Coleus and Flower Border

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I really like this idea of creating a colorful flower border along the hedges.

Colorful Flower Border

Like in this picture, I would start with tall, vibrant coleus at the back, with its striking leaves in shades of purple, red, and green. In front of the coleus, I’d plant a row of slightly shorter flowers, like zinnias, in a mix of bright yellows, oranges, and pinks. Moving forward, I’d add a layer of shorter cosmos, with their delicate, daisy-like blooms in shades of white, pink, and magenta. Finally, along the front edge of the border, I’d include a row of low-growing marigolds, with their cheerful, golden-yellow flowers.

This progressively shorter design would create a stunning visual effect, drawing the eye from the tall, eye-catching coleus at the back to the charming, compact marigolds at the front. The vibrant mix of colors and varied heights would add depth, texture, and interest to the flower border, making it a true showstopper.

Herb Garden Village

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Herb garden village! Very fun and cute idea! Great to help get kids involved with gardening and growing your own fruit, veg and herbs! Kids love to help their parents, and by helping in the garden, they can learn about ecology, about sustainable gardening (growing your own food), and just learn to enjoy nature more, instead of being on electronic devices so much.

Herb Garden Village

Sweet Angel Vine

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Angel Vine can be grown indoors or outside, as a houseplant or an outdoor plant. If you want your angel vine to thrive, it needs lots of sun. Make sure the soil is moist but well drained so that its roots stay dry and prevents rotting. Sweet Angel Vine in Pot

The parts of an Angel vine plant are extremely toxic to humans and animals, especially the seeds! It is a good idea to keep these plants up high up so curious cats, dogs, or children cannot take a bite from them. If you suspect your pet or child has ingested any part of this plant, consider it a medical emergency.

Geum Red Dragon

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Love the bright red blooms of the Red Dragon! Red Dragon flower

Geum ‘Red Dragon’ is a stunning perennial flower that belongs to the Rosaceae family. Here are some notable characteristics of this plant:

  • Appearance: Geum ‘Red Dragon’ features vibrant, deep red, semi-double flowers that resemble small roses. The flowers are held above the foliage on tall, sturdy stems, making them excellent for cutting and using in floral arrangements.
  • Bloom time: This cultivar typically blooms from late spring to mid-summer, providing a long-lasting display of color in the garden.
  • Foliage: The plant has attractive, mounded, green foliage that remains compact and tidy throughout the growing season.
  • Size: Geum ‘Red Dragon’ grows to a height of about 18-24 inches (45-60 cm) tall and spreads around 12-18 inches (30-45 cm) wide.
  • Growing conditions: This plant thrives in full sun to partial shade and prefers well-drained soil. It is relatively low-maintenance and can tolerate some drought once established.
  • Hardiness: Geum ‘Red Dragon’ is hardy in USDA zones 5-9, making it suitable for growing in a wide range of climates.
  • Attracts pollinators: The bright, colorful flowers of Geum ‘Red Dragon’ are known to attract bees, butterflies, and other beneficial pollinators to the garden.

With its stunning red flowers and easy-to-grow nature, Geum ‘Red Dragon’ is a popular choice among gardeners looking to add a pop of color to their perennial borders, cottage gardens, or mixed plantings.

Organize Your Garden Shed

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I woke up one beautiful spring morning and glanced out the window at my garden shed as I sipped my first cup of coffee. I realized it had become a cluttered mess over the winter. My gardening tools were scattered everywhere, and I could barely find what I needed when I wanted to start my spring planting.

Wood Pallet Organizer

I decided to create an organized and efficient space where I could easily access my tools and supplies, and make my gardening more enjoyable and stress-free. Plus, with a tidy shed, I’d have more time to focus on creating the beautiful garden of my dreams.

I looked online for some inspiration, and that’s when I found this article on thegardeningglove.com. It has lots of great ideas for ways to organize a garden shed, along with helpful tips and creative storage solutions.

The Garden Glove Shed Ideas

So I sorted through my tools, donated things I no longer need, and invested in some inexpensive storage solutions like pegboards and a couple of wooden pallets. I even added a few personal touches, like some cheerful wall art. I especially like using the wood pallets to organize. I hung two of them in my shed.

My once chaotic shed is now a well-organized and inviting space that made me excited to start my spring gardening projects. The time and effort I put into organizing my shed has definitely paid off in the long run, making my gardening more efficient and enjoyable.

Grow Your Own Green Onions

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Grow your own green onions…much faster than celery. Next time you buy green onions, save the bulb and toss it in a jar of water…you’ll have a whole new bunch in 12 days!

Grow Green Onions

To grow green onions:

  • Place the white ends in water in a sunlit window
  • After a few days green shoots will begin to appear
  • Transfer onions to a glass or jar
  • Use scissors to cut off onion greens as needed
  • Replace water as needed. 

You can keep doing this indefinitely…the onion will just regrow!

This method also works for leeks and shallots.

Green onions are healthy too, they are a good source of vitamins A and C, as well as potassium and folic acid. So not only are they delicious, they’re good for you!

