Gardening Tips for Small Spaces

Cheap Tricks - For Your Garden of Course

2012-01-27T12:47:00.000-06:00

Some of my best tools and solutions for my garden are in the form of a re-purposed item or tool. These cheap green fences that I buy every year at my local Dollar General Store are useful for keeping squirrels out of my raised beds and pots. I used them just this month to protect my little pine seedlings from my big ole puppies who run though the garden with no respect as to what they step on or run over.

Recently my gardening buddy gave me these left over jugs. I have several things I'm going to use them for. They will be great for watering jugs, several filled with water around tender plants this spring will be as good as a "Wall of Water" and much cheaper. I can punch holes in them and they will water a plant for quite some time if I place the jug near the roots. They would make great seed starters too - See my post about that here.

I had a big scrap of pretty cellophane left over from a project at work. I wanted to plant seeds I had saved last fall but didn't want to turn on my mist system quite this early. I decided that the cello would be the ideal thing to retain moisture in the seed bed. I re-purposed a few little plastic pots to keep the cello from being in direct contact with the soil, scattered my seeds and misted the bed well. Next I covered the whole thing with the cello sheet and turned on the heat cable under the soil. As you can see the seeds sprouted and will continue to grow here until they are big enough to pot up.

I'd love for you to comment and share your "cheap tricks" too.

Brighten Up a Winter Day with a Dish Garden

2012-01-24T18:48:00.003-06:00

I don't have much room inside for indoor plants. My one sunny window is full of African Violets but I couldn't resist making a spot for this cute little dish garden I created with the leaves of a few succulents from my yard.

This big pot of Echeveria grows happily outside in the summer and winters over inside in my sunny studio window. It sometimes drops leaves when I water it and I know how easy these leaves are to propagate new babies. I used these leaves to make my little garden from two clay pot saucers. a little ceramic frog and a few pretty stones. Because they don't get the intense sun from my window that they have outside, they take on a leggy look and are much smaller than the mother plant. I love the way they add interest to my window seal garden and I like the little "tree" effect.

The Hyacinth pot could be classified as a dish garden too with it's pretty moss and two little blooming plants. I purchased it at my local Kroger store and will plant out the bulbs after they finish blooming.

Christmas Countdown Craft for Kids

2011-12-06T12:13:00.000-06:00

This is a cute little craft for kids and Mom's too. It's a form of advent calendar with a little poem that reads:

Santa's beard is very bare.
On his chin there is nohair.
so each day,
Add a puff so white.
And when there're all on,
He'll come that night!

Each night a child adds a cotton ball to the beard and when the last one is on -it's Christmans Eve.

This one uses a printed Christmas Shopping Bag from NashvilleWraps.com but you could use any Santa picture that would have a beard large enough to hold 25 cotton balls. The step-by-step instructions are printed here along with a free downloadable file for the poem art. http://www.holidayribbon.net/ I would use a glue stick to keep from getting little fingers - not too mention your floors - sticky.

All you need is your Santa Picture, Glue stick, 25 cotton balls, ribbons and the free downloadable file from the web site. Have fun but hurry - Christmas is coming soon!

Free Digital Art, Scrapbooking and Crafty Paper Art

2011-12-03T11:12:00.001-06:00

In winter when it's too cold to get out and dig in the dirt, my restless mind and hands turn to paper, ink, glue and all sorts of other crafty things. I love collages and using scrapbook techniques to create what I call my little "Arty Quotes". The Wren photo above turned into one of my little collages. Digital scrapbook elements are one of my favorite things to use for my collage projects (I'll tell you how to get free ones later in this post) I manipulate them in Photoshop, print them and attach to my favorite backgrounds. For backgrounds I use canvases, plain colored mat boards or anything else I find that I like. I rarely scrapbook in the traditional fashion and if I do it's digital rather than paper. I did print pages for my mom a scrapbook of my grandson Tad. Here'as one of those pages.

I wanted to share a terrific web site I recently found for free scrapbooking files and along with them I discovered a ton of new designers who also sell their art. It's called the Blog Train and every other month they have a train of 100+ designers who offer free files based on the train's theme for that month. This month (December 2011) is Christmas Traditions and there is also a color pallet that goes along. I found some great stuff! I'm using some of the snowmen I downloaded to create cards for folks at work.

