Squirrels in my garden last year made vegetable gardening a nightmare for me. This year, I decided to try combining perennials and vegetables in one garden bed to see how it worked out. I have long been interested in growing perennials. Adding some vegetables into the mix gave my garden beds an interesting new look. …
Facebook has so many great pages devoted to gardening, but the way the site now shows the content of pages, it is sometimes hard for them to get seen on news feeds. Facebook is one of the most popular of the social media channels. I thought it would be fun for the Garden Charmers (a …
One of my favorite things to do when I have some spare time is to visit Raleigh Botanical Gardens. I love the new perennial and annual plants that I learn about and it just de-stresses me like nothing else seems to do. Raleigh has a great Botanical Garden called JC Raulston Arboretum. The beauty of …
Much of my personal peace and happiness comes from the time I spend in my garden. It soothes my soul like nothing else that I do during the day. These images are flowers from my garden and I have teamed them up with sayings that describe how I often feel when I am outside working …
I have often thought that orchids are only plants that you should choose if you have green house conditions. But on a recent trip to several home improvement stores, I have seen scores of beautiful moth orchids that are sitting in normal low light conditions for what seems like weeks on end without losing their …
I have loved plants all of my life. For a large portion of it, that meant indoor plants. Now that I have a largish property, it means lots and lots of garden beds with perennials. I don’t have much time to tend indoor plants, but I still like to have a few of them around. …
DIY Flower Projects for those who Love Gardening in any Form These DIY Flower Projects appeal to me because they are not your normal run of the mill cut paper flower. Most of those are cute but not very stylish looking to me. These projects take creativity to a whole new level. Some of them …
Nature’s Beauty: Frost Flowers My husband loves National Geographic nature shows and watches them often. The other day he told me about a show that he had watched on a phenomenon called frost flowers. I had never heard of these, so I wanted to research the topic to do an article for the site. What …
I love to feature photos from some of the fans of my Facebook page. Today I’ll be featuring the lovely butterfly and insect photos of a fan named Tamara. Fans of my Facebook page love to submit photos of their gardens and projects for me to consider for this website and The Facebook page – …
My daughter Jess’ favorite flower is the sunflower. I plant them in my garden each year and love to find new varieties that I have not had before. Growing sunflowers is pretty easy if you keep just a few things in mind. Plant a Sunflower to Brighten your Day I’ve written about sunflowers many times …
Readers of my blog will know that my project for this year (and the next two) is my test garden. I have a model that I am emulating from Garden Gate and will grow shade, semi shade and full sun plants in it to write articles about for my blog. Read about the beginning here. …
The Raleigh Rose Garden is a place that you should visit if you are ever in Raleigh, North Carolina. Raleigh’s little Theater has a wonderful rose garden behind it. I discovered it year’s ago when my daughter performed in a play there as a middle schooler. It has a splendid array of roses of all …
Bees are extraordinary creatures. They move from plant to plant transferring pollen, making sure that the species thrives. They are so necessary in our gardens and it is a shame that their numbers are decreasing in part due to huge mega farming operations, loss of their habitats and pesticide use. One of the Fans of …
It is often said that happiness is a choice….a state of mind. Some people find it illusive but just look within and it’s usually there. Even the term inspirational happiness quotes just puts a smile on my face. Quotes and inspirational sayings are very popular with my readers so I am always on the lookout …
Earlier this year, I wrote about a test garden that I will be having in my back yard. I am using the garden bed to grow all sorts of things as test plants for the blog posts that I write. Some grow well there and some don’t like it at all, but everything gives me …
Today’s featured flower is the Red Emperor Tulip. I love tulips. I have a big patch of these perennial bulbs in my front garden bed and they are gorgeous. They don’t last long but the show that they put on is just incredible for a few short weeks. Emperor tulips are old hybrids, but have …
There is nothing quite like a re-bloom of your favorite flower later in the year. A re-blooming iris gives me a chance to enjoy the beauty twice in one season. If you love growing perennials, you will probably have an iris or two in your garden. Many iris plants bloom once for the season and …
A fan of my Gardening Cook Page on Facebook recently shared with me some photos she took on a recent Garden tour of Stott Garden in Goshen, Indiana. My husband and I spend the summer months touring garden centers around this country. We have visited several of them in Indiana, but when someone mentioned it …
Sweet Williams have pretty fringed flowers that grow in a cluster on top of a long stalk. Dianthus Barbatus is a lovely variety of the dianthus species. Dianthus Barbatus – is a tender perennial. It is often treated as a Biennial with leaves the first year and flowers the second before dying off. My Dianthus Barbatus …
I have long dreamed of having a test garden. I’ve always enjoyed experimenting with various types of plants. Some turn out well and others don’t last the season, but I enjoy it all. Since I write about how to grow plants for my blog posts, I wanted a dedicated place where I can test growing …