Fool Proof Planter

For several years I've been trying to find the right combination of plants to fill my front porch planters.  I've tried loads of different flowers, but this year, I have found that adding no blooming flowers, at all, has been a massive success in my book.

The lime-green vines, with the tiny yellow flowers, trailing down the stoop are called Creeping Jenny.  A landscape architect told me if you plant Creeping Jenny in a 2nd story window box, it will grow all the way down your house to the ground!  I love this plant.

The varigated red and lime green leaves are a plant called Coleus.  Coleus comes in several different colors and sizes and doesn't like too much hot sun.  I get afternoon sun (after 2pm) here at my front door so it's not too intense. 

And the tall grass in the center is called Purple Fountain Grass.  All three of these plants are annuals and love it in part sun (5-6 hours).

The soil that I prepared for the pots consists of part peat moss, part soil from the ground, and part manuer-compost mix.  I water them almost everyday to keep them fresh and perky.  I'll definitely be doing these again next summer too!

What are some plants that have worked well for you in your planters?

Luke's Garden

Luke playing in his "Rock Box" in his garden

My Mother-in-Law, Meg was visiting Joel and I and the children these last two and a half weeks, so I found myself with some lovely time to do several projects I had been aching to get started on.  My first priority was to begin Luke's "secret" garden.  Instead of a swing set, or a large wood structure with slides, or plastic play houses, or turtle sandboxes, I have been dreaming up an imaginative play area inside my back hedges for Luke (and Sophia too). 

I started with painting a sign with Luke on a piece of left over wood under Joel's workbench.  I drew block letters and he and I painted them with acrylic paint.  He painted all over the board and I simply kept painting over the letters in bright colors as he went.  When it was dry, we nailed it to that small tree trunk.  Luke loved every minute of it.  During Luke's nap I picked up some slate pavers, a blue dragon fly that flaps in the wind, and three bags of pea-gravel from my local home improvement store.

I loosened the dirt where I wanted the pavers and kind of buried them into position.  I dumped the three bags of pea gravel behind the hedge at the end of the path to create Luke's Rock Box.  We decided to go with pea gravel instead of sand to deter cats from using it as a litter box, and because it provides great drainage after a good rain.  Luke plays in his Rock Box for hours with his CAT construction vehicles and matchbox cars.

I planted three grasses along the fence back in the Rock Box to provide some privacy.  They're small now, but they'll work quite nicely next year. 

Here's the blue dragon fly being driven on by Luke's digger.

Luke and I planted some shade loving plants together in his garden: Astilbe, hosta, lobelia, Japanese painted fern, and caladium.

We added this fish wind chime, from my mom, high up in the hedge where the children can't reach it since it's made of glass.  Luke loves to watch it spin and reflect the sun on the floor of his garden.

I've only scratched the surface on the things I'd like to create for the children back in the hedge.  I'm looking forward to making it into a whole world of play and wonder!

Clematis

This is a purple Jackmani Clematis. It was given to me as a teeny tiny sprout of a plant from my mother to celebrate my first mother's day (I was 7 months pregnant with my first born, Luke).  My mother has this exact breed of clematis and I wanted one of my own to make my new house feel like "home". 

In this current photo, the clematis is now 3 years old, and just bursting with life. The Jackmani is the classic clematis. It has large violet-purple blooms and it's very hardy. You can find them at almost any nursery.

Rule #1
Keep the roots in the shade and the blooms in the sun.  In the photo below you can see how I've planted a cedum right at the base of the clematis to keep it's roots permanently shaded from the sun.  It loves this.

Rule #2
Cut back and throw away the entire plant the first week of March every year.  Leave only 6 inches of stems left sticking out of the ground.  It takes some work to unwind all the dead growth out of the trellis, but it's worth it!  Some people say to cut back the entire plant as soon as it's good and dead in December.  I did that last year and it came back just as beautifully as when I had waited and cut it back in March.

Rule #3
Clematis stems snap very, very, easily.  Once they snap, that whole branch will die (but just for that season).  As you help to wind the new growth in and out of your trellis or fence, be very, very, very, gentle.

