A great way to add visual interest and height to your garden is to make a teepee trellis.  I love the look of the plants growing upwards in my garden.  They are also great for vining vegetable plants like beans or snap peas or vegetables like squash or cucumbers so they don’t take up much room. 

 I like the look of these in my vegetable garden for tomatoes too.  The secret for vegetables is to make them tall enough and sturdy enough to support the weight of heavy vegetables.

 To create a simple structure that you can make quickly, inexpensively and easily

start out with bamboo poles.  You can find them in the garden centers or even in craft stores like Michaels.  Keep in mind the height your plant can grow and the strength the structure needs when choosing the size of the bamboo. 

You can also use sticks you find outside if you like the look of them.  You will need at least three sticks to make a structure.  Begin by spacing the sticks around the plant while it is still young. If it is going to be a large plant, use more than just three  for more strength.

 Once the sticks are in place, pinch them together at their tops and secure with twine or wire.  I like using twine covered wire for the way it looks( I also found this at Michaels) and it’s strength.  Any thing will do though as long as it will hold up in the weather and support the poles as well as the plant.

Once you have the tops secured you can wrap the wire or twine around the sticks at even intervals, depending on what kind of plant you will be harboring inside.  Wrap the wire around one stick, then extend it to the next and then to each stick until you come back to the first stick you started with.   I usually put two or three levels of wire down the length of the poles to create the trellis.

Now all you need to do is guide your plant as it grows on up your structure by either winding the plant between the supports or gently tying the plants to it.

Stand back and enjoy your enginuity. 

Your plants will!

~”Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”  ~Thomas Edison

Do you have some old colored bottles or even new ones laying around?  Why not put them on display in your garden.

Last year while working on our company garden I found myself with many marigolds and zinnia to plant but nowhere to really fit them into our garden.

Several very nice vintage bottles were unearthed when we dug up the area for the raised beds so I decided to put them to work to creat a border and container of sorts for the flowers.

I simply dug up the ground, buried the bottles part way and created a border. (you could fill them with sand or turn them over if you’d like)

 I then filled dirt in behind them so we could plant the flowers.

It makes for an interesting container.  It’s a fun way to add a bit of color and display your old bottle collection as well.

The weather was pleasant this weekend so I was able to plant some seeds in my raised beds as well as my cold frame.

 I used my Solo spritzer to water the seedlings with Authentic Haven Brand Compost Tea.

 My dahlia tubers are already starting to show signs of life in my coldframe.

The flowers in my garden are starting to bloom despite the chillier temperatures we have been having here in the Northeast.   We did have a week or two of extremely warm weather back in March and many of my plants are still a bit confused.  I don’t remember ever having lilacs before May but they are blooming right now in my yard.  Many of the plants are ahead of schedule. Even my peonies are getting ready to bloom soon.  Now these are sights these winter weary eyes are thrilled to behold!

*Recycle an old miniblind to make plant markers for you seedlings or plants in the garden. A sharpie works well on the vinyl plant markers.

 Spring is sooner recognized by plants than by men.  ~Chinese Proverb

I was finally able to get out into my garden this week.  It’s been a long winter and it’s not as if I haven’t wanted to work in the yard and ready my gardens for this season but I broke my right arm in February and it’s not easy gardening with just one hand especially when it was my dominant arm that I had broken.  The early nice weather this year has been calling me outside but I have resisted…pain is a strong force, but now that a couple of months have passed, I let myself wander out into the tall grass and dandelion filled garden.  I couldn’t keep my self from just pulling a “couple of weeds”.  Two hours later I was still poking about doing a bit of this and a bit of that.  Trying not to use my right arm is not an easy thing to do.  Somehow I managed to accomplish a little bit but not nearly what I would like to do.  At least it’s a start…I have said it before and Ill say it again, gardens definitely teach patience….so do broken arms.

Plants give us oxygen for the lungs and for the soul.  ~Linda Solegato

I parused my garden today and was amazed at how many plants are already growing so early in the spring. 

My climatis is growing like crazy and my hydrangeas are leafing up already.  I actually have a bleeding heart blooming away while it is still March.  I compared that to pictures I have taken other years and they aren’t usually blooming until the end of April, beginning of May.  Wow, hard to believe that the garden is so confused this year.   I am not complaining of course.  That couple of weeks of gorgeous summer like weather was a real treat to winter weary folks.  It was just the boost I needed to get through the last bits of “winter”.

 Sadly though, like many of the plants that were tricked into believing it was spring already,one of my hydrangeas leafed up only to be stopped in its tracks with bitter cold.  The frost damage is sad to see but hopefully it will recover when the real spring arrives.  One can only hope.

