On March 2-5 I hope you will join me for the Philadelphia International Flower and Garden Show. You can follow all the social going on from my world at the show by following this page on BGgarden.com (click Image Below )
On this page you will see Twitter stream from the show being streamed from the #flowershow hashtag as well as images I will be tweeting while on location. Links to the official show page are also available on this page so be sure to check it out.
Seed Rack Featuring Martha Stewart Basics
As Spring quickly approaches the seasonal isle in my local stores start filling up with seeds. It seems like more retail locations in my area are catching on to the growing seed frenzy because I’m noticing displays in various new locations this year. The image shared to the left is the new Martha Stewart collection I snapped while at Home Depot last week. Marthas’ collection is keeping it simple featuring many of the basic seeds for veggie and flower gardens.
When I think basics while collecting my seeds to start in the greenhouse I’m thinking cold harvest favorites that can be started in March in the raised beds. As long as the soil in these beds are unfrozen and turn-able, I will be starting various swiss chard, onions, peas, radishes and lettuce. My favorite spring blooms like allisum and pansies will be started in the greenhouse for a late April planting out in that cold frame bed.
Share Fertilizer Friday
Not Sure What This Would Do For My Soil Experience
This year I’m noticing more gismos like this soil tester collection by Ferry Morris. If you are reading my blog and can help me or direct me to some information you would recommend about these kits / tools I would be greatly appreciative because I’m not sure how these would help me and my growing experience.
This large but extremely lightweight bag of soil m alternative by Burpee is labeled eco-friendly and made from coconut fibers. I mix up my own soil that is mostly made up of broken down compost from our rabbits we raise here in the garden – greenhouse. I’m curious to find out more about this product so I wouldn’t be surprise if by the end of the seasons I’ve purchased a bag just to be able to cure my curiosity. If you’ve used this product … I’d love to hear from you!
Before I break into song and dance ‘ these are a few of my favorite things!’….. I want to recommend these garden treasures that I highly recommend for any garden. This variety of Allysum was just amazing last year. The blooms trailed out of my raised beds draping almost 8″ reminding me of the Proven Winner variety : Snow Princess. Last year I forgot to start my Cardinal Climber and summer in the veggie garden just wasn’t the same. This beautiful vine pairs up great on a trellis with the Burpee seedless cucumber vine. When the cucumber is done in early July due to the heat of the summer the cardinal vine will help shade it promising a few more blooms as well as cover up the dying cucumber with its lush green leaves and striking red blooms all the way into the first frost.
Sorry for the dark cell phone images but this time of year from the greenhouse that is what you will find on my site. While the sun is out and the greenhouse is heating up to the high 80*s I’m too busy cleaning , planting and maintaining the green growing in the greenhouse. In the image above you will see the new leaves arriving on most of my hibiscus and lime shrub as well as recycled Proven Winner containers being used to winter over some of my favorite herbs and annuals. The orange crown is a gift from my greenhouse sister up in Canada. I’ve had this treasure which lights up in the evening as a lucky reminder that there is someone growing along with me up in Canada - Thank you sister Glenda!
On Tuesday, February 28th I ask that you join Glenda and myself at 6:30 p.m. ET on the Growing Success Webinar being sponsored by Corona Tools. Glenda of Tootsie Time .com and I will be sharing information about growing year-round. Stop over at the Corona Tools Website to register for this event and find out about the other free web sessions that have been going on this past week.
Webinar ID: 623-367-526 – Growing Year-Round – hosted by Brenda Haas and Glenda Duchak – 6:30 PM ET
Outside the TPIE 12 Event in Sunny Florida
It isn’t often I get to visit some of my gardening friends I know only through social networking. I must admit I feel we have been close friends for a long time as we connect on #gardenchat sharing daily what we love most. It is a true blessing to meet up with my garden network friends at garden events and on that rare occasion I actually get to tour their personal garden. In January of this year I was a guest of Costa Farms at the TPIE12 event that took place in Fort Lauderdale Florida. What a treat to be surrounded by the amazing growers who make many gardens come alive throughout the States not to mention the world. One evening in between photographing and networking the show, the talented tropical paradise grower Robert Bornstein whisked me away to his amazing hideaway not far from the coast in Florida.
Robert will be sharing in a free seminar today at the #GSS12 event . This is a free webinar featuring many of our favorite growers. You can find out more about this event by visiting Corona Tools Website.
Robert Shares his Heirloom Rose Growing Wild in His Garden
It was getting dark … but I was able to snap a few images from my visit to one of the most energizing gardens I’ve visited in the south. Roberts garden is real, practical and totally creative and it is an honor to be able to share it with you in the collection below. If you can not view this album please visit the link : Picasa Web Album by BGgarden.com
Be sure to stop by Roberts site at Robert Bornstein to learn more about his therapeutic approach to gardening.
Last week I had the privilege of spending the day in Miami, Florida at the Costa Farms amazing trial garden. This year they have expanded to 2 acres of stunning blooms that will be coming to a garden center near you in 2012. In the slide show below I share some of my favorite captures from my visit.
Slide Show from my Picasa Collection. If you can’t View Click Here.
This Collection is one of my favorites: It is part of the Long Life Annuals Collection. Watch for them in your garden center 2012. I’ve got dibs on the Lantana and zinnia combos!
This is the Ball : Durango Flame French Marigold
I think my favorite Fertilize Friday / Flaunt Your Blooms shares that I participate in on my garden friend Glenda’s site take place in the winter. In the summer it is hard to decide which bloom I’ll pick from the garden to talk about. In the winter when the garden is covered with snow it is fun to think Fertilize Friday and share the first blooms that come to mind from summer past.
Gaillardia ‘Mesa Yellow’ F1 : 2010 AAS Flower Award Winner
This Gaillardia was a AAS Award Winning Seed in 2010 and a winner in my garden and greenhouse in 2011. I grew this bloom featured in the image above from seed. You can imaging my excitement to see this beauty in many of the gardens I visited this past summer.
Gamolepis chrysanthemoides / African Bush Daisy, Daisy Bush, Paris Daisy
This African Bush Daisy dances with the shrubs in my new landscape around the greenhouse. I’m hoping the six plants I moved into the greenhouse make it so they can do the garden dance in 2012. This beauty is from Costa Farms.
This is my Friday Flaunt for Friday 13. Friday was ‘bad luck’ because I was too busy to post and this is going live on early Monday. I hope you will take the time to visit my dear friend Glenda and her amazing growing year-round , interior and garden shares.
This was one of my favorite images captured during the Subaru at Greensgrow Farm event this past Autumn. The color of this healthy succulent only goes to show that this plant species can be festive anytime of year. I’m loving the show this all natural container is putting on; How about you?
View more of my images from Subaru Fall Festival at Greensgrow Farm in Philadelipha on my Flickr account.
