My husband used to buy me lilies all the time because he loved the look of them so much. I love them too, but not as cut flowers indoors (they have a stinky smell inside that I don’t like.) I never had the inclination to tell him that they were not my favorite cut flower …
Learn How To Garden Like a Pro With These Gardening Tips and Tutorials
I have a garden bed in my front yard that I call my “Jess border.” The reason for the name is because my daughter and I made the bed together and it always has a big patch of sunflowers in the middle of it each year. Sunflowers are Jess’ favorite flowers. Like all my other …
When my daughter was young she had a swing set, sand box and playhouse on the left side of my garden. She loved playing there, and we chose this area of the garden so that I could see her playing from my kitchen window. All that is left of the set up is the playhouse, …
It’s time for my front garden make over! This has been a year of garden make overs for me. I spent so much time last year dealing with my squirrel problem and tending my vegetable garden that I did not have a lot of time to deal with my flower garden beds. And I can …
Red Vols Daylily is a spectacular daylily that was a Better Homes and Gardens winner of the year in 2000 and it’s easy to see why. Anyone who gets interested in growing perennials while find themselves also interested in daylilies. These showing perennial bulbs are dramatic, come back year after year and are easy to …
Let’s test your garden smarts. I thought it would be fun to take a photo from my garden, and enlarge it to show only the bloom, and see if you can name it. A few hints: it does not mind if the soil is dry it flowers all spring and summer the flowers come in …
My husband and I recently attended a wedding on the coast of North Carolina. While we were there, we took the time to visit the Elizabethan Gardens at Manteo on Roanoke Island. Seeing statues that depict characters from real life is so inspiring. For another post on this type of experience, be sure to check …
I love vegetable gardening. There is nothing quite like harvesting and cooking vegetables that you have grown. If you like to grow vegetables but are a beginner, be sure to ready my post about how to troubleshoot vegetable garden problems as well as some solutions. It is helpful in learning what to do about problems …
Anyone who has priced hardscaping lately knows how expensive it can be, particularly if you have large areas to cover. I am redoing my whole area that I used last year for veggies. Long story short, the squirrels were a nightmare for me and I don’t plan to go through that experience a second time. …
This DIY Bean Teepee is a fun vegetable garden hack, and gives great support to climbing beans. This year, I changed my vegetable garden into a combined perennial/vegetable border. It’s a long story but basically, the squirrels got the better of my veggies last year and I swore never again. Since I will have flowers …
One of my favorite things to do on Sunday morning is to meet friends for breakfast or brunch and catch up on the week. Normally, we go out to a variety of restaurants and alternate each week between them. This week, I wanted to have our friends over to our house for breakfast. I’ve been …
What is better than a perennial garden bed and a vegetable garden bed? Why, a garden bed that combines them both together. And take it a step further and add herbs to the mix. You will end up with one fantastic garden that meets all your needs. And that is just what the Garden Charmers, …
This year has been a series of setbacks in my garden. It is almost the end of May and I’m way behind, but finally have some progress to show for all my work. Things that set me back were: My father’s death in February resulted in two trips to Maine. A very long winter and …
Blue is such a wonderful color. It is not often found in flowers, although there are some. Many of the flowers that are called blue have more of a purple tinge to them. But you can add blue to your garden with carefully chosen garden accents, seating and other items. If you like blue in …
Are you looking for something that will welcome in spring with a splash of color next year? These 3 easy bulbs will bring you color year after year. Spring is such a special time of the year. There is nothing quite like walking around a garden bed that shows a hint of what is to …
I was born in Maine, and one of my fondest memories is the collection of fiddlehead ferns each spring. Even though I have moved away, each year my family boxes up a whole bushel of them and sends them to me by priority mail here in NC. It’s always a special day when that box …
The Garden Charmers is a great group of ladies who garden, decorate and cook with a passion. They all have a love for our environment, so Earth Day is special to them. In the Northern Hemisphere, Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 and the day always helps us to focus on environmental awareness. If …
Gladiolus bulbs are one of my father’s favorite. I added them to my garden bed that features flowers from five generations. Growing perennials means lots of color when you plant gladioli. There is something about a bare piece of ground that suddenly breaks with foliage at an amazing rate and then bursts in a splendid …
Looking for a pretty way to dress up the pots that you use for growing herbs, and label them at the same time? These cute herb planter labels can be just printed off and then added to your pots in no time at all. Herb Identification seems at though it would be easy but you …
Growing herbs is something that any good cook should consider. This mason jar herb garden fits into the French country look that I have going on in my kitchen as part of a renovation, too. It’s the perfect DIY project for my vegetable gardening summer! I love cottage chic decor projects. They have a rustic appeal …
It’s time to check out my garden in March to see what is blooming for me. This has been the longest winter ever. I used to live in Maine and am used to long, cold winters. But here in North Carolina, normally, I have a lot of things growing, especially vegetables, by this time in …
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. …
These creative bird baths make use of re-purposed items that you may have around the house. They add a whimsical touch to any garden decorating theme. This time of the year, it’s common for bird baths to get really dirty. Check out the video on cleaning a bird bath for and easy solution to this …
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 …
Oh the weather outside is frightful, or so the saying goes. Here in Raleigh, we are not known for much cold weather in the winter, but this year has been different in that regard. We have had a couple of days of snow and several weeks of unseasonably cold weather, with temps getting down to …