Common Gardening Mistakes

Mistakes . . . we all make them!  We are not aware of some mistakes.

I ran across an excellent article on common gardening mistakes that all gardeners should read.  Some I was not aware of and through the years, I have done a ton of gardening research.  You never stop learning!

Click here to go to the very informative article 15 Common Gardening Mistakes Everyone Makes.

Some things to keep in mind . . .

Through my years of gardening in moderate zone 9 climate, the "rules" for winter depend on the weather.  It is not a bad idea to push the limits and experiment in certain climates.  For example, my best success in propagating hibiscus was during the winter when the temperatures were consistently in the 70s.  For one thing, I broke the cardinal rule of not hard pruning during the winter months.  

The experiment was a monumental success and I had a record number of hibiscus ready to plant in the spring and had enough to give away to other gardeners who were happy to share cuttings and surpluses of their own.  You never know unless you push the limits.

The photo is a version of my garden back in 2000.

read more

Discover Hypertufa Plant Containers

Hypertufa plant containers are so cute!

I've made lots of concrete plant containers and have heard of hypertufa, but have not yet made any.  The great feature of hypertufa is less weight than concrete.  I love my concrete containers, but huge containers are almost impossible to move around.

Fine Gardening (photo source) has an excellent article on hypertufa, including Peg's secrets, whose containers are shown in the photo.

Click here to go to the article.

Click here for an excellent guide to concrete and hypertufa recipes . . . great information!

read more

Those pesky weeds!

Now is the time to cut down next season's weed population.

October is a perfect time to take care of those pests since we are out there doing seasonal maintenance.  Actually, anytime is a good time to avoid the over-population of the pesky weeds. 

The secret is to not let the weeds set seed.  Pull them out or kill them before they have a chance to seed.

Anytime I am walking around the garden, I make sure to go out with a plastic grocery bag and pull weeds here and there as I encounter them.  It is so much easier to keep them under control if you routinely pull them out as you are just wandering around.  

Want to identify the weeds that grow on your property?  What Weed Is It is an excellent article for starters.  It includes links to other articles and publications.

Weed Management Guide for Florida Lawns is another resource for Florida gardeners as well as gardeners in all zones since it includes some great information about weeds in general.

read more

Fabulous Stepping Stone Inspiration

Stepping stones are a quick way to add color and sometimes functionality to an area of your garden.

My favorites are the colorful mosaics like the ones in the photo.

Making your own stepping stones can be a fun experience the whole family can participate in.

Click here for an article that features 23 stepping stone projects!

read more

DIY Lace-Like Stepping Stones

Here's another creative DIY project to add some pizazz to your garden design.

Karen from Mindful Matters came up with a most unusual way to use lace doilies to paint these stunning stepping stones.  What really makes them special . . . they glow in the dark.  How cool is that?

Her painting technique will work for a number of projects.  Anywhere there is a surface to paint on!  How about a boring concrete carport floor or that back room floor that needs to be painted . . . garden containers, walls . . . you get the idea, you are limited by your imagination.

I will be incorporating Karen's painting technique for a future project for sure!

Click here for Karen's article on how to make these gorgeous stepping stones.

read more

DIY Fake Rocks and Boulders

There is no limit to what you can create with this type of project.

You may simply want to add some large fake boulders in your garden design, make the facade for the waterfall and pond you have been dreaming of or a raised bed that doubles as a place to sit.

Once you know the basics of creating a rock, the method is the same no matter what the size of the project.

I've worked with concrete for garden projects for more than 10 years and I must say that for me it has been a very satisfying and addicting endeavor.  One project leads to another!

Click here to go to the article, "How to Make Fake Rocks and Boulders" from eHow.  You will also find links to other methods of making rocks, boulders, etc.

read more

Spectacular container garden arrangements

Container Garden News is one of my new favorite gardening websites.  Not that I needed too much convincing, but I am really loving planting container gardens rather than planting in the ground.

I'm totally in love with the container in the photo.  Since red is my favorite color, the shades of red and purple in the container are so strikingly beautiful and immediately caught my eye.  Usually, I will incorporate red into my container plantings by painting the containers red, but the beauty of this container has convinced me to try a combination of red leafed plants and red flowering plants.  The Captain surprised me with gorgeous caladiums with red centers that will work perfectly!

The photo comes from the website Power Flowers.  Click here to check out the website.

Click here to go to the article from Container Garden News, featuring eight different container plantings from various websites.

Future posts will definitely feature more container gardening inspiration and I hope to include my new creations soon!

read more

Companion Planting Top 10 Plants

One of my organic gardening habits is to plant marigolds with my peppers and tomatoes since they assist in keeping the pests away.  Making small changes in your gardening routine can make a big difference.

