Every once in a while, I surprise myself. As I was looking back at last year's garden, I found this shot of my driveway garden and thought, "Hey, that's pretty good!" I don't do that as often as I should. The driveway garden is a miserably hot place and since I'm not the most reliable waterer, the plants are forced to fend for themselves. It's a test of sorts. One that involves extreme neglect worsened by heat radiating off an asphalt driveway and the high expectations of a crazed gardener. Aside from the spring clean-up and the occasional weeding, this garden is on its own. Totally. In addition to the elements, it's survived the bumps and bruises of all kinds of athletic balls, floor hockey games and the occasional kid. In many ways, it's a lot like me. Like most gardens, it's evolved ...
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A Traffic Stopping Front Yard Garden
In all my garden scouting, I very rarely saw front yard gardens. Most had the typical smattering of evergreens and deciduous trees, but few relied on perennials to carry a design. Oftentimes, front yard gardens are like mullets - business in the front, party in the back. Fortunately, the figurative garden mullet is much more appealing than the actual hairstyle. Homeowners often save the good stuff for the backyard or more intimate spaces not observable from the street. What a treat it was to experience a true front yard garden where the homeowner let it all hang out! In a good way, of course. The garden was designed by landscape architect Robert Milani for a home on Chicago's North Shore. There's nothing cookie cutter about the area. The one thing most homes have in common though, is a ...
Mangave for the Cold Climate Gardener
Mad in Love mangave mix - photo courtesy of Walters Gardens, Inc. Have you ever purchased a plant that wasn't originally on your list? Dumb question. We're gardeners. Lists are a distraction and feel so limiting. Therefore, I rarely stick to them. Which was the case last May when my mom and I visited Sunrise Greenhouse in Grant Park, IL. In addition to the coleus, banana plant, clematis and roses, a mangave landed in my cart. I've grown plenty of succulents and had heard of it before but I can hardly say I knew what to do with it. All I knew was that I had to give it a go. How hard could it be? As it turns out, mangave is one of the most undemanding, and quite surprising, plants I've grown. This is my Mission to Mars mangave the day I brought it home from the nursery. The water spots ...
Coffee Grounds for the Garden: How Much Is Too Much?
When I was a kid, my mom would sprinkle her philodendrons with a combination of coffee grounds and egg shells. The plants grew like wildfire, especially the one on the kitchen table. It got an additional jolt from the mixed vegetables my brothers and I buried in there during dinner time. We were raised in a home where you weren't excused from the table until your plate was clean. Mom and Dad would leave the table, having finished their meal, and us kids would sit and stare at each other until one of us came up with a brilliant plan. We each took turns serving as lookout as the others deposited a spoonful of mixed veg into the planter. To this day, lima beans still make me gag. We hated them and the plant was an excellent way to dispose of them. Mom discovered our little secret a year ...
From Fish to Flamingoes, It’s All Garden Art To Me
Several years ago, my mother-in-law, a devout Catholic, gave me a St. Francis of Assisi statue for my garden. As the patron saint of nature and those who care for the environment, she thought it perfect for my little Eden. And it is in so many ways. I'm not religious, but I deeply appreciated the sentiment behind the gift and for this reason he stands among the phlox and rudbeckia every year. I think it suits him. To me, he is art and a reminder of the loved one who gave him to my garden. It never occurred to me that someone could be so deeply moved by my garden art. It was an awkward moment but in a way reiterates the point of art. To evoke a feeling or emotion, no matter how kitschy or trite. A neighbor asked to see my garden and I eagerly invited her in. What gardener doesn't jump ...
8 Christmas Gifts for Gardeners
All opinions are my own. I was not compensated to promote any of the following products. So you have a gardener on your shopping list and no clue what to get them. I have some ideas. All have been tested in my garden for at least a few seasons. You'll see from the pictures that some have a few dings and scratches. I'm not gentle with my stuff. Things have to be tough to make the cut. And all eight of my suggestions certainly do. Steer clear of the butterfly houses (they don't work) and invest in things that show you did your homework. What girl couldn't use another pair of shoes? I discovered the Muckster 2 from the Muck Boot Company at the Independent Garden Center show in August. The purple caught my eye. But I was most intrigued by the boot's lining. I've owned several garden boots ...
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