“From trees and shrubs, annuals and perennials, to walkways, lighting and more, we customize each design to the needs of you and your family as well as to the characteristics of your land.”
- Ron and Michael Augustine
Buying plants and seedlings is like adopting pets. This is a living creature, and you want to be sure that it’s been treated right, because those formative weeks before you meet will impact the happy, healthy relationship you plan to build. Your best ally: a truly great nursery. Where to find that? Augustine Nursery, in Kingston.
Back in the 70s, Ron and Michael Augustine discovered that they shared a knack for landscapes. Even with just a used Dodge Dart and a few push mowers at their disposal, their customers loved the results. As the business grew, they saw that they could offer healthier, cheaper plants by growing their own. They started a nursery so that they could take charge of their offerings from Day One, and branched out into serving commercial customers.
It worked out well. In 1987, the family invested in six acres bordered by Van Kleeck Avenue and Route 9W; in the 1990s, they planted their first acre of trees, once again wanting to stock the very best.
The trees thrived in the fertile soil of the Esopus Creek delta, and soon there were 10 acres, then 30; today, there are some 20,000 trees growing happily in a 60-acre “tree paradise.” The trees and shrubs weren’t the only thing growing beautifully. Michael married kindred spirit Penny, who manages the nursery these days; their son, Michael, brought his college and grad school education back home and joined the business as a landscape designer in 2008.
Today, there are some 20,000 trees growing happily in Augustine Nursery’s 60-acre “tree paradise.”
The root of the business—offering fine quality at affordable prices—has remained healthy and strong, well-watered and fertilized by intelligent hard work and love. The offerings that have branched out from the sturdy trunk are often the first and only choice for in-the-know contractors, landscapers, and homeowners. Whether you want an expert to look at your space, listen to your dreams, and make them a reality, or you just need a few seedlings or the perfect slab of bluestone, Augustine Nursery has your ground covered. The seven-acre nursery can supply your every landscaping need.
There’s a wide selection: hundreds of varieties of broadleaf evergreens, deciduous shrubs and trees, evergreen shrubs and trees, perennials, and vines, to name just some of the plant family thriving here. There are all kinds of bulk landscaping materials: mulch and topsoil, pea gravel, river rock and Item 4. There’s a stone yard where you can find fine natural bluestone, stone for steps, wall stone…pretty much a stone for any purpose under the sun.
It’s all about helping you craft an outdoorscape that puts joy in your heart and works beautifully as a living space. Out front, say the Augustines, “We create a stunning first impression.” Out back, “we create beautiful and functional living spaces. From trees and shrubs, annuals and perennials to walkways, lighting and more, we customize each design to the needs of you and your family as well as to the characteristics of your land.”
Think about what bugs you about your yard. Is it noisy or lacking in privacy? Do you want a sturdy play zone for the kids or a superbly chill hangout spot? From consultation through design and installation, you’ll be working with people who have the know-how and experience to take you from vague idea to glorious execution while respecting your budget. They’ll also help you solve erosion and wildlife issues.
It’s all true to the vision of two kids from Kingston, and the goal has never changed: to provide you with the finest possible trees, “grander in stature, truer in form and confirmation, and stronger in constitution than our competitors,” as the Augustines pledge on their website. To get there, the Augustines do it right: young saplings have plenty of room to spread out, get just the right amount of organic fertilizer, and are weeded and watered “at a level some might call obsessive. But if you’re not obsessive, you simply can’t grow better trees.”
As the ancient Greek proverb says, a society becomes great when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit. But there’s another level of greatness in play when we care for our trees like the kinfolk they are. Augustine Nursery is the place where you’ll find that knowledge being lived every day—and you’ll see the results of those righteous roots in the trees and shrubs you adopt and take home as part of the family.
Augustine Nursery
177 Van Kleeck Ln, Kingston
845-338-4936
augustinenursery.com