Here's the link to the train - the files are only available for a minimum of one month so get on the train now! http://blogtrainblog.blogspot.com/

Now create away and remember the following quote!

A Few of My Favorite Snowmen

2011-11-30T21:26:00.001-06:00

I love snowmen - whimsical ones, felt ones, old ones, cheap ones and even real ones. I don't do a themed Christmas tree but I do put lots of my little snowmen on my tree every year. I usually can't resist buying a few new ones every year. I thought I'd share a few of them here.

I don't care how many snowmen you have there must be the ancient angel from years back gracing the tip top of the tree!

Easy Craft - Autumn Votive Jar

2011-10-30T15:57:00.003-05:00

As I promised in my last post, here are the easy little handmade votive cups I promised to show you. These were a hit at my last gathering of friends. I made two different kinds; one using the leftover corn kernels from my Indian Corn wreath and one using the corn husks from that same project.

For this craft you will need the following supplies

*Various sizes of glass canning jars – I found mine at Wal-Mart but Kroger and Dollar General Market have them too.

*Indian Corn Kernels (see video in this post)

*Corn Husks from Indian corn (corn shucks for you southern folks)

*Battery powered votives – real ones could defiantly be a fire hazard

*Paper Raffia I got mine from Nashvillewraps.com

*Hot glue for the corn shuck ones

Corn Kernel Votive Jar

Choose the jar you like and fill it two-thirds full of corn kernels. You could use cabdy corn for this too. For both projects I tore one left over corn husk into narrow strips and glued a strip around my battery votives - looks so cute!. Tie a little raffia knot around the jar top and you are done! I used Orange and Kraft colored Raffia but any colors you like will be pretty.

Corn Husk Votive Jars

For this project, I curled the pretty corn husks around the inside of my glass canning jars. I stuffed more husks inside this curled layer to make a place for my battery powered votive to rest. As above, use your Raffia to tie a knot or bow arond the jar. These would be cute on your Thanksgiving table too.

I’d love to see pictures of your votives. Send them to Kathy Green and I will post them and give you credit in a future blog post.

Easy Autumn Harvest Craft Project

2011-10-19T12:13:00.000-05:00

Sometimes my day job overlaps my blogger fun too. I created this pretty Indian Corn wreath using some products from Nashville Wraps where I work, blog and make videos of company products. This video will be a part of a blog post in the near future on Nashvillewraps.com blog. I couldn't resist posting it here too. Especially since it shows a terrific money saving tip for making the base of any wreath. Ya'll all know that I'm all about free and cheap! Next post will be how I made the little tea lights from Ball canning jars and a couple of other Nashvillwraps products.

So watch me make the wreath and see how I used 2 ten inch Styrofoam plates to make this project. I am posting a link to YouTube because Blogger was having difficulties with the upload! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iim2ZPwbhw

Get Rid of Those Fruit Flies - Safe and FREE!

2011-09-15T16:30:00.000-05:00

Here's a great blog post I found out there in Cyber Space. If you've ever had trouble with fruit flies, this one's for you! Just click the link below.

Elle's New England Kitchen

The Accidental Free Beetle Trap

2011-07-12T17:14:00.000-05:00

Sometimes little happy accidents happen in the garden. Such a happening turned into a free and safe Japanese Beetle trap. I recently left an old white dog dish on the deck rail and it rained that night filling the dish with water. As usual, I procrastinated in putting it up and I noticed a few dead beetles in that dish the second day. I thought I was on to something so I left it there and watched. Sure enough, more beetles! I have emptied that dish three times so far and here is what it looks like today.

I think it's the while color, I have other containers of water around and no beetles. Whatever the attraction it is working. This is so much better than Sevin. Please don't use Sevin! It not only kills the beetles but bees and butterflies too. You all know how scarce the bees are and we will be in a world of trouble without our pollinators. I hand picked 100's off my Knock Out Roses but you know what? The roses and all the rest will come back as soon as the beetles are gone - they olny stay a few weeks. I hate them too but I'd rather squash them than kill the bees.

Wood Ashes for Your Garden

2011-06-21T15:27:00.000-05:00

One of our favorite evening things to do is build a fire in our Chiminea and listen to the tree frogs and crickets. Yesterday I cleaned out the ashes and was going to put them in the compost. I vaguely remembered something about the does and don'ts of wood ashes in the garden so I figured I'd Google it before I dumped that whole bucket of ash. I found this really good information from the Garden page of the Oregon State University Extension Service

Now I plan to put some of the ashes in the compost and some around my roses.

