Summer Garden Tour

Summer Garden Tour

Hi Friends! Here it is already August and I haven’t shown you much of our garden yet so I thought I’d take you on a summer garden tour today.

Welcome to our vegetable garden! This sign is actually near the entrance and greets anyone who wants a little look-see at what we’re growing. The old wooden easel is one that we found at the auction several years ago, and we’ve used it in our garden ever since.

Earlier this year, I put together this little display on it using an old twig wreath, a sign that I already had but repainted, and a miniature shovel that I took off another wreath.

I tucked some vinca into this little watering can that came off the old wreath, too. In June, a local garden club took a real garden tour!

Here are some of the members of the Lydia garden club along with my mom who is seated on the left. I think they had a great time touring the garden and having a little strawberry lemonade and lemon oreos for refreshment. (Have you tried those yet? They are delicious!) Luckily, it had not turned hot yet even though it was June, but let me tell you, it has been HOT, HOT, HOT since then!

The tomatoes have loved the heat, though! Here is one of our Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato plants and it has grown much taller since I took this photo. We have had a ton of tomatoes this summer, and they have been the tastiest and the juiciest that we’ve ever had. You know what that means, don’t you? I have been in the kitchen making and canning my Homemade Spaghetti Sauce, freezing Creole Sauce, and making Tomato Jam. I’m still perfecting that recipe so I hope to have that ready to share with you very soon!

The blue trellises that we made in early spring have been a great addition to our garden this year. Underneath them we planted white mandevilla vines and they have been blooming prolifically all summer and should continue to do so up until frost. The other interesting blooms you see in this photo are onion blooms!

We put birdhouses on the top of some of the trellises and watering cans on others. If you’d like to see how we made these, you can read our post Wooden Pyramid Shaped Trellises.

wooden obelisks

On the three tall , we attached some chicken wire and planted our cucumbers around them. We got lots of cucumbers but in hindsight, we would not use the chicken wire again. Some of the baby cucumbers grew through the wire and got large before I spotted them. When that happened, all I could do was to break off the part of the cucumber that wasn’t stuck in the wire!

Along the back of the garden, I planted lots of sunflowers and birdhouse gourds.

We’ve never grown birdhouse gourds before so this is a learning experience for us. I found out from our Facebook readers that they take about a year to totally dry.

The bees have enjoyed the happy sunflower faces as much as we have!

And there are even more here along the side of the garden where the painted plastic pots are holding zinnias and jalapeno pepper plants.

Have I told you that we’re participating in a seed trial for P. Allen Smith? Oh my word! I was so excited when I got a personal phone call from him early this spring. He was as personable and gracious as he is on TV! Well anyway, here is one of the pumpkin vines growing in the back corner of the garden.

This variety is supposed to grow 200 pound pumpkins so you can imagine my excitement at seeing the first baby pumpkin.

The vines have grown very well but right now, there are only 2 pumpkins forming and growing. Did you realize that pumpkins are green before they ever turn orange?

We purposefully plant a lot of flowers in our garden to attract the beneficial insects. These giant zinnias are now over 5 feet tall!

Remember the fountain that we put in a galvanized tub earlier this year?

Lucy uses it as her personal water fountain! Here she is sporting her summer buzz cut!

Looks quite different, doesn’t she? Her coat is already growing back in since I took this photo.

I hope you’ve enjoyed going on our summer garden tour today. But as for us, “a gardener’s work is never done!” We’re making plans and preparing for our fall garden.

Sharing at: Wow Us Wednesday@Savvy Southern Style

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Original article and pictures take cottageatthecrossroads.com site

Summer Burlap DIY Wreath

Summer Burlap DIY Wreath

Burlap is huge in home decor right now – we see it on banners, on pillows, as window coverings and in wedding decor. So this burlap diy wreath makes a great addition to your summer decor – hang it inside or out, on your front door or back gate like we did. They can be expensive to buy, so we made our own and you can too as it’s super easy once you know how. Here’s the DIY wreath instructions:

DIY Burlap Wreath Instructions

You’ll need a Wire Wreath Frame (affiliate link)

Florist Wire, 22-Gauge, (affiliate link)

FloraCraft® Burlap Garland (affiliate link)

Follow Steps 1 – 4 to secure the ribbon. Getting started is probably the hardest part until you realize the simplicity of just looping the burlap.

