodate one truckload of preordered native plants and a local pickup.

Ideal setup:
🌿 Williamsburg / Yorktown area
🚚 Space for truck access + customer pickup
🕘 Weekday morning delivery preferred
📦 Either same-day pickup or a location willing to hold plants for 24–48 hours

If we can find the right location and enough preorder interest, we’d love to test a Williamsburg pickup event!

Know a garden center, business, farm, nonprofit, church, community space, or other spot that might be a good fit? Tag them below or send us a message 👇

05/27/2026

Oh dang… these just arrived. 😍

We still have a few species Stokes’ asters available (and more on the way), but this fresh batch of ‘Honey Song Purple’ may disappear fast.

With slightly deeper purple blooms, larger flowers, and that long summer bloom window Stokes’ asters are known for, this cultivar brings a LOT of color to the garden.

Pollinators tend to notice them too. 🐝🦋

If you’re looking for a perennial that delivers bold color without feeling fussy, this one deserves a spot on your radar.

Available now at Southern Branch Nursery — but fair warning… we’re not expecting these to sit around long.

Want one? Stop by this weekend or check current availability before making the trip.

Save this post if your garden could use a little more summer purple. 💜

05/26/2026

One of our favorites! 🌲

Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) is considered a keystone species in our region, supporting an incredible web of life. It provides important habitat for species like the Brown-headed Nuthatch — a tiny southeastern bird that depends heavily on pine ecosystems — along with countless insects, pollinators, reptiles, and other wildlife associated with longleaf systems.

It’s also our longest-lived native pine, capable of living for centuries. Once dominant across the Southeast (including parts of Virginia!), these remarkable forests have been reduced to a fraction of their former range.

We’re excited to see restoration efforts helping bring them back… one seed at a time.

And yes… we happen to have some available. 😉🌲

Annual “seed sowing” is part of a long-term effort to restore longleaf pines to the region.

The iconic species once dominated the Southeast landscape and helped fuel the military might of early America.

More than 1 million acres were once in Virginia. By the 1990s, only 200 trees remained, mostly in the South Quay Sandhills Natural Area Preserve.

Read More | https://tinyurl.com/52pbu7vc

05/25/2026

Native plant gardeners know there’s always:

• one more sunny spot ☀️
• one awkward corner
• one container that could use “something” 🪴
• one plant you somehow don’t already have 💐

We don’t make the rules. 🤷‍♀️

What’s your “just one more” plant?

05/25/2026

This is advice we give all the time: start smaller than you think.

You do not have to remove your whole lawn this season to create habitat, reduce runoff, or try native plants.

A few easier starting points for Hampton Roads gardeners:

🌱 A sunny mailbox bed
🌱 One pollinator corner near the patio
🌱 Replace a struggling foundation planting
🌱 Add natives around a downspout or wet spot
🌱 Start with a simple 5–10 plant “mini habitat”

Small projects build confidence — and teach you how your site behaves through heat, rain, shade, deer pressure, and seasonal change.

And, of course… phased planting is often easier on the budget, too. 😅

Native gardening doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing.

What was your first native planting project? 👇

Turning your grass into a garden isn't as complicated as you think, but it will take time and effort. This step-by-step guide breaks down the process, from killing your lawn to picking plants to grow.

05/23/2026

Why is nobody talking about Purple Milkweed (Asclepias purpurascens)?

Because apparently… we’ve been sitting on 100+ of them this spring. 😅

If you love Common Milkweed but wish it stayed a little tidier, meet your new favorite native.

💜 Purple Milkweed has:
• that familiar milkweed look
• gorgeous deep pink-to-purple blooms
• a more compact habit — usually just 2–3 feet tall
• not an aggressive spreader

And yes… monarchs LOVE milkweed.

So much so that we’re trying something different this year.

You’ll find our milkweeds tucked away in their own covered house — not because they’re dangerous 😆 — but because we’re trying to keep monarch butterflies from sampling the merchandise before the plants go home with you.

The goal? Healthy foliage available deeper into the season, without chemical sprays — something we’re committed to.

So don’t let the magnetic doors scare you off. 👀

Come meet the milkweed house… and maybe rescue one of these wildly underrated beauties.

Purple Milkweed (Asclepias purpurascens)
🌿 1-gallon | $13.50

📍Southern Branch Nursery – Hampton Roads native plants

Native range map + plant photo credit: Flora of Virginia app 🙌🏻

05/21/2026

That’s the kind of shopping trend we can get behind! 🌳

Gardeners across the country are flocking to climate-resilient native plants as concerns about extreme heat, flooding, and pollinators grow.