Wood ash can be useful in yard if used with caution

What can you do with all the ash from burning wood in your fireplace or wood stove? Wood ash can be useful in home gardens, in your compost pile or as a pest repellent, explained Dan Sullivan, soil scientist with the Oregon State University Extension Service.

Wood ash has long been recognized as a valuable substance, Sullivan said. Many centuries ago, ancient Roman scientists and scholars documented the value of returning ash to the land.

In the 18th century, the benefits of ash-derived potash, or potassium carbonate, became widely recognized. North American trees were felled, burned and the ash was exported to Great Britain as "potash fever" hit. In 1790, the newly-independent United States of America's first patented process was a method for making fertilizer from wood ash (U.S. patent number 1: "An improved method of making pot and pearl ash)."

Cheaper sources of lime and potassium eventually killed the commercial market for wood ash, said Sullivan.

For the home gardener, however, wood ash can be a valuable source of lime, potassium and trace elements.

"Since wood ash is derived from plant material, it contains most of the 13 essential nutrients the soil must supply for plant growth," said Sullivan. "When wood burns, nitrogen and sulfur are lost as gases, and calcium, potassium, magnesium and trace element compounds remain. The carbonates and oxides remaining after wood burning are valuable liming agents, raising pH, thereby helping to neutralize acid soils."

Where soils are acid and low in potassium, wood ash is beneficial to most garden plants except acid-loving plants such as blueberries, rhododendrons and azaleas. Use wood ash on flower beds, lawns and shrubs.

The fertilizer value of wood ash depends on the type of wood you burn. As a general rule, hardwoods such as oak weigh more per cord and yield more ash per pound of wood burned. Hardwood ash contains a higher percentage of nutrients than ash from softwoods such as Douglas-fir or pine.

"Hardwoods produce approximately three times as much ash per cord and five times as many nutrients per cord as softwoods," said Sullivan.

Ash from a cord of oak meets the potassium needs of a garden 60 by 70 feet, he said. A cord of Douglas-fir ash supplies enough potassium for a garden 30 by 30 feet. Both types of ash contain enough calcium and magnesium to reduce soil acidity (increase soil pH) slightly.

One-half to one pound of wood ash per year is recommended for each shrub and rose bush. Spread ash evenly on the soil around perennial plants. Rake the ash into the soil lightly, being careful not to damage the roots. Never leave ash in lumps or piles, because if it is concentrated in one place, excessive salt from the ash will leach into the soil, creating a harmful environment for plants.

Lawns needing some lime and potassium can also benefit from wood ash. Apply no more than 10-15 pounds of ash per 1,000-square feet of lawn; at high levels, ash can be toxic. Do not use if soil pH is more than 7.0 or if potassium levels are excessive.

"You may want to have your soil analyzed periodically to determine its need for lime and potassium," said Sullivan. "As a general rule, acid soils that would benefit from ash application are usually found in those places in Oregon that get more than 20 inches of rain per year. Alkaline soils (pH greater than 7) soils in portions of central and eastern Oregon generally won't benefit from ash application."

In compost piles, wood ash can be used to help maintain a neutral condition, the best environment to help microorganisms break down organic materials. Sprinkle ash on each layer of compost as the pile is built up. Ash also adds nutrients to compost.

If used judiciously, wood ash can be used to repel insects, slugs and snails, because it draws water from invertebrates' bodies. Sprinkle ash around the base of your plants to discourage surface feeding pests. But once ash gets wet, it loses its deterring properties. Continual use of ash in this way may increase the soil pH too much, or accumulate high salt levels harmful to plants.

Sullivan offered advice for using wood ashes as a soil or compost amendment:

Protect yourself when applying wood ash. Use the same precautions you would use when handling household bleach, another strongly alkaline material. Wear eye protection and gloves. Depending on the fineness of the ash, you may want to wear a dust mask.
Do not use ash from burning trash, cardboard, coal or pressure-treated, painted or stained wood. These substances contain trace elements, harmful to many plants when applied in excessive amounts. For example, the glue in cardboard boxes and paper bags contains boron, an element toxic to many plant species at levels slightly higher than that required for normal growth.
Do not use ash on alkaline soils or on acid-loving plants.
Do not apply wood ash to a potato patch as wood ashes may favor the development of potato scab.
Do not apply ash to newly germinated seeds, as ash contains too many salts for seedlings.
Do not add ash with nitrogen fertilizers such as ammonium sulfate (21-0-0-24S), urea (46-0-0) or ammonium nitrate (34-0-0). These fertilizers produce ammonia gas when placed in contact with high pH materials such as wood ash.

