Milmont Garden Nursery and Stuarts Draft

I followed the road to the river in Stuarts Draft last week, driving past the Little Debbie factory and Target warehouse in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was a pretty spring day so I let the road lead me.

Milmont Nursery. The summer annuals aren't in yet but there were plenty of other varieties of trees, shrubs, and flowers.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
April 2014

Back in the homeschool classroom: Staying in touch with homeschool friends

I got a phone call this morning, out of the blue, from a homeschool friend here in Augusta County, the first homeschool friend I made when moving back home to Virginia seventeen years ago. Back in those day, I had left my name and phone number at the Staunton Library at the children's desk -- homeschoolers spend hours at the public library and I knew that was where I could find local moms -- and Christine was the one who called.

She was in leadership with the local homeschool group, Parent Educators of Augusta County Homes, and it wasn't too long before she pulled me into leadership, too, once they found out I had been the newsletter editor with our homeschool group in North Carolina. We spent many happy years raising our children and teaching and working in leadership with others who were doing the same. She was the one who introduced me to Milmont Greenhouse and Nursery in Stuarts Draft ... her husband was part of one of the local Mennonite families with ties to that area of the county.

Our children graduated from homeschool and then from college, and we drifted apart a bit but still catch up occasionally. After her phone call this morning, today is one of those catch-up days. So I'm heading to her house on the Middle River for a lunch of quiche, salad, and iced tea along with conversation and, always, laughter. Because when the two of us get together, we laugh the silly, carefree laughter of longtime friends.

It reminds me of the saying, "Make new friends but keep the old; one is silver, the other gold."

How very true.

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Lynn Mitchell educated her children at home for 16 years and was part of leadership in North Carolina's Iredell County Home Educators (ICHE) and Virginia's Parent Educators of Augusta County Homes (PEACH). Her son graduated from Harrisonburg's James Madison University (JMU) in 2007 with a BS in Computer Science and a minor in Creative Writing. Her daughter graduated from Staunton's Mary Baldwin College in 2012 with a BS in Sustainable Business and Marketing. Lynn and her husband live in Augusta County located in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. The story of how she began her homeschool journey can be found here.
 

Photos ... Stuarts Draft on a rainy day

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
July 2, 2013

Milmont Greenhouse: Mountain views, gardening values

 I snapped a photo while shopping the 50% off premium annuals on Tuesday at Milmont Greenhouse in Stuarts Draft. With the Blue Ridge Mountains in the background, this Mennonite-run nursery has a beautiful view both inside the fence and beyond. It's been my first choice for plants for 16 years.

 Sprinkles fell from the clouds throughout the morning before finally turning into downpours by the middle of the day.

 I was looking for flowers to fill in blank spots in pots that had been planted with Milmont products in the spring.

The sale on hanging baskets and premium annuals began July 2.

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
July 2, 2013

It was a Milmont day....

 What's not to like in a sea of beautiful colorful flowers?

 Impatiens ... they are gorgeous in shady areas and perfect for my back yard.

 Early spring flowers were marked half-price at the entrance on Friday.

 Look at that view ... the Blue Ridge Mountains never fail to awe me.

 My cart of flowers ...

 ... and Barb's cart of flowers. This was our first run of the season ... we plant and then return to buy what we need to fill in the extra places.

Again ... what's not to love about that view? Flowers ... and then mountains....

Isn't he adorable?! In my yard, he could direct the nightly symphony of tree frogs in the woods behind the house.

It was time for Barb and me to make our annual trip to Milmont ... two flower lovers buying annuals to plant in flower pots and window boxes. After a long, leisurely lunch at McAlister's in Waynesboro, we drove the few miles to Milmont Nurseries in Stuarts Draft to search for just the right flowers.

We weren't disappointed, and the place was hopping with folks doing the same. Hanging baskets, planters, do-it-yourself four-packs, and vegetables were waiting inside the hot houses. Bushes, trees, and annuals were outside where the view looked across the fields to the Blue Ridge Mountains in the distance. Enjoying that scenery, I never fail to pinch myself as a reminder that I'm fortunate enough to call this beautiful place home.

I also picked up some veggie plants ... jalapeno peppers, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and banana peppers. We'll plant seeds for most everything else.

The safe frost date for the Valley is May 15th so I'm not putting anything outdoors yet. They will be potted and kept close until I feel sure the cold or frost won't damage them.

It's always a good day in the Valley when it's a Milmont day....

Photos by Lynn R. Mitchell
29 April 2011

Stuarts Draft view of the Blue Ridge Mountains

Photo by Lynn R. Mitchell
22 April 2011

Hershey in Augusta County: How sweet it is!

Stuarts Draft, Virginia, could be called the second sweetest place on earth behind Hershey, Pennsylvania. Hershey Chocolate built a Virginia plant in Augusta County 25 years ago that resulted in jobs for local citizens and an ongoing relationship with the community. Today they employ over 700 and are the number one taxpayer in the county. Often while driving through Stuarts Draft the smell of chocolate wafts through the air.

Hershey recently celebrated their 25th anniversary in Augusta County with an open house and a $48 million expansion to the plant which will add 110 new jobs to the area. Equipment to produce seasonal products has been installed, and production of most of the peanut butter-filled products has been moved to the Virginia plant.

Currently Hershey's in Stuarts Draft produces 5 million peanut butter cups a day -- 5 million! That's a lot of Reese's Cups. They will soon begin turning out Mounds and Almond Joys from this factory.

Hershey's in Augusta County ... how sweet it is!