Thanks Santa!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas yesterday. Mine was lovely. Dinner was tasty, and my family shared a few laughs while opening our presents. All in all, it was a nice day.

As usual, "Santa Claus" spoiled me again this Christmas. :) Among my awesome new gifts was the AeroGarden7 I wanted. Not only did I receive the garden system, but 2 seed pod kits, spare bulbs, and the dressing/marinade blender as well! Now I just have to decide what to grow first and where to put my cool new garden. :)

Check back soon to hear more about my new little garden and see pictures of the plants' progress (once I start the first kit). I'm so very excited to start growing the indoor garden!

By the way, the picture in this post is of my umbrella plant, Herman. Sitting down for the holiday festivities, I noticed he had some new growth. It was so cute and little, I had to take a picture. :) By the way, yes, I name my house plants... I also have Gerardo the palm tree and Chloe the clover in the living room. I haven't named the new Christmas pine just yet.

Potted Pines

Shortly before Thanksgiving and after my return from Europe, I visited my local Walmart to browse the garden area turned Christmas department. Initially interested in purchasing one of the many beautiful poinsettias, a small shelving unit with small red pots caught my eye.

The festive pots provided homes to some adorable evergreens. Their small size and overall healthy appearance, coupled with a decent price tag(around $5 each), lead me to bring one home.

Fast forward to the present: My little tree looks to be thriving so far in its spot by the window. Eventually, I know the plant will outgrow its home, leaving me with one of two choices: plant it outside and let it take off, or turn it into my first attempted bonsai specimen.

I'm leaning toward the second option. The art of bonsai is intriguing and I've read that different pines are commonly used for that purpose. After a bit more research and a few answered questions, I will make my decision.

Here are a few of my questions if you would be so kind as to help me out:
1. Is a "Christmas" pine (living, roots attached, etc.) a feasible option for learning bonsai or would the mere act of trying kill the plant?
2. If the "Christmas" pine is not a feasible option, what is a good plant for a beginner like myself?
3. What are you supposed to cut in the pruning process?
4. What can you tell me about the bonsai process in general?

I will post a picture of the little tree once I've had a chance to photograph it. Any information you can provide in the mean time would be very much appreciated.

Thanks and enjoy the holiday weekend!

Indoor AeroGarden

I'm excited to see if Santa brings the AeroGarden 7 I've been looking at. From the fabulous review it received from a good friend to the mostly positive reviews on the website, I can't wait to give it a try. Theoretically, the AeroGarden should be a somewhat portable, space saving item to help me get my gardening fix, even in the dead of winter. I wonder how it will work in practice...

We'll see if the description and reviews are too good to be true. A system that produces highly productive plants with few maintenance needs and basically no dirt sounds completely bonkers! However, if the system works as it's supposed to, this could be a match made in Garden Heaven! Fresh herbs in the middle of a Pennsylvanian winter, without selling my liver on the black market to afford them at the grocery store? Count me in!

Hopefully the system will work as well as it says. I like the compact design and variety of options. It may just prove to be a perfect addition to any room in the house! We'll have to wait and see what Santa brings for me. :)

I ordered this little cutie as a Christmas gift for my aunt. She lives in Ohio, so the winters are just as depressingly plantless as they are here. The AeroGarden3 is adorable and I was able to find a special bundle pack that included 2 seed pod kits at no extra charge! She'll be getting the Salad Greens kit and the Italian Herbs kit with her brand new lime green AeroGarden3 when we visit shortly after Christmas. Hopefully the delivery time proves to be true!

The AG3 is much smaller than the AG7, but it comes in a variety of pretty colors and fun designs. With the current deal of 2 seed pod kits with purchase plus $10 off the original price of the systems ("new" colors only, not the dog, bee, or ladybug), it makes a perfect gift!

The images in this post came from the AeroGarden website.

Zucchini Salsa

So many zucchinis, so little to do with them. It is a common dilemma we come across toward the end of gardening season each year. By then, we can't bear the thought of making another zucchini bread or fried zucchini dish. We're all zucchinined out. A few weeks ago, I was thinking about the blank canvas zucchini really is. It does not have a strong flavor of its own and maintains its shape. Really, it could be used in anything. So I started thinking of ways to use it.

A week or so ago, I used it as a main ingredient in one of my favorite foods. Here is the recipe I came up with for a fresh zucchini salsa.