Step 5 – the twist

Once you’ve made those first three loops, scrunch them together in one hand. Turn over the wreath so you are looking at the back. TWIST the ribbon three or four times with your other hand. Then start looping the ribbon again beginning at the inner edge.

Step 6:

Continue in this manner around the wreath. Then secure with another piece of wire (as in Step 1-4).

I’m amazed at how easy and quick this is!! By scrunching each set of loops as you twist, the ribbon makes these gorgeous intertwined loops. It’s full and textured, just like the store bought ones.

Now it’s time to decorate your new wreath!

Because this wreath was meant for late summer, I chose to decorate mine with things that are commonly seen during August around here – sunflowers from the garden, bullrushes growing in ditches along the highway and wheat in the fields.

Our wreath is hung on our back gate, greeting guests as they come for a bbq. I love how it gives a spot of sunshine to this shady pathway.

In less than 30 minutes, you can make your own burlap wreath with these DIY wreath instructions. Where would you hang yours?

Original article and pictures take www.newhousenewhomenewlife.com site

Succulent Dish Garden- hardware store re-purpose

Succulent Dish Garden- hardware store re-purpose

You can just feel it…

…when someone is staring at you.

There I was at the hardware store in front of the shiny galvanized duct work materials contemplating a project when I felt them ~ eyes on me…

I turned to see an elderly gray haired gentleman staring at me.

“Not everyday do you see a young (I liked him instantly) lady preparing to install duct work”.

I was so deep in the DIY zone, I didn’t respond right away. So he launched into exactly how I should install all those shiny pieces.

I didn’t have the heart to tell him I was re-purposing an ‘end cap’ into a succulent dish garden! Oh well, now I can probably install heating & AC now if the need arises.

I hope you are as impressed with my re-purpose as my pal at the HW store was with the idea of me installing my own duct work!

This couldn’t be an easier project.

Buy an end cap at your local hardware store. I like the fluted ones the best. ( $6.99 )

End caps come in a variety of sizes mine is 8″ with a 2.5 lip. Perfect for small succulents.

Then pick up a bag of small pebbles, cactus soil and some succulents.

Steps:

• Place a layer of pebbles in the bottom of the cap
• Add a thin layer of soil, then arrange your succulents
• Distribute more soil between the plants
• Add a top layer of pebbles. This layer will help the plants stay in position.

Maybe not as impressive as installing HV/AC myself, but more fun!

Have you re-purposed anything from the hardware store? Do share…

** Kelly **

Original article and pictures take mysoulfulhome.com site

Stencil a Wheelbarrow and Lawnmover

Stencil a Wheelbarrow and Lawnmover

I may receive a commission if you purchase something mentioned in a link on this post for sites including Amazon.com. Other links may go to websites where I have been paid to write a blog or article. See the entire disclosure here.

Time for a Makeover

Is it time to give your wheelbarrow a lift?

What kind of crazy person stencils their wheelbarrow? Um, me. Old faithful was getting rusty so I thought, instead of just treating it with rust paint, I would splurge for a second colour and stencil on a design. I also paint and stencil the wooden handles of my garden tools so I don’t lose them in the brambles.

Since first posting this many years ago, I’ve had plenty of messages from people saying, My husband would kill me if I did this to his lawnmower. And ya, I get it. I wouldn’t do this to someone else’s stuff. I do this with my own stuff. And only if it’s warranted. Both items were seriously rusting out. They needed some good rustproofing paint to hold them together for a few more years.

How to Do It

Give a rusty old wheelbarrow a new life with some spray paint and homemade stencils.

To get started, I spray painted everything black and let it dry overnight. You can’t really get fine details with spray paint so I created a simple design for the stencil.

I used old file folders for the stencil and cut out the shapes with an exacto knife. I held the stencil onto the wheelbarrow with duct tape and sprayed on the white paint.