Author: Carol Savonen

Source: Dan Sullivan

Pest Watch and More Container Gardening

2011-06-14T15:43:00.001-05:00

The methods for saving my squash from the squash borers and mildew that I mentioned in my last post seem to be working. As of today, I have no signs of stem damage and the mildew has not shown it's ugly face! You can barely see the paper collar around the stem of this squash plant. I have small squash and tiny tomatoes in my containers.

I tried snow peas this year and low and behold - I have peas! I really didn't think this would work but we have actually eaten fresh peas twice already. I'll do this again next year; might add an extra container just for them. As you can see, I have a yellow salad tomato plant happily growing among the pea vines. It's what I love about container gardening, I can crowd lots of plants together and they all are happy as long as I fertilize and water.

Dealing with Garden Pests

2011-05-08T18:43:00.001-05:00

Gardening in containers elimintaes a lot of the problems of traditional gardening: no weeding, no moles, no grubs. A couple of problems I did have last year were squash borers and powdery mildew. This year I’m trying an old prevention for the squash borers – paper collars around the stem when planted. You can see the one on this little squash plant. I’ll report on how this works later in the season.

The squash also had powdery mildew. Those squash were a problem but we love them so much, I’m trying again this year. I am going to tackle the mildew with Neem Oil before it gets started. I’m doing this on my Bee Balm and Lilacs too. It is one of the few chemicals allowed for organic gardens and is easy to find at most garden centers. A bottle goes a long way because it doesn't take much to make a gallon. A plastic spray bottle is perfect fro application.

Vegetable Growing in Containers - Reused and Replanted

2011-05-01T17:20:00.000-05:00

My little container garden elicits many comments and questions from folks who visit my home and greenhouse. With that in mind, I thought I would post an update here on what I’ve learned to date and what I’m growing this year.

The picture at the top is one half of my garden. I finally located the spot in my yard that receives the most sun. Thankfully, it was a bare spot next to my house that needed a little something to add interest. I think the containers and their trellises do the trick pretty well. By the way, I found those trellises at Big Lots for $14 each - I bought all they had! My tomatoes will cover them in no time at all.

Since all my containers were assembled last year, all I had to do this year was take out the top fourth of the soil and put this in the compost bin. I replaced the layer of fertilizer and topped off with new compost and popped in the seeds. In an earlier post I described the easier way I discovered to put these little gardens together so I won’t go over that here.

The other half of my garden is next to my deck; I like things close to the house. If things are too far away, I tend to forget to check on them as often as I should. This spot does not receive quite as much sun as the other but it will be fine for a couple of tomatoes and some squash. The salad greens (just coming up in this picture) have been very happy there. That rascally dog is one of our new puppies, JoJo. He likes to garden too.

Around the middle of February I planted salad mix, Romaine, Black Seeded Simpson lettuce, Arugula, radishes and spinach in the containers. One container had reseeded from last year so I let it grow. As you can see I have an abundance of salad! I have already added some of my tomatoes and will plant a couple more when the plants are a little bigger. I have found that I can plant several different plants in each container. Because of the layer of fertilizer and the water in the bottom, crowding is not a problem. I will have two tomato plants, a squash and basil in one container. In another I might put tomato, cucumber, marigold or basil. Last year, I tried eggplant, tomato, basil (I like lots of Basil) and squash in one – all were happy. I’ve already planted bush type snow peas into the container with the radish. The radishes will be gone soon and the peas should have plenty of room. The only thing that probably won’t work in this type of garden is corn and vine type beans or peas or maybe okra but I think I’ve heard of small okra types so who knows?

I’d really appreciate your comments about what and how you have gardened in containers.

Garden Tips - Veggies in Containers

2011-03-18T09:38:00.002-05:00

I couldn't have said it better myself! I found this is a wonderful post about all sorts of vegetables and how to grow them in containers.

