Summer is quickly approaching, so it’s time to decorate your outdoor spaces with plants. Containers are a fantastic way to display plants on your patio, balcony, or any outdoor space, giving you a close view of gorgeous flowers and unique foliage. Before you head to the nursery and stock up on plants, it’s essential to have a plan for your pots. Container Goals Before summer begins, take a few moments to set goals for your container displays. Here are some questions to ask yourself: Design Elements When it comes to containers, plants are typically grouped into one of three categories, […]
Category: Annuals
7 Growing Tips For Begonias
Begonias are renowned for their vibrant, colorful blooms and distinctive foliage. With over 1,800 species, begonias come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and colors, making them a popular choice for gardeners and plant enthusiasts alike. They are native to tropical and subtropical regions around the world, but can also be grown indoors as houseplants. Begonias are valued not only for their stunning appearance but also for their ease of care, making them an ideal plant for both novice and experienced gardeners. Whether you’re looking to brighten up your garden or add some color to your indoor space, begonias […]
Cutting Flower Garden: Planning, Maintenance, & Preserving
A favorite activity of mine is walking around the landscape on a summer morning and finding flowers and foliage to use as cut flowers. My garden is in northern Wisconsin, where the climate is cold, and deer are plentiful. These conditions make it difficult to grow many flowers. However, I can still find fun bouquets from plants like bleeding hearts, alliums, and even ferns. As gardeners, we have access to various types of plants with beautiful flowers and foliage. What Are Cutting Gardens? Cutting gardens are spaces dedicated to growing plants for floral decorations. These plants can include annuals, perennials, […]
6 Tips For Perfect Plant Pairings
Designing your garden can be a fun and creative experience. There are many things to consider during the planning phase. We have put together six tips to help you get started pairing your plants perfectly. Choose Wisely, Pair Creatively To have success with gardening we must make solid logical, thoughtful decisions, but don’t let those limit your expression of creativity. For artistic and auspicious plant pairings, first, do your homework. Observe, study, and learn about the plants you have and those plants you want to have. Be playful and relaxed about what plants you pair together but choose wisely. Work […]
Create A Mardi Gras Themed Garden
American Mardi Gras first began around 1699 near New Orleans by a French-Canadian explorer named Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville. Although Mardi Gras can be traced back as far as the 17th century in Europe. While it started off with religious practices, it has since become more of a general celebration. Mardi Gras Day is filled with music, parades with floats, parties, and food. Mardi Gras is well known for the colors associated with this celebration – green, purple, and gold. The history behind the colors is a fascinating one dating back to 1872 when the King of the Carnival proclaimed […]
Seed Saving: 4 Important Questions To Consider Before Starting
Saving seeds sounds like a really positive and simple thing to do. It can be rewarding and helpful, but a conscious decision needs to be made way in advance if you are going to grow plants that you can collect seed from. Especially if you are talking about saving vegetable seeds. You will generally want very opposite traits from those plants you choose to grow primarily for consumption. What Seeds Should You Save? Don’t bother saving from hybrids – F1 hybrid offspring don’t come true to type or their seeds are often, just plain sterile. Plants listed as OP – […]
Starting Annual Flower Seeds Indoors
How exciting it is to hold seeds in the palm of your hand. The anticipation and promise of summer encapsulated in a tiny seed. A seed that can become a lovely plant hoisting big, bold brightly-colored fragrant blooms! But wait, first things first. Sowing seeds for annual flowering plants is no different than starting vegetable garden seeds. There are 3 critical things that all seeds require to germinate. Water, proper temperature, and oxygen. For annual flower seeds, the other important component is light or darkness, which we will discuss in a minute. How the gardener provides these will decide how […]