Gracie LOVES her new boots!  We can’t wait for a rainy day!

Using a rain barrel is a great way to conserve water and keep your garden watered for free. 

 It saves one of our most important resources and making a rain barrel is really not that difficult.  With just a couple of simple steps you can make your own.

You will need

 a plastic barrel

 a drill, a hole bit (the size of your spigot)

 2 spigots

 a short length of flexible downspout

 2 hoses

pvc glue

and a jigsaw.

First you need to find a plastic barrel.  (We were lucky enough to be given a large plastic barrel that is used to store milk on a farm.)

Drill a hole about 6 inches from the bottom, (bring your spigots to the hardware store and find a drill bit to match the size of it)

Insert the spigot and seal it with PVC glue.

We also suggest installing a second spigot about 6 inches from the top – that way any overflow can go into a hose directed away from the house. Rain barrels fill up surprisingly fast.

If you like, put a coat or two of paint on your barrel (suitable for plastic).  Choose a color that makes it blend in well to your background.  Then you will hardly notice it while it works for you.

After you select the site for your rain barrel, cut your house downspout  about two to three feet higher than the height of the rainbarrel.     (plus the hight of the cinderblocks.)

Cut a hole in the top of the rain barrel that fits the flexible downspout.

 (*You could of course place your house downspout straight into the rain barrel if you can fit it in without being flexed a bit)

Place the rain barrel on top of a couple of cinder blocks to enhance the power of gravity for hose pressure.

 Insert the flexible downspout into the barrel and then fit the flexible downspout onto your  house downspout.

Next connect your hoses.  (We chose to put a soaker hose on the bottom spigot  so it automatically waters an area under our pine trees that is often untouched by rain.  We also added a regular hose to the top of the rain barrel spigot that will direct any water that overfills the barrel to another location that hardly gets any water.)  Or you can choose to let it fill up and use the water when you need it with a watering can or attaching a regular hose when you need it.

Now sit back and get ready to collect that free run off water that usually ends up washing away down the sewer.

This is really an easy project but if you are not a do it yourself type of person, there are many rain barrels on the market that aren’t very expensive and you can set up easily.  I have a Good Ideas Rain Wizard 50 in addition to our home made rainbarrel.

Garden Shoes Online offers the Good Ideas Rain Wizard 50.  It comes in several colors as well as contrasting ribbed colors.

• Made of UV resistant resin. Will not fade for years.

• Linkable to other barrels for increased capacity using separately sold linking kit

• Resistant to rust, mold, mildew, and rotting

• High quality brass spigot for hose hook-up and overflow spout

• Screen to keep out debris, insects, animals, and children

• Dimensions: 13″ x 22″ x 23″ at 19 lbs

• 50.44 gallon capacity

• 1 year Limited Manufacturer’s Warranty

“Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.”  ~Roger Miller

Time to dust off the garden tools and think spring.

This should include being prepared for the first nice spring day by knowing which shoes, boots or clogs you will slip on to greet the new year of gardening.  Some folks may say they prefer an old pair of sneakers, flip flops or just plain old barefoot.

That’s fine, but wearing a pair of gardening shoes will extend your gardening time and pleasure so more can be accomplished and enjoyed.

I’d dare say that most people that experience a good pair of footwear in the garden will be hard pressed to venture out there again in bare feet.  Not to mention the pedicure problems that can be avoided as well as health and safety issues for your feet.

Warm feet that are dry and safe make it easier to stay out there long enough to accomplish the task at hand.  So whether you prefer clogs, boots or shoes, there are so many to choose from at Garden Shoes Online.

Do your feet and back a favor !

“May all your weeds be wildflowers.”  ~  Unknown

If you are looking for a way to grow plants that’s easy on the eyes and the budget, consider container gardening.

  It is a great way to accent plants in your yard, deck, porch or garden. It also makes it possible to garden in small places or urban settings.

Containers are a great to  keep herbs in or near your kitchen.  You can even keep lettuce growing in a pot so it is always accessible when it’s time to make dinner.

Choose containers that have enough space for the plants you plan to put in them.

  There are many websites to visit that give  “recipes” for containers. Or you can visit a garden center and use your own taste to choose plants that look good when you put them together.  Be sure to check heights of plants, sun and watering requirements so that they like the same conditions, then place them where you can enjoy their beauty.

“I sit in my garden, gazing upon a beauty that cannot gaze upon itself.  And I find sufficient purpose for my day.”  ~Robert Brault