"There are really only five things you need to get going:..." click the link to discover what these are.

http://livability.com/best-places-to-live-blog/container-gardening-vegetables-beginners

Hellebores Are Blooming!

2011-03-11T08:10:00.001-06:00

The Hellebores I wrote about a while back are blooming for the first time. They are so beautiful. I got mine from renowned Hellebore expert David Culp. I am so pleased with the colores and the huge blooms. Most of the ones available in the Nashville area are the shades of green and white and the blooms are small. As you can see, I have a pink, mauve and white. I can't wait to see if they reseed and what colors the new plants may be.

I have not done one thing to these plants since I planted them year before last. If I remember correctly, they arrived in July and I put them in my shade garden, watered them in and left them alone. The leaves cover them every year and I uncover them in spring. Pretty easy! I am going to buy more! They bloom along with the buttercups and Hyacinths just when I am about to think spring will never arrive. I think I will figure out a way to plant them on my steep bank in front of my studio. I could look up into the blooms this way. The blooms hang down like little bells from the plants.

Found on my Herbs Daily

2011-03-08T08:46:00.001-06:00

This wonderful post was a featured on my Twitter paper. I wanted you all to see it. There are simple instructions for making your own Calendula oil (pot marigold). Calendula is a mosquito repellant in addition to other things and it is a beautiful plant in the garden.

Calendula – Nature’s Incredible Healer

Starting Herbs & Heirloom Seeds

2011-02-27T21:22:00.001-06:00

In a previous post I wrote about my nifty light set up for starting seeds in my basement. Now that I have the greenhouse, things have gotten a lot easier.

I decided to use the section of my greenhouse that I set up for Intermittent Mist propagation to start my herbs and heirloom plants for this spring. The beds have heat cables installed under the sand mix that will be used for rooting cuttings later this year. I knew that bottom heat speeds up seed germination. I planted my seeds in flats as I always do but this time I placed the flats on top of my heated soil. I turned my mist timer to come on at noon and go off at 3PM. We are having fairly warm weather right now but our nights are still cool. Every night around dark I go out and put the plastic domes on the trays. This keeps in more heat in case the temps outside get below freezing. The mist will assure that my trays stay moist with no effort from me.

I planted several types of Basil seeds (all saved from plants I had last year) and heirloom tomatoes and peppers. I also tried Tarragon seeds this year. I was amazed at how fast the Basil popped up! I had Genovese and Lemon Basil up in 6 days, Tia in 8 days. The yellow heirloom tomato and Ponderosa Pinks also were up in 6 days. Everything was peeping out by 9 days. The soil in the trays is staying about 70 degrees. As soon as I have true leaves, I'll pick out the plants and pot up into 3 inch pots and grow them off on the other side of greenhouse to make room for cuttings under the mist.

I was pleased with the the herbs I wintered over. These were rooted under mist last fall and I wasn't sure they would survive in my cool greenhouse. I was also unsure if the house would stay above freezing. I put a tiny heater inside but turned it on the lowest setting. The coldest in got inside was 33 on the night that temps here got to 4 below 0 outside! The only one that didn't make it was Cuban Oregano. It was a new plant for me and I didn't know it's hardy zone - obviously, it's not winter hardy in my zone 6b - too bad 'cause it was a beautiful plant. I'm going to try to get some started early next year for next spring sales.

Another little tip that worked well for me: I used sand to cover the tiny Basil seeds after I scattered them over my flats, This way I knew they were not covered too deep. I just sprinkled it lightly over the flat and misted it in.

Money Saving Gardening Posts I've found

2011-02-12T08:55:00.001-06:00

I've spent a bunch of time lately searching for garden tips, etc. Here's one of my favorites. It is called Money Saving Garden Tips - something that is right down my alley. Enjoy!

Rosemary - Beautiful, hardy and Useful

2011-02-09T07:27:00.001-06:00

No herb garden would be complete without Rosemary. This perennial shrub is hardy in most US zones. It makes a nice landscaping plant as well as a very useful herb for cooking as well as medicinal.

I grow two varieties in my garden; Salem and ARP. ARP has been around a long time is is quite sought after because it is so hardy and flavorful. Here are the ones I started in July of last year under mist. They will be ready for sale this spring. I generally purchase small plants in no bigger than 6" pots. They are less expensive this way and grow rapidly if planted as soon as the soil warms up to around 70 degrees. I usually prune off the top third of these when I plant to encourage them to produce fuller growth. Don't throw away the clippings - use them in the kitchen!

