Working on that Green Thumb
Ranked #17,044 in Hobbies, Games & Toys, #278,975 overall
I'm not quite there... but it's a little greener than it used to be! :)
Have you checked out all of my other lenses?? They are all here!
A New Use for Lavender!
Never thought of this one until my daughter (the landscape designer) mentioned it to me. She had noticed it at one of her client's and actually emailed me to tell me. Apparently, the owner had planted lavender bushes under her clothesline to scent her wash. Now is that a cool idea or what?? The Scent of Lavender
Hidcote Blue Lavender Herb 100 Seeds
Amazon Price: $1.99 (as of 02/17/2012)
I can't believe lavender comes in so many colors. This shade would look spectacular in a backyard!
Looking for Daisies
We gather simple pleasures like daisies along the way... Louisa May AlcottAnd obviously, we don't do it enough. I think that I will go for a walk today and see if anyone has planted daisies in their garden!!
Photo Credit: Amazon
Another Use For Mothballs
I had heard of using a bucket of sand and some oil to keep your gardening tools rust free, but found this bit of info on file card that was in one of my piles. (I have about a zillion file cards with little bits of information written on) Anyway, the card said to pack away your tools in the fall with a few mothballs and that will keep them from rusting over the winter. Mothballs I could pick up quite easily at the hardware store. And I don't think that garden tools will pick up the scent either. Kind of nasty!Photo Credit: http://www.stockxpert.com
Garden Umbrella... Toast
Strathwood 8-Foot Falkner Market Umbrella
Amazon Price: $79.99 (as of 02/17/2012)
Here is something that we are going to have to replace this year. While we didn't actually have a tornado touch down yesterday afternoon, the winds were pretty fierce, not to mention scary and it completely destroyed out garden umbrella. It literally lifted it up and tossed it into our neighbor's yard. And it had one of those weighted bases that I can't even lift! Here's hoping for a quieter summer to come.
Show Off Your Flowers
Red Carpet Studio Bronze Bicycle Planter, Medium
Amazon Price: $123.07 (as of 02/17/2012)
This could be the focal point of your yard!
Mulching the Beds
If you are going to mulch your beds, it needs to be thick enough to do what it needs to do and that is keeping down the weeds, maintaining moisture and preventing some soil born diseases. And how thick does it need to be? According to my landscape design daughter shoot for somewhere between 1 and 3 inches.We have been mulching for the past two years and weeding is almost unnecessary and when you do spot one, it takes just a few seconds to pull it out of the ground.
Photo Credit: Amazon
Go and Pick Some Flowers
Share some of your gorgeous flowers with someone who is a shut-in... or perhaps a nursing home. You just might make someone's day and all it takes is a simple bunch of flowers.
Remember those bunches of flowers that you used to pick for your Mom. She loved them didn't she. :)
Aerating Sandals
Bosmere Aerating Sandals, Model K764
Amazon Price: $9.99 (as of 02/17/2012)
The Water Barrel
55 Gallon Water Barrel Combo
Amazon Price: (as of 02/17/2012)
It's the cheapest one I could find and is going to be worth it's weight in gold. I've been using the hose and the coupling thing that holds the wand in place is not working properly?? and I'm constantly having freezing cold water running down my arm. That's a really good way to turn you off gardening. This just might give me back my interest in gardening.
:)
Garden Links To Grow Your Garden
- How To Grow Heirloom Carrots
- Reminds me of our garden at home. Dad always grew all of our carrots!
- Wackiest Yard and Garden Products
- Some of these items, you won't even recognize!
- Save Money Gardening
- There are lots of little ways that you can find to make it inexpensive... like cuttings or taking up your geraniums in the fall. You simply have to collect some methods that work for you!
- Garden Designer
- Thank heavens that I have a daughter who does this for a living. It's a lot more complicated that I ever imagined, but this site should help you design your perfect back yard.
- How to Plant a Winning Container
- It looks so easy, but there are a few rules to learn.
