A few years ago, I had a thought, a dream, if you will..

     The concept or desire, a hand in growing life of wonder...

      I wanted the aroma of my favorite herbs, the kind that makes you feel the sultry, humid feel of mid-morning. a brush of Basil, or a whiff of Chamomile as you sweep past, "mmm,  I can just smell them now." 

      Those are some of the moments that helped to inspire me to grow a garden.…

Many individuals are rethinking how they maintain a presence on the internet while still maintaining personal privacy.  One of the best features of Garden-Share is that you do not have to share your last name if you do not want to. So we encourage members to protect their privacy and preclude search engines from finding your profile by only using your first name or abbreviating you last name. This way there is no record associated with you out there on the Internet.  

It is…

I live in the Desert S.W. Over the 12 yrs. of crazy gardening, I went through an obsessive phase and ended up an organic gardener with a Cert. Wildlife Habitat. It just means I provide water, shelter, nesting and plantings that support the many needs from the tiny insects to whatever else travels here. My flowers are more prolific than those I see around the community, so inviting them in was a blessing. Of coarse that includes the flowering of all herbs and veggies. I found when I really…

CREATIVE HELP PLEASE! does anyone know where to get some CHEEP tree faces or how to make them oUt of anything? I love the faces looking out of the yard but 20-30$ for one face is just too much. I need some creative minds to give me some ideas!

Fighting pests in our gardens couldn't be easier with a few easy to grow plants that take care of themselves.  They can be planted covertly among your vegetables, or prominantly displayed within  flowerbeds close by. 

Vegetable garden friendly flowers need only to be planted once, and they'll return to help you fight…

The hardy kiwi is an exciting vine to have growing in your garden that many people…

I planted my seedlings on the 12th and one week later, I already have seedlings coming up in the trays that I used the seed heat mats. I think I may have to look into purchasing a couple more. Right now, I just rotated trays so that the ones that have not sprouted yet are now on a heat mat. As the seedlings…

A little surprise this afternoon - walked out to my backyard and out of the corner of my eye - not 3 feet away came a red fox, about as large as a medium sized dog! He didn't seem to mind me much just watched for awhile and then slipped into the greenery. At least he did not seem aggressive.  We've been seeing more of them in our urban neighborhood.   My only hope is that they don't become a bigger nuisance than the racoon that tore through…

My seeds arrived!!!

     I am most excited to plant them...Can you tell?.... ha ha ha.... I can plant all my lettuce at the same time now.  I will be putting them in the coffee cans.…

Thursday, February 16, 2012

The Toad Lily

Okay I want to start this off by saying I have yet to plant this little beauty, but it is one…

It is only the middle of Febuary down here in the Gulf Coast area but spring is just around the corner, hovering.  The weather gurus do not predict any more freezing temps here, our last average frost date is March 1st, but according the them, there are no jet stream propelled artic blasts headed our way.  So, while I know I am taking a chance here, basing my gardening start on the weather people I am starting anyway.  It has been so mild many things did not die at all, some are still…

Cold days and colder nights, can;t wait for the warmer weather again so i can start growing some more plants.

I went to the garden this morning and picked a basket full of collards and some kale. I put most of that in the freezer and then saved a mess of collards to cook for lunch. They were so tender and took no time at all to cook! Looking forward to the left overs tomorrow. Do you know they taste even better the next day? Friday I pulled a big bowl full of turnips. I seasoned them up with a pan full of other root veggys…

Shopping Spree

     Okay, maybe I'm a little behind on ordering my seeds... I did it though... Hoorray!  I went to one of my favorite catalogs and looked at it for a couple of weeks!!  I couldn't quite make-up my mind... I did a lot of thought, remember I have to be very thoughtful...  One of the thoughts is, that I am really excited to have a variety of lettuce..…

  Imagine my surprise to see that I had been featured here on Garden- Share. It's been months since I've had a chance to visit the site, but it felt like an old friend had dropped an impromtu note to say hello and remind me there is another world out there.

 Since June of 2011, I've been a full time caregiver for my 79 y.o. Mom, who fell on June 21 and broke her left hip. Six months later on December 14 she fell again and broke her right hip and elbow. It's been a tough…

Ground Hog day. Spring is close and I can feel it coming on. What to do? Remain calm I have 6 more weeks.  

I love this time of year.  So many of the flowers are in bloom around my yard. Favorites include the 'Starburst' as well as the many orchids in pots and/or trees around our yard.  We had sod laid in a few areas and it's taken root and looks so much nicer.  The round paver stones I put in several months ago have worked out great.  Enjoy my new photos from Garden Views January 2012!

 looking for some shrubs that can take some shade and grow to 3 to 5 feet tall with some color

Most people are surprised by the sight of plants growing out of the side of a Phytopod.  We all know that weeds and other flighty seeds can germinate and flourish in the cracks of a wall or on a rooftop. Well, many of the lettuces and greens we eat in salads these days are what we used to call weeds in the days when mass production and herbicides had hegemony.  Growing vertical is a capability of almost all plants however! The rules are that roots will grow down and shoots and leaves will…