Last year I discovered Salem at our local herb society's sale and it has become my new favorite. I really like it's shape, speedy growth as well as the flavor. It has been beautiful in a container and has proven fast in the propagation bed as well. These little babies have just been transplanted to pots from my propagation bed. I started them in August from cuttings of the plant pictured at the top of this post.

There are two types or Rosemary - Upright (like Salem and ARP) and prostrate varieties (prostratus). I just ordered this last variety from Petals From the Past . I plan on growing it for hanging baskets but it would make a nice ground cover too. Rosemary likes a sunny well drained location but I have a fairly happy one growing near the edge of my shade garden in clay soil. Once it is established, Rosemary is fairly carefree. I add a little compost in the spring and it grows well and produces beautiful blooms in the late spring and early summer.

The best thing about Rosemary is the wondeful addition it makes to your recipies. I wouldn't think of serving a pork roast without a dusting a rosemary before I put it in the oven. Try adding dried cranberries too. What a treat! A grilled or baked Chicken breast with a fresh picked branch of rosemary and a chopped garlic clove on the top is yummy. Adding dried rosemary to navy or pinto beans is really good as well. I love to put dried rosemary into the dry ingredients of bisquits or yeast bread for a unique treat. Nothing is better than going into the garden and bringing in branches of fragrant rosemary for cooking or drying for use later. It dries so easy and the leaves cling to the stems so it is not messy as some dried herbs tend to be.

Where Did Your Green Thumb Come From?

2011-02-05T08:28:00.000-06:00

I recently read a post on Slow Family Living Blog about who you learned gardening from. It got me to thinking about my own gardening heritage. Similar to my Redneck post, I began reminiscing about all the gardeners who have influenced me and led me to pursue my passion for gardens.

As I have said before, there are gardeners as far back on our family tree as I can see. My grandmothers were as different as day and night but they both had a hand in my garden journey. My maternal Grandmother, Nannie White, could barely write her name but she could grow a flower on a rock -literally. She taught me that Squash blossoms are delicious battered and fried, that you can eat many "weeds" in salad, that chicken poop is good fertilizer. I watched her make sauerkraut on the back porch as well as hominy from corn that she grew in the field and so many more things.

My Grandma Meadows lived next door to us until I was six. She had the most beautiful flowers in her little yard. Blue Morning Glories climbing up the front porch, Hollyhocks near the foundation, a little vegetable garden out back. She made cornbread in a skillet on top of the stove that was delicious and to this day, try as hard as I may, I can't do it. Before she moved next door to us, she lived in a house with a fireplace where we popped corn on a popper made to shake over the flames. popcorn has never tasted as good since!

My Great Grand Parents (pictured above) were farmers who lived off the land. They had cows, pigs, chickens and hound dogs. I got my first puppy from them. He was christened "happy" by my Dad because we got him on New Year's Day. I loved going to their house because there were always cousins to play with in the creek, chickens to feed, peaches to pick in summer and eggs to gather. I learned how to shell dried corn for the chickens and how to carefully hold a baby chick. I also learned that snakes liked eggs and was warned to be careful when reaching under a sitting hen or I might get pecked. I still love chickens and have grown my own when I lived in the country and had space for them.

Both my parents were dirt diggers too. My first garden memory is our fig tree that my dad planted in our back yard. Those figs were wonderful! We also had a Mulberry tree but I never remember that we ate the berries. Daddy always had a garden, I remember sitting on the ground in a row of ripening corn and making corn shuck dolls and trying to figure out how to make their hair from the pretty yellow corn silks. Mother was the flower gardener. I saw my first Humming bird on one of her flowering shrubs when I was 5 years old. My neighborhood friends and I played "flower shop' and used blooms from her gardens to make our bouquets. I remember when we moved back to Northern Alabama from a year in Florida, My Mom dug up and moved her beautiful Camilla bush and kept it in our utility room all winter. It was covered in big fat blooms that spring. I've loved Camellias ever since.