- Lilies - Toad Lily
- Just when other perennials are beginning to go dormant, this exotic
toad lily will burst into bloom. White with purple flecks, these
unique and sturdy plants bloom for up to six weeks. Easy to grow
in sun or shade! Hardy and elegant! - Spring Cleaning the Garden
- Spring Cleaning the Garden
- Spring Cleaning the Garden
- Spring Cleaning the Garden
Amazon Spotlight - Gardening Gloves
Youngstown Glove 04-3800-30-M Women's Garden Glove Performance Glove Medium, Burgundy
Amazon Price: $14.99 (as of 02/17/2012)
Why do we need gardening gloves you might ask?? Well, there is that thing about getting dirt under your nails and then there's that thing about touching worms. Guess I'm still a girly girl when it comes to stuff like that. ;)
The Perfect Conditions for Alyssum
I have tried to grow the plant and sometimes it does really well and other times, it just sits there and does nothing. I looked it up for this year and I think that I found the problem. Here's what the plant likes and dislikes.1. Prefers full to partial sun.
2. They don't need any special soil... the ordinary stuff will do.
3. Don't over-water. Once or twice a week during the hotest part of the summer should be enough.
4. The soil does need to drain well, so if your soil is mostly clay... you are going to have to aid in the drainage. We nearly lost a tree last year because of the soil conditions.
5. Fertilize about once a month for gorgeous flowers.
6. Your alyssum should do quite nicely until the first frost. For some reason... it just doesn't like the cold... like me!
Sweet Alyssum Flower Seeds - 8,700 Seed in Each Packet with Free Shipping
About Weeds
A weed is simply a plant that wants to grow where people want something else. In blaming nature, people mistake the culprit. Weeds are people's idea, not nature's.
~ Anonymous
Saving the Knees
I just picked up one of these (Large Ultra Light Kneeling Cushions) 
yesterday, so I'm reading to hit the gardens. Look out you weeds, you won't stand a chance! And if you are wondering about those knee pads that strap around your legs, my daughter loaned me hers and I found them just too uncomfortable, not to mention you look a bit odd wandering around your yard wearing them. Living in a Beautiful Place
All gardeners live in beautiful places because they make them so...
Joseph Joubert
When and How to Cut the Grass in the Spring
I was looking out at the grass this morning and it was beginning to look a bit shaggy but apparently you are not supposed cut it (first spring cutting) until it is about 4 inches tall. Apparently, the taller the blade, the deeper the grass roots which makes sense and is exactly what you want before the summer drought arrives, as it tends do the last few years. And for the first cutting, because of how long the grass cuttings will be, you are going to have to rake them up and put them in the composter. After that, it's okay to leave them on the lawn.Photo Credit: Amazon
To Plant a Seed
The fact that I can plant a seed and it becomes a flower, share a bit of knowledge and it becomes another's, smile at someone and receive a smile in return, are to me continual spiritual exercises.Leo Buscalgia
I like the connection between the flower and the smile. Hopefully my garden will bring a little bit of happiness to someone else. **My lilies are sprouting like wild fire. Just maybe my thumb is starting to turn green afterall!!
Need a Little Inspiration?
If you are just starting out with a bare yard like a lot of people are finding after buying new homes, there are a few places to go for inspiration and it won't cost you a penny.1. Zoos have great gardens. Take your digital camera and you can get some great shots of the animals AND the gardens.
2. Go for a walk around the block and check out other people's gardens. And if they are outside puttering in their garden, stop and chat for a few minutes. People love to be told that their gardens are gorgeous.
3. Don't forget public parks. You can find lots of ideas for where to place plants and benches.
4. And don't forget about accessories. Wooden barrels are an easy "garden" to maintain and then there are about a zillion and one pots, watering cans, windchimes etc. to use to decorate your yard beyond the flowers.
5. And if you don't like what you have created... it's easy to move things around for a brand new look... I'm talking accessories here, not flower beds lol...
Today's Project... Raking Up The Garbage
A Tulips... Did You Know
I have to admit that I thought that you simply planted tulips and then simply left them in the ground until next year. Apparently that's not the case. Once the foliage has died , you have to dig them up and store in a dry place. They can then be replanted in the fall.*And I also didn't know that tulips need to be well drained and adding sand to the planting area helps. *They also love FULL SUN just in case you were thinking of planting in the shade.