The blog Imperfectly Happy has posted an article on Companion Planting that is very helpful and informative if you are interested in adopting some of these practices in your garden!  Click here to go to the article.

read more

How To Grow Plants From Seeds and Cuttings

Although I love to go shopping for beautiful blooming plants, there is something about the challenge and wonder of nature that growing from seeds and cuttings brings.  My love for propagating plants goes back to my childhood days!

Click here for a very informative article on seeds and cuttings, excellent for a beginning gardener, but also informative for the seasoned gardener.  The article is from one of my new discoveries, Empress of Dirt.

read more

Small Garden Inspiration

Even though The Captain and I have a large property with way too many future projects, we decided to start in the Carport Jungle.  Now that our tomatoes, peppers and herbs are on their way, it is time for us to concentrate on landscape design.

Even if you have a large area that needs landscaping, start small or you may overwhelm yourself.  I speak from experience!  Better to concentrate on a small area at a time rather than nothing because of overwhelm. It is something I have a problem with in every area of my life . . . overwhelm!

One of my favorite things to do is browse the internet for some garden inspiration.  Love the small garden in the photo, which is from the Fine Gardening website, sent in by one of their readers Lily Jacobi.  Love the layering on different levels and the use of container gardening along with the visual pleasing rocks.

I've always loved container gardening versus hard landscaping.  The problem is that when my first husband passed away and I neglected the massive gardens on the property, the container plants grew out of control and took root into the ground.  Anyway, tackling that problem is a future project!  This year, The Captain and I have been transplanting our grown seedlings into containers since we could not decide on exactly where to put what.

Click here to go to the article at Fine Gardening.  Other readers have sent in their photos for more inspiration.

read more

Best Plants for Harvesting Seeds

As a little girl growing up, my dad taught me the joys of growing plants from seed.  For as long as I could remember, I had a little patch of my own to plant whatever I wanted . . . I always picked red zinnias.  He also taught me to check my zinnias often, cutting off the spent flowers so I could increase my inventory of seeds to plant in the future.  To a little girl, it was amazing to watch nature in action and exciting that I had a part in it.  

One of my favorite publications and website, Birds and Blooms have published a wonderful article on the 10 best plants for harvesting seeds.  Of course my beloved zinnias are listing . . . but there are nine more!  Click here to go to the article.

read more

Need More Space in Your Garden?

It is also about pest and disease control and convenience.

No doubt about it, I tend to gravitate toward container gardening for ease of movement, seasonal gardening, herb and veggie gardening . . . it is so much easier for me even though we have more than enough space in our garden.

Want some ideas?  Click here for an excellent article from Organic Daily Post.

read more

Central Florida Gardening Calender

June is a great month to propagate those landscape plants!  Don't spend a lot of money for future landscaping by multiplying your inventory.  Click here for an article on propagation.

Central Florida gardeners (zone 9) will love the gardening calender from the University of Florida Extension Service that includes links for each topic.

Even if you don't live in Central Florida, the different educational topics are applicable to many other areas and gardening zones.

Click here for the complete list!

read more

DIY Garden Fountain

Can you imagine building your own garden fountain in one weekend?  I have wanted another water feature for the longest time . . . 

The tutorial shows you, step by step, how to make a garden fountain out of anything.

Click here to go to the tutorial.

read more

DIY Gel Fire Pits

What an awesome idea!

I love concrete projects and this one is unique, different and something we would use every night for our concrete jungle.  The little fire pit would make an awesome gift for someone who spends a lot of time outdoors.

If you would like to make one for your garden, click here for the tutorial!

read more

Grow Coleus As A Tree

There is nothing like a coleus plant to brighten up the garden with big splashes of color.

The coleus plant is one that I always include in my garden every year.  Through the years, I discovered that it is very easy to grow from seed (and it even self-sows effortlessly).  There is also a wide variety of leaf shapes and colors in the marketplace for big splashes of various colors.

They also propagate from cuttings easily.

I never thought of growing it as a tree!  What an awesome idea!

Click here for step by step instructions . . . I'm going to try it this year!

read more

Using Eggshells in the Garden

Recycling . . . I love using something that is usually thrown away in useful ways.  Eggshells are free and so beneficial in the garden.

As long as I can remember, eggshells were always put in the soil mixture when first planting tomato plants. We sprinkle eggshells as a mulch when slugs become a problem.  Those are the ways we have used eggshells in our organic garden.

I never used an elaborate technique for preparing the eggshells . . . just dried them out before using them. However, I have since learned it is important to prepare them for use in the garden.  Here is an excellent article on how to prepare your eggshells before using them.

11 Ingenious Uses for Eggshells from Good Housekeeping

Other links with information on using eggshells in the garden . . . from eHow and How Stuff Works.

read more

How to Root Basil Indoors

If you love to cook using fresh basil, here are some ways to start new plants.