Garden Trellis Made With Sticks

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Garden Trellis made with sticks. This is a unique trellis for your climbing vines. Plus it’s a DIY project and can save you the money you would spend on a store-bought trellis.

Trellis Made of Sticks

I’m sure every gardener has seen a trellis at some point, but how many know how to make one? You can find sticks in the woods or even on the sidewalks of your neighborhood (especially after a windy day!). You can lash the sticks together with chicken wire, or to add a rustic touch, try using natural twine to lash the sticks together.

You can add flowering vines like honeysuckle or morning glories onto your trellis. Or try growing beans on your trellis. It is easy because they just love climbing!

Winterthur’s Enchanted Forest, Delaware

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The Enchanted Woods of Delaware is an magical place, it is like being in a fairy-tale garden.

Mushroom House

If you like fairy gardens, you’ll love this place. It looks exactly as if it was made by fairies. It includes a three-acre tree farm with several places to play, including a fairy-themed cottage, an acorn tea room, and a giant bird nest.

The Bird's Nest

The Bird’s Nest

Enchanted Woods promotes imaginative play and creativity among children and their families.

Maypole

 

Images: WinterThur.org

Beautiful Succulent Projects

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Now that I am having success with many of my succulents (thanks to their summer growth spurt!), I am in search of ways to make them really stand out in my garden.

I looked through some vacation photos of mine from about a year ago. When we were wandering some of the beach shops, we came across one shop that had a cute little ball of moss with a couple flowery looking succulents attached to the top. It was hung by a bow from the shop sign. I had never seen anything like it, and it is probably the time I first started to see succulents in a different, pretty way.

Though that photo reminded me of our family vacation, it didn’t answer an obvious question: How in the heck do you make that so the plants stay alive?!

So after a little research, I found a couple amazing tutorials to show us how to do just that!

Pine Cone Succulents
Photo Source: theinspiredhomeandgarden.com

This adorable pine cone project would make for a fun way to hang plants from patio rails, porch lights and even fence posts! I just love how the use off all natural items looks so beautiful and fresh! I wonder if a little battery operated tea light could be added to the center to make for stunning backyard party decorations?

Succulent Ball
Photo Source: Martha Stewart via www.apartmenttherapy.com

Visit this site for a VERY simple tutorial in creating this amazing ball of succulents. The concept could work for other items like wreaths, topiaries, etc.

I am very excited to try my hand at these projects – if I can get them made and growing now, they would make for some cheap, expensive-looking hand-made holiday gifts!

My New Love – Propagating Succulents

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I have never been a huge cactus fan, mostly due to the crazy amounts of spikes and prickly fuzz.

succulents

However, I recently began to enjoy the beautiful blooms and flower-like shapes of the succulents at a home on my running path. The garden is full of poke-free, drought-tolerant, beautifully colored plants. They arranged in such a nice manner that the yard looks absolutely stunning. Expensive, even.

I had the opportunity to speak with the home owner, who was extremely kind and gave me a quick tutorial in succulent growth and propagation – even sent me home with a few leaves in my running shorts pockets to give it a try! I have since been hooked!

The greatest thing about succulents is the minimal amount of water they take. I currently water 2 times a week, depending on the heat. This is because most succulents grow more in the spring and summer months. In the winter, I have read that you should water just once a week, maybe even every other week as the plants go into a dormant phase during colder seasons.

I have had mostly great luck in propagating from leaves. I started with the few I was given, then got more from a couple plants I found outside a few restaurants and homes I run by. If I see the homeowner, I be sure to ask first… but if I don’t, I guess I figure they won’t mind me taking just one or two leaves, so long as I don’t damage the plant and it is large enough they won’t miss 1 leaf! Give me your opinions on this, as I don’t know the proper succulent-leaf-taking etiquette!

Propogating Succulents

Photo Source: needlesandleaves.net

To refresh my memory, I found a very simple tutorial (see image link above) that has a method I have found to work very well with most plants. I find that some leaves like more water than others (or maybe I am giving them too much sun, so the soil just dries faster?), and some that prefer to have more sand in the mixture. Visit Needles + Leaves for the great tutorial.

One type of succulent that I have yet to be able to propagate is Aloe. I have actually read many tutorials, watched many videos and am embarrassed that many people say it is the easiest to work with! I can’t believe I have tried a dozen leaves and can’t seem to get one started – the EASIEST ONE?!

I have tried so many methods, from laying pieces on top of the soil as shown by Needles + Leaves, to burying the leaf upright in the soil, no water, moist soil, dipped in honey (that idea seemed weird, but I gave it a shot…), fresh off the mother plant, allowing the end to dry/scab over, and even buying a rooting powder. Not one method has worked for me!

 

Propogating Aloe

Photo Source: www.wikihow.com

My next attempt will be to try this tutorial from WikiHow, partly shown above. PLEASE, if anyone has a tried and true method for Aloe, be sure to let me know by email or in the comments to share with everyone!

Just a quick shout-out to my friend, who has been kind enough to let me slice a dozen or more aloe leaves off the plants in his backyard for practicing each failed method! Thank you!