Rule #4
Water your clematis about 2-3 times a week depending on the amount of rainfall. 
And that's about it!  You'll love watching your clematis grow every spring.  Some days it will literally grow 6-8 inches in one day!  This plant has only been growing since March.

Year One of my Clematis' Life (2 years ago)--It only made 6 blooms that year.  And look how small my Knock Out Rose bush is too!

Your Clematis vine will be small to start, but have patience and it will double the following year and continue to be fuller and more beautiful each year.  Happy Gardening!!!

Kids in the Garden

Luke playing in the yard and gardens in the rain

This week my mother, Elizabeth, gifted me the most beautiful book.  It's called The Book of Gardening Projects for Kids.  I've really only just started working on my gardens last year.  I'm working on creating beds and hedges, privacy and pathways.  But now, I'm looking to start adding all those intriguing nooks and crannies that kids love to explore.  The Book of Gardening Projects for Kids gives you oodles and oodles of amazing and fun ideas to turn your yard space into hours of educational and imaginative play for your children of all ages (itty bitty toddlers through college age kids).  The book showcases several different families, their yards, and specifically how they've transformed their yards into useful and beautiful garden spaces for the whole family.

Here are some of their ideas:

--Birdhouses, feeder and baths

--Plant a pizza or pirate garden

--Miniature landscapes: a fairy garden or toy dinosaur garden

--Garden signage throughout the yard

--Living structures: A bean tee pee, sunflower house or plant tunnel

--Play areas: sandbox, playhouse, hopscotch pathway

--Plants to graze on: sugar snap peas or cherry tomatoes

--A sundial

--Places to hide

--Areas to gather: an outdoor eating area sized for children

--Places to relax: A swing or hammock

--Tools for measuring the weather: a rain gauge or wind sock

I've only scratched the surface of making my yard kid-friendly.  Luke and I made a concrete stepping stone together with his hand print on it. Placing that in the garden bed gives him a little ownership and pride out in the yard. He likes to keep placing his hand in the print to see if he's grown. 

Whenever Joel and I have a planting project, we always include the kids as much as possible.  It makes them feel like the yard and plants are theirs too.  Last summer we planted zinnia seeds in Luke's own little garden area, and they grew larger than him! This year we planted sunflowers, but the chipmunks ate them as soon as they started to sprout, so we must start over with new flowers, and soon!

Luke checking out the hole for the new giant boxwoods we planted a few weeks ago

Sophia checking out the grass while we plant bushes

What are some things you have done to your yard and gardens to make them into spaces that children love to explore?

A Little Hanging Basket Joy

"God almighty first planted a garden. And indeed, it is the purest of human pleasures."-- Francis Bacon (born 1561)

I am 33 years old.  I've lived in three of my own homes with a yard or patio space and this is my very first hanging basket.  It's a big deal for me!  I absolutely love to garden.  It's calming and instantly gratifying.  It does require a little effort (watering, weeding) but it has all become a pleasure for me.   It's also a hobby that my husband and I share.  We're able to get out and do something we love while staying at home with the napping or rambunctious children---everybody wins.

I purchased this pre-planted basket for about $10 at my local home improvement store a few weeks ago.  The flowers are called Calibrachoa and the mix of red, purple and sunny yellow is divine!  It just needs to be watered every day with a decent amount of sun (5-6 hrs) and it's as happy as a clam.

When we moved into our untouched-from-1959 home 4 years ago, there was no landscaping in the backyard.  Here's a "Before Picture".

My father built me the trellis to start my little garden.  Our first two years we weren't able to put in any landscaping so I just potted some tulips.  We've since buried that huge white downspout, and added a gated fence.

 

Here is the same corner of the patio this summer. 

The "Current Picture"...not "After Picture" because my garden is always changing! 

Doesn't the hanging Calibrachoa add so much!?!  I'm just tickled with it.

What are some other flowers that you've had success with in a hanging basket? 

I'm eager to try more!