These are so beautiful, I had to share. With instructions from Ordinary Life Magic, add these ice lanterns to your holiday decor! Collect bits of nature, freeze them in a container, add a smaller container to make the candle’s spot, and keep in the the cold out of doors. Would be a nice substitution for [...]
Evergreens provide interest in the coldest time of the year. Birds find shelter from the bitter winter. Used for privacy and noise reduction, evergreens are a great addition to landscapes. You don’t have to think Christmas tree when wanting to add them to your yard. Sizes and shapes range from ground (think juniper, yew, holly [...]
Use your leaves in the garden. Fallen leaves are rich in organic matter According to Texas A&M University, “they contain 50 to 80 percent of the nutrients a plant extracts from the soil and air during the season.” Three ways to use leaves: Mulching. Shredded leaves will decompose faster, but it’s not necessary. Fall mulching [...]
It is pretty official now, the garden is down for the winter. Perhaps the kale and chard will last a bit longer, as well as the mums, snapdragons, and rosemary. A little end of the season list: dig up remaining dahlia bulbs to store over the winter in a dry, dark spot with a range [...]
After clearing out much of my garden this weekend, I decided to get creative with the seed packet making.I had some old construction paper and stamps….voila….personalized singing dog and cat seed packets. Perfect for snapdragon, cosmos, globe amaranth, and zinnia seed!
I always use random pieces of paper to keep my collected seeds, but Heavy Petal, a Vancouver garden site (lucky them in zone 8), has given us gardeners a template. What an adorable nasturtium design! And…just in time!
This year was my first to grow potatoes, and I started thinking about grains. Is it possible to grow grains in your own city yard? I’ve heard of folks canoeing along the Wisconsin rivers harvesting wild rice, and I’ve heard of cover crops, which are grains…so this is what I’ve learned. Seems that there is [...]
Fall is the best time to divide peonies. Sept/Oct actually, but I got to these this past week. It should be plenty of time for them to enjoy a new home. Dividing helps a crowded plant perform better. Here are the steps! cut stems to a few inches above the ground dig a circle larger [...]
This is the forest pumpkin and below is the kitty pumpkin. Both are from a farm stand in Wisconsin. I saved a few seeds to try to grow next year and roasted the rest. Roasted Pumpkin Seed Recipe heat oven to 325 degrees rinse seeds, coat with butter or olive oil and season with salt [...]
Mums are a fall classic, little puff balls of color, but they don’t necessarily need to be purchased every year. To keep them around year after year, leave the leaves through winter and mulch after the first hard frost to protect the root ball from the cold. Spring growth is a little slow, but once [...]