When it comes to landscaping, whether for a small home or large estate, it is often difficult to see the forest for the trees. There are many considerations and several quality gardening centers, offering a full scope of services. When it comes to thoughtful design, healthy plant materials, skillful installation and impeccable maintenance, one Crested Butte nursery clearly stands above the rest.

Freeman Enterprises a.k.a The Greenhouse Landscaping and Nursery is located three miles south of town on Colorado State Highway 135. For the past 12 years, Kevin and Cari Freeman have been putting their energy into building a strong family business, based on the highest quality organic materials available, the most effective technology to date and a passion for growing things that is unmatched, except in nature.

Owner Kevin Freeman understands the microclimate of the West Elk Mountain Range. He started the company “with one shovel” in 1995 and continues to design and build some of the most stunning, thriving outdoor environments in the Crested Butte area. His designs stand the test of time, as year after year the gardens grow and prosper, even in a place where almost everyone - and everything - lives at 9,000 feet or above. “I’m proud of what I’ve been able to do with just hard work,” he said.

One of the The Greenhouse’s strengths lies in its inventory of trees. Freeman travels around the United States and Canada to find the healthiest evergreens and hardiest deciduous trees that are suitable for life in this corner of the Rockies. “He focuses on finding the best trees at elevations and climates that are similar to ours,” said Cari Freeman. “We specialize in having a large selection of A-plus grade trees. We’re in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, but there are large areas where there are no trees at all. We can give you your own little personal forest, with a mixture of native trees.”

“We also focus on landscaping in a very natural way,” she added, explaining that many homeowners arrive with plans from designers in their home states that work well on paper, but can’t survive the Crested Butte microclimate. That’s quite alright. Kevin Freeman is as adept at adapting foreign designs to fit local conditions as he is at designing from scratch. He looks at water availability, pest-resistance, wind, sun and soil to come up with a site-specific plan that will not only take hold, but will gain with each passing year.

And each passing year, The Greenhouse is there —pruning trees, weeding garden beds, deep-root fertilizing plants, maintaining irrigation systems and water features and lawns. “There’s nothing we like better than to maintain our installations. We love to see them flourish over the years. Each year they get better and better,” Cari Freeman offered.

They may not have a website, but The Greenhouse publishes a periodic newsletter, “Freeman’s Facts,” explaining the latest technologies and techniques—such as hydro-seeding and wildfire protection—offering hints on successful planting materials and extending their hard-earned knowledge to clients on a seasonal basis. Their three-acre nursery offers every gardening need, from compost to pottery and seeds to starts. And they even have a winter snow removal service. “Pretty much anything that has to do with the outside of the home,” Cari Freeman declared.

In a county where nearly 87 percent of the land is parkland, national forest or open space; in a town that has been named the Wildflower Capital of Colorado; in the meadows that were the summer residences of Ute Indians, it’s hard to beat the natural beauty of the Crested Butte area. The Freeman’s strive to blend their landscaping practice with this aesthetic. “Kevin designs in a way that blends in with the natural surroundings. It’s a harsh climate and much of the raw land is open range. If you think about it, that’s what xeriscaping is … blending in the landscape with the natural environment, using native plants and water-conscious principles.”

What Lies Beneath: Deep-Root Fertilizing
Leaves and flowers may steal the show, but plant roots play a more significant supporting role in the health and growth of trees, shrubs and flowers. Deep-root fertilization is a way to supply roots with the nutrients they need just exactly where they need them most. It is the most direct way to fertilize any type of plant material.

“Deep-root fertilizing employs a ‘gun’ —like a giant needle—to inject a time-released fertilizer directly into the root ball,” explained Kevin Freeman, Master Gardener and owner of The Greenhouse in Crested Butte. This allows plants to receive a continuous supply of food, combined with large amounts of water.

With a history of watering restrictions in the East River Valley, trees and shrubs may be vulnerable to damage. In a normal rainy summer, deep-root fertilizing has been shown to increase growth dramatically. In a drought year, it may be the difference between thriving and barely surviving.

Drought symptoms and soil deficiencies manifest themselves in different ways, depending on the plant species and particular water deficiencies. Symptoms are not always immediately evident in the foliage, however, one or two years later, when the stress begins to show, it may be too late. In addition to root damage, drought and soil deficiencies weaken plants and predispose them to secondary invasion from pests, wind- and sun-scalding.

With annual deep-root fertilizing, plants are more able to withstand the stresses of drought conditions, according to Freeman. “It’s preventative. We have seen the results of this treatment and have had amazing success…much better growth rates and increased vigor,” he said.