I've had so many older garden friends who have helped me along the road. One in particular was Ms Lillian Lowe, of Goodlettsville, TN. She was an avid wildflower collector. Her wildflower garden was a nature lesson right there in the middle of town. She was in her early 70's when I first met her and she and her friend still made yearly pilgrimages to the East Tennessee Mountains to collect wildflowers . I told her once that we were going to find her dead on some lonely mountain path with a big grin on her face. What a way to go! I still collect wild flowers and try to preserve plants that might otherwise be bulldozed by urban sprawl. Thank You , Miss Lillian, one day we will again walk together among the wild flowers in God's garden.

I hope I have passed on my green thumb to my sons. One called last night to ask my opinion of square foot gardening. The other is planning a veggie garden this year for he and grandson Tad. Tad and I cleaned out the little pond yesterday. His favorite thing to do in the yard is dig with the shovel that is "just his size'.

Please comment and tell me about where your green thumb came from. It might bring back fond memories to you as this post did for me.

My Crafty Side

2011-01-29T08:46:00.000-06:00

I’m a little slow sometimes so it took me a while to connect my daily work life to my “real” life. As some of you know, I work for a wholesale packaging distributor, Nashville Wraps. My title is Packaging Consultant but I do all sorts of fun things like making YouTube videos, play on Twitter, write “How To” blogs among other things.

It just occurred to me that some of my crafty gardening friends might enjoy some of the videos I have done for work. With that in mind, I am sharing a couple of recent ones here. Both of these I filmed in my home studio and they are about simple gift wrapping techniques that anyone can do. The first features one of my little art projects and the second is about Sinamay ribbon. I love Sinamay ribbon and use it in my collage projects as well as for gift-wrapping. you can see all my How To videos on Nashville Wraps YouTube Channel.

Roosting Boxes for Birds

2011-01-26T10:11:00.000-06:00

Here's a good idea. Of course you can construct your own but I often purchase things like this 'cause I don't have time to make everything and Bill's "honey do" list is way too long now. LOL! By the way, I'm not making any money on this - just thought it was a neat idea, my blue birds often roost in the same houses they nest in during the summer. My mom once counted 27 birds packing into her nesting box one winter night!

Check this out. Roosting Boxes for Birds

Make Your Own Pop Bottle Drip Irrigation System | You Grow Girl

2011-01-24T08:39:00.001-06:00

I found this terrific idea on Twitter and wanted to share with you.

Make Your Own Pop Bottle Drip Irrigation System You Grow Girl

Bird Houses in the Snow

2011-01-22T16:56:00.001-06:00

I took pictures of some of my favorite bird houses in the snow yesterday. This is making me want spring to hurry up and get here! I need to see little blue eggs in some of these.

No one ever builds in this one. I think it's because it's metal but it's cute on my garden arch just the same.

The one on the left we moved with us the last time. Blue Birds built in it every year at our old house but they prefer the one pictured below in our yard here.

My Mom gave me this little whimsical house and a family of Carolina Chickadees built in it last summer. The sign on the angel says, "Bless the birds and the songs they sing" I say "Amen" to that!

I couldn't leave out my big fat iron blue bird. It was a gift from my Brother-in-law. He sits in my window box most years but he is spending the winter in the flower box on the deck. The wrens check him out every year but always build somewhere else. I love him anyway.

African Violets from Leaves

2011-01-19T08:33:00.001-06:00

I love African violets. I have the perfect windows for them in my kitchen and in the studio. Trouble is, I wanted more violets than I had space for. That’s when I remembered miniature violets! I live in the violet capital of the world – Nashville is the home of Optimara Violets. I visited their web site and found that they sell Leaves! I ordered three varieties of tiny violets and I was on my way to windows full of blooms.

Here’s how I did it:

Because I’m frugal (translate that as cheap), I cut some plastic Dixie cups down to about 3 inches tall, put about an inch of water into them. I recently discovered a better medium than water, Soil Moist granules and perlite stays moist much longer and provides a little support for roots too.

Next I stretched plastic wrap over the cup, punched holes with an ice pick and added the leaves. The plastic wrap holds the leaves up so that just the tips are in the water and also keeps them off the edge of the cup which could cause them to wilt – it’s a violet thing – leaves don’t need to touch the edge of the pot-period. Be sure to put the ID tags in also so you remember what you have. Of course, you can write the names on the cups too.

Put the whole thing in an East or South facing window and wait. In a month or so you should see tiny leaves forming at the water line. Wait until you have lots of little leaves and then carefully pot them up into small pots. Keep these moist but not wet and you will be rewarded with years of happy violet blooms once these babies are established.