I've had great success propagating basil from cuttings . . . take a cutting and prepare as shown in the photo, dip in rooting hormone, plant in a container with well draining soil, water regularly and keep in indirect sun.

Here is another method from Birds and Blooms . . . click here.  

Photo source is Birds and Blooms.

read more

Fall Veggie Gardening for Florida

Although this was prepared for Florida gardeners, it would also work for those states with similar fall climates, like certain parts of Texas.

Click on the graphic for a larger version.

I've been able to grow tomato and pepper plants all year long in Florida.  Fall is one of the best months to grow veggies in my area!

The source for this illustration is University of Florida, one of my favorite resources for Florida gardening information.

Click here to go to my Florida gardening page on my website . . . includes lots of informative links.

read more

Awesome container gardening ideas

Simply gorgeous!  I love it :)  The photo is from the website The Garden Glove, their link is at the end of the post.

I have thought of using a tub as a container garden, but never had one to put into action.  What I did have was a toilet that I thought would make an awesome container display, but my husband threw it away before I had a chance to use it for a beautiful display.

Recycling old objects in the garden is one of my favorite things.  I've used old coffee pots, tea kettles, painted tin cans, old shoes . . . before it got thrown away it was put to the test in the garden.  We have even used old displays from when we had a retail store.  The spinner rack is my favorite . . . from paperback books to the garden!

These are old photos from my garden, but my staghorn ferns are still thriving in the spinner rack.  I'll have to take some new photos.  

It has been through tropical storms, hurricanes and time.  My estimate is that it has been used in the garden since 1998.  One of my favorite things!

For more inspiration on unusual items to use in the garden, click here for an awesome article and website, The Garden Glove.

From this blog, Subtropical Gardening, click here for a post on upcycled and unusual container plants

101 Container Gardening Ideas from Southern Living . . . click here

30 Container Gardening Ideas from MagazineHours.com . . . click here

I will be adding more links as I find them!

read more

A Cozy Spot

There is no better therapy for stress than to have a cozy spot outdoors to enjoy the sights and sounds of nature.

Back in the day, we had "rooms" set up in the garden for different times of day as the sun would hit the area a certain way.  Then we had the spots that were perfect for watching the stars at night.

We are blessed to live in Florida when we can enjoy a meal outdoors just about any time of the year.

Fine Gardening is a great website to gather inspiration for creating a new spot in your garden.  I love spending time going through all the awesome photos of gardens from all over the world.

This photo is from a garden in Connecticut . . . so comfy and cozy, yet very simple.  To see more photos of this beautiful garden, click here.

read more

Amazonica Alocasia

Love my new Amazonica Alocasias!

This is one of those plants that I have wanted to buy for the longest time, but they are so expensive.  Well, as luck would have it, The Captain and I discovered the garden center at the MacDill Air Force Base Commissary.  Just about everything at the commissary is much cheaper than anywhere else and we got one good sized plant for $1.99.

Yes!!!  I am doing the happy dance for sure.  These plants will grow beautifully in containers and since they don't like full sun, but bright light or partial shade, they are perfect for the Carport Jungle.

So far we have three of them and will continue to buy one or two every time we visit the base.  They have a great selection of tropicals at very reasonable prices, so we have found our source for fixing up the Carport Jungle beautifully.  I have my eye on their gorgeous selection of White Flower Bird of Paradise.

We will start taking photos of the progress and will do a page of the transformation on the website.

More to come on these beautiful plants . . . care, propagation, etc.  I love all types of elephant ears!

read more

Upcycled and unusual container plants

Trash cans as containers for plants are something I love to use in my garden (except mine are used and much older looking with lots of dents and dings).  I paint mine to make them prettier!  Love the idea of rollers on the bottom . . . great idea since the bigger ones really get heavy and difficult to move.

Before you go out to the store and spent way too much on new containers, check out DIY's website for some great ideas for items you may already have at home . . .

Click here to go to DIY's gallery of upcycled and unusual container plants.

read more

Crinum Lily

The drought tolerant and virtually maintenance free crinum lilies have been blooming like crazy, as shown in an older photo from our garden. We have them all over the yard and when they are in bloom, it is a color splash explosion during the warm months.

The foliage of the variety of crinum lilies shown in the photos are not very attractive in the landscape (in my opinion) . . . but they make it up with the explosion of colors when they bloom.

The irritating thing about this plant is that it attracts the huge grasshoppers that are such a problem to get rid of, although they don't do much damage to the crinums.  They are shameless!

What I love about the crinum lilies . . . they multiply profusely once you get them established.  They are easily propagated by dividing the bulbs.

Here are some links featuring crinum lilies . . .

Pacific Bulb Society 

Floridata

Doofus.org Crinum Page

read more