Photo Credit: http://www.sxc.hu
On Your Spring To- Do List
Nows the time to fertilize shrubs, trees, and any ground covers that you have on your property.
Great Stuff on eBay
New YouTube vids
Memories From My Childhood
Today's Gardening Quote
In my garden there is a large place for sentiment. My garden of flowers is also my garden of thoughts and dreams. The thoughts grow as freely as the flowers, and the dreams are as beautiful. ~Abram L. Urban
Planting Seeds Indoors
I always thought that this was a complete waste of time. My plants were tall and leggy and never amounted to anything anyway. But, my daughter has already sown the seeds for our tomato plants. They are sitting in a sunny bathroom window in our bathroom. And I'm talking sunny here. All morning and most of the afternoon, the tiny plants are bathed in heat and light.And she keeps us in tomatoes all summer long. Her secret... keep transplanting the seedlings to slightly bigger pots until it's time to plant outside.
She also said that if you don't have that sunny bathroom window, you can help them along by sitting them on the top of the fridge to help them germinate. They love the heat.
Now It's Your Turn!
You already know that I'm working on my green thumb, so I'm looking to see if I'm all by myself or there are other poor souls out there who couldn't put together a garden if their lives depended on it.
New Flickr Photos
“Gardening requires lots of water - most of it in the form of perspiration.
Lou Erickson”
About Jethro Tull
Did You Know
*I thought that he just made music ;)
Gardening Books
All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew
Do you know what the best feature is in All New Square more...0 points
The Vegetable Gardener's Bible: Discover Ed's High-Yield W-O-R-D System for All North American Gardening Regions by Edward C. Smith
Discover the last W.O.R.D. in vegetable gardening more...0 points
Gardening When It Counts: Growing Food in Hard Times (Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series) by Steve Solomon
The decline of cheap oil is inspiring increasing numbers more...0 points
The Encyclopedia of Country Living: An Old Fashioned Recipe Book by Carla Emery
Initially self-published 20 years ago, The Encyclo more...0 points
The Organic Gardener's Handbook of Natural Insect and Disease Control: A Complete Problem-Solving Guide to Keeping Your Garden and Yard Healthy Without Chemicals
End your worries about garden problems with safe, effective more...0 points
Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables by Mike Bubel, Nancy Bubel
Anyone can learn to store fruits and vegetables safely more...0 points
Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long by Eliot Coleman, Barbara Damrosch
If you love the joys of eating home-garden vegetab more...0 points
Project For June
In our garden, this month is the time to move plants around, check for disease and take care of it now before it gets out of hand. You might also want to see if curbing is holding up. Sudden downpours can wash your mulch right off the bed.And of course... do your weeding on a daily basis. There's a lot less if you catch it before it takes over your garden.
Great Stuff on CafePress
Plant a Flower
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JaguarJulie
Sep 11, 2010 @ 12:23 pm | delete
- Well, I am taking my green thumb with me ... and will put it to use in some body else's garden ... YOU know? Love it!
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LaraineRose
Jun 11, 2008 @ 3:03 am | delete
- Two green thumbs up for this lens. Sounds like you're well on your way to having a green thumb (more like a green hand). Just a beautiful lens! 5 stars, favorite, fan and lensroll.
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mulberry
Jun 3, 2008 @ 9:22 am | delete
- Enjoyed your lens, good tips and information. Growing things is a favorite pasttime.
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triathlontraining
Jun 2, 2008 @ 8:15 pm | delete
- This is a really cool lens! You've done a great job on it! Thumbs up! (green one) 5*
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BigGirlBlue
May 24, 2008 @ 1:08 pm | delete
- I've recently heard the tulip thing as well. I've never dug mine up and some come back and some do well. I have a neighbour who never touches her tulips or front garden and she has a forest of tulips every spring. Some people are just lucky. :)
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by Winter52
About Me
I was raised in the country for the first 12 years and you would think that I would know SOMETHING about gardening. Me... I wanted to be a...
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Bond 6930 Pink 5 Piece Garden Tool Bag Gift Set
Bond 6930 Pink 5 Piece Garden Tool Bag Gift Set
Amazon Price: $22.63 (as of 02/17/2012)