You could, of course, go nuts with a whole bunch of colours or try for more intricate designs, but I prefer to keep it simple.

I bought this wheelbarrow last year for $20 including the new air-free tire. I hope to get a whole bunch more years out of my bling-barrow.

Give a rusty old wheelbarrow a new life with some spray paint and homemade stencils.

Give a rusty old wheelbarrow a new life with some spray paint and homemade stencils.

Next, I gave my lawnmower the same treatment. I didn’t get a before photo of the lawnmower but you can use your orange imagination.

I opted to spray paint the lawnmower white and add the flower stencil with black spray paint (see instructions below).

The entire paint job took ten minutes maximum. It’s a lawnmower, after all: no need to fuss. Cutting the lawn never looked so good and, as a reader pointed out, it’s too conspicuous to steal.

Supplies

• Spray paint suitable for metal (1 black, 1 white)
• Card stock (I used old file folders) for making the stencils
• Exacto knife, pencil
• Masking tape or painter’s tape
• Big cardboard box (that your lawnmower or wheelbarrow can fit inside)
• Protective mask, gloves, glasses

Caution
Work outside in a safe area away from animals, food growing, etc. I use a large cardboard box as my spraying area so that any excess paint is contained in the box.

Steps

1. Clean off the lawnmower and wheelbarrow. Take a before photo!
2. Cut the card stock/file folder to fit the areas you want to stencil. I made one long stencil (that fit the side of the wheelbarrow) and used it for everything.
3. To prepare the stencil, draw large, simple shapes (I did a daisies and flower petals) on the card stock with pencil and cut them out with the exacto knife. You might want to do this step while your waiting for the base coat to dry.
4. With the lawnmower/wheelbarrow in the cardboard box, spray paint the base coat colour. For my project, I painted one item white and one item black. Allow to dry (read the instructions on the can).
5. Tape the stencil in place.
6. Put on your protective gear.
7. Read the spray paint label for best spraying distance. Spray your design in a contrasting colour. Remove the stencil and allow paint to dry before stencilling adjacent area. (This may only take a few minutes.)
8. Take an after photo and share your creation.

~Melissa the Empress of Dirt ♛

Empress of Dirt TV

Original article and pictures take empressofdirt.net site

Stay in touch with us

Stay in touch with us

Wet soil gardens and small container water gardens are what I have created. Here are a few examples for you!

Pickerel Rush

Water plants in a galvanized tub

Iris Ensata, Ligularia and Pickerel Rush

Wet soil whiskey barrel garden

Original article and pictures take ourfairfieldhomeandgarden.com site

Start the Spring Garden...Indoors!

Start the Spring Garden...Indoors!

The natural cycle of fall-planted bulbs is for the bulb to rest in the soil for the winter. When the soil warms and the sun begins to shine for longer periods, the bulb knows that it's time to break dormancy and sprout a flower.

The 'force' refers to artificially replicating spring conditions to encourage early blooming. The bulbs must have also gone through a "winter", or a period where they have been chilled in a dark space to mimic over-wintering in the soil.

Chill bulbs between 8-15 weeks at approximately 35-45°F (2-7°C). The exact number of weeks can change depending on the type of bulb and variety. You can buy pre-chilled bulbs for indoor forcing as well, which saves a lot of time and effort.

Some of the best bulbs for forcing indoors are:

The container you choose is just as much a part of the decorative arrangement as the blooms will be.

You can search for beautiful hyacinth forcing vases, many of which have been collected or passed on for many generations. These glass vessels have a bulb dish above a narrow neck that keeps the bulb above the water line. The roots will reach down to the water and feed the bulb as it grows leaves and flowers.

Cover the top of the soil with pebbles, glass, or decorative moss to finish your arrangement. Further bring a spring to bulb arrangements indoors by planting a few annuals such as primula, violas, or ranunculus that will bloom at a lower level than the bulbs reaching up towards the sky.

Cold season annuals work well when planted with spring bulbs in arrangements.

Original article and pictures take www.ebay.com site