The Last of the Roses in Autumn

The milkweed pods are breaking,

 And the bits of silken down
 Float off upon the autumn breeze
 Across the meadows brown.
~Cecil Cavendish, The Milkweed



(Source: http://www.gardendigest.com/autumn.htm) 

Give the Dandelions a Break

I love dandelions.  I don't care if they clog up the lawn. Once you mow a few times they stop blooming. Mind you, my lawn isn't really true grass, so if yours if, you might be more selective. As proof of my love of dandelions and to explain why I love this quaint, prolific plant, I have these pictures to share.

You fight dandelions all weekend, and late Monday afternoon there they are, pert as all get out, in full and gorgeous bloom, pretty as can be, thriving as only dandelions can in the face of adversity. ~Hal Borland

If dandelions were hard to grow, they would be most welcome on any lawn. ~Andrew V. Mason

Every child is born a naturalist. His eyes are, by nature, open to the glories of the stars, the beauty of the flowers, and the mystery of life.  ~R. Search

Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them. ~ A. A. Milne,  Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh

~Brenda

Lessons From My Herb Garden

The new herb garden I started last year was as lovely as I had hoped. After a year of hospital and doctor visits because of my psoriasis which led to infections and a nasty drug interaction, I was ready for a round of stress relief. Growing and harvesting herbs has always been relaxing and peaceful. 

I've been growing herbs since we lived in the city almost 20 years ago. I learn something new each season, which, for me, is part of the joy I find in gardening. Below are the herbs I grew last season. I've included the good, bad and the ugly in growing each plant. 

Nasturtiums:  I've grown this beautiful herb from seed every year in whatever plot of land served as my garden. I find they do better in the ground, rather than in pots.Nasturtium will trail far and wide with optimum conditions. In my excitement, I ignored this lesson. They will also crowd shorter herbs such as thyme or oregano. The picture below was taken after I pulled up an entire plant that had grown to cover half of the oregano plant. This year I will plant fewer nasturtiums and sow them next to the outer edge where I can guide them to trail over the edging blocks, so they won't crowd other plants. Lesson: Sow nasturtiums where they can trail and wander without crowding other herbs.

Calendula: This is another of my favorite annual herbs, which is why I lost my mind momentarily when I planted TWO packets of calendula seeds.  Honestly, this size herb bed only needed 2-3 plants. They grew fast and furious, giving me more blooms than I could keep up with in the deadheading department. I ended up making four small tins of salve. (I'm tweaking the recipe this season before I share it.) The picture below shows both blooms and seed heads. Lesson: Sow LESS seed.

Lemon Verbena: The first time I grew lemon verbena was at least 13 years ago. I bought a small pot, knowing it wouldn't survive our Zone 5 winters. The fragrance of lemon verbena is unlike any other lemon scented herb. I can only describe it as delightful and uplifting. Last season I bought the same size pot from a local nursery, planting it in my herb bed. I watched in amazement as it grew to at least 5 feet tall and about 3 foot wide. The main "stem" by the end of the season was thick and woody, much like a small tree. Lesson: Give lemon verbena it's own space. 

Oregano/Lavender/Catmint: The only problem these three herbs developed was a lack of growth because of overcrowding that resulted in shade from the nasturtium and monster lemon verbena. They should recover this year.  Lesson: Pay attention to the spacing requirements given for an herb or flower. It makes a difference.


Other herbs grown last season:
Sage
Oregano
Lemon Thyme
Assorted Pansies
Moss Rose (Portulaca grandiflora)
Lavender
Chives
Catmint

From seed:
Basil (pots)
Nasturtium
Calendula

Lastly, the pansies and moss rose were a pretty addition to the herb bed, adding color while I waited patiently for the herbs to bloom. The pansies needed watering quite often, but the moss rose LOVED the heat and sun. They do well in the hottest part of the summer and rarely need watering.

I can't wait to apply these lessons this year!

I hope you all have a lovely day,
Brenda

Garden Dreams

I know many of you are under snow, some literally, so it's hard to look ahead to spring, but we can dream. The seed catalogs have been arriving already, and I'm dreaming of a garden makeover. I'm going to try something different this year using containers and raised beds, rather than a traditional garden plot.


Until it's warm enough to dig in the dirt,  I have a few freebies I found while browsing online that I thought I'd pass along.

FREE PRINTABLE CHARTS

When you subscribe to Lady Lee's Home newsletter (and anytime afterwards) she'll give you access to a few free printable charts for the garden season. Her blog is lovely with recipes, garden tips and do-it-yourself projects.

http://ladyleeshome.com/


COLOR UNTIL YOU CAN PLANT

For an escape on a cold day or evening, print out this adult coloring book from Botanical Interests.

https://www.botanicalinterests.com/botanical-interests/botanical-interests-coloring-book


PLANNING FOR PEONIES

I love peonies. They are old fashioned, fragrant, beautiful and once established they live for many years. Peony Envy (snicker) is a peony grower with oodles of amazing varieties of peony. They also have an in depth section on planning your peony garden that is very helpful. Since peonies are so long lived and don't appreciate moving to new spaces, it's important to place the plants carefully.

http://peonysenvy.com/planagarden.html

A WILLOW PLAYHOUSE

This isn't exactly a garden project but it would be amazing near the garden area. It's a Willow Playhouse. If you don't have a willow tree on your property find someone who does and explain what you need. It won't hurt the tree and you can share the instructions with them so they can make their own playhouse. The instructions are here:

http://www.homesteadlady.com/diy-willow-playhouse/

Stay Warm,
Brenda