A gardener doesn't have to be perfect.
Here in Montana, we have hummingbirds in the summer months. Unfortunately for me, they concentrate in certain areas and not necessarily in my yard. But it isn’t for lack of trying. It is always worth growing plants that attract hummingbirds. After all, they are the same plants that other pollinators such as butterflies and bees like as well, and don’t we love to see how our gardens are interacting with nature?
Are you ready to give growing plants from seeds a try? Starting flowers and vegetables from seeds can be fun, sometimes challenging, and very rewarding. Remember to keep it fun and enjoy the fruits of your extra work.
Here in the shadow of the mountains of Zone 4, the snow is piled up and frost is shaking off the trees most mornings. Despite the current weather, as a gardener, we need to keep our sights on Spring. We need to have things lined up so that when the sun is higher in the sky and the temperatures moderate, we are standing there with our Hori Hori in one hand, and a young plant in the other so that we are ready to get growing. Let’s take a look at what we can do in the dead of winter to jumpstart our growing season.
I started on a bonsai journey this year. It’s a journey of faith, learning, and patience.
Bonsai is about trees. It’s about growing them in containers, nurturing them so that they look mature. It’s an artform using a living tree to tell a story. But it is so much more than that.
I’ve saved a few poinsettias from the garbage can. Especially if you are in the zone 5 growing regions and colder, it doesn’t take much effort to bring your poinsettia back into color the following year. If you have a variety of houseplants that you keep alive all year, you really shouldn’t shy away from holding onto your poinsettia until next holiday season. I have faith in you!
Continue reading “Is It Possible to Rebloom Your Poinsettia?”
It’s zero degrees outside my office window and the indoor garden is thriving. Geraniums and petunias that I’m holding over until next year are still only a few inches tall after I cut them back hard. The amaryllis are still blooming one by one, the aloe continues to grow toward the ceiling, the desert roses are thinking of blooming (again), the lemons and limes are ripening, and the Christmas cactus is blooming. What is there to do except keep them watered and let them search for the brightest light from the window? Well, there are a multitude of indoor gardening projects you could be doing this time of year.
Continue reading “Indoor Gardening Tasks for the Dead of Winter”
You’ve heard me go on and on about how easy amaryllis are to rebloom (Rebloom Your Holiday Amaryllis). Well, I’ve gone to even another level of negligence this year that I need to tell you about.
Aloe vera is one of the most popular house plants around. The gel inside the leaves can be used for many remedies, including being used as a popular salve for burns. As a result, it is a perfect, low maintenance succulent for the indoor garden.
In the depths of winter, amaryllis are known for their breathtaking shows of large trumpet-shaped flowers. The stalks stand tall above the straps of leaves like a proud peacock. How many people toss these bulbs after they bloom around Christmas time? Stop! Don’t do it! I’ll show you how easy it is to get blooms nearly every year from these tropical bulbs, and it doesn’t really matter what growing zone you live in.
You’ve taken cuttings in the late summer or early fall. Fuchsias, petunias, geraniums, whatever it is that you chose to do this year. Some cuttings have started to grow and you’ve tossed out the ones that chose to wither and die. It’s the middle of winter now and the survivors are taking over the house. What do you do now?