Ingredients:
2 baby zucchini, diced
1 pint of tomatoes, diced, seeds removed
1 large red onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 jalapeno*, finely diced, seeds removed
1 lime (juice)
1tbs ground cumin
Salt & Pepper

*Use more or less jalapeno depending on the level of spiciness you like. I prefer a milder salsa and the jalapeno I used was rather large so 1/2 was plenty.

Directions:
In a medium glass bowl, mix ingredients thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. (The flavor improves as the ingredients get to know each other.)



Well, that's the recipe. It's pretty easy to make. Just requires some patience and basic knife skills. I used it as a nacho dip, but you could use it for anything you would normally use any salsa with. I hope you like it. Share your results or other zucchini recipes in the comments. Enjoy!

Garden Themed Gifts from Jennifer's Craftiworks

With gardening season in full force, my home based craft business, Jennifer's Craftiworks is introducing a new line of garden-themed items. Mini hand-painted pot markers and mini plant guides are now available. Check out the post at this link for more information.

Check back soon for an update on my gardening adventures. The garden beds are in and ready to plant. The 8x8 flower bed has a few new residents, including celosias, pansies, dahlias, cordylines, and African daisies. A few more plants still need to move in, but it is coming along nicely. I'll be posting pictures when it has had a chance to fill in a bit more. Any suggestions for adding plants?

dwarf pomegranate

Hello readers and fellow gardeners,

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have been busy working on getting the gardens started. I've been writing my experiences and plant observations in a notebook, though, so check back for a full scale update. This post is in honor of the latest addition to my garden family, the dwarf pomegranate.

While vacationing in the historic district of Williamsburg, VA, today, I came across a beautiful tree in the "colonial garden" nursery. The gardener informed me that it was a pomegranate tree. With stunningly beautiful blossoms, a sleek appearance, and fact that it also bears fruit, the tree is remarkable. Imagine my delight when I learned that the tree is also available in miniature form and they had a few ready to be sold!

As I have a bit of a habit of never leaving a nursery or greenhouse without at least one new addition to my garden, I picked one up. Here is what I have learned about the plant so far:

~it should reach approximately 2 feet as an adult
~it likes lots of sun and a warm/hot climate
~it can not withstand temperatures below 40 degrees (F) (which means it has to come in when it's cold out)
~even the flowers and fruits are dwarfed, which is pretty cool
~the fruits are edible, albeit smaller than regular pomegranates

Obviously, I still have many questions about caring for this interesting plant. (Especially since I live in western PA and have a rather cold climate most of the year.) If any of you have had success with growing the dwarf pomegranate in a pot, please help with a few questions:

~What is the ideal size of pot for my plant? Currently, it is no more than 10 inches tall. So, would it be smarter to allow it to grow in its current pint-size pot for a while or put it in its "permanent" larger pot now?
~What is the best type of potting soil for the dwarf pomegranate?
~How much/how often should it be watered?
~After it has had a chance to grow and begin producing flowers, how can I coax it into bearing fruit?
~I would like to have more than one dwarf pomegranate eventually. Can new plants be grown from cuttings of the original? If so, how?
~What can you tell me about this plant?

Even if you have not had success, what happened that caused it to fail rather than thrive? I find that learning about what does not work is just as important as learning what does.

Thank you for sharing your plant wisdom and happy gardening!

raised bed and seedlings

We got two 4x4ft raised garden kits at Home Depot yesterday. For just $29 each, they should be a nice start to my home garden. Hopefully the weather will warm up again soon so I can get outside and put them together!

Some of the seeds I put in the mini greenhouse have already sprouted! My little cucumber lemon plants from the Burpee Heirloom, 2010 collection sure are speedy growers! They've already started growing their first set of leaves.

Yellow Pear Tomato seedlings from the Living Seed Co. Heirloom 2010 collection started yesterday. As did some of the winter squash (Burpee, 2009), yellow crookneck squash (Bentley Seeds, Inc, 2009 collection).

Today, I woke to find seedlings starting to poke through from the Swiss chard (neon lights, Burpee 2009), summer savory (2009), borage (2009), and red & yellow pear tomatoes (The Cook's Garden, 2009).

Now while I wait for the weather to improve so I can build my new garden beds, I have lots of work to do. I'm making custom plant markers out of polymer clay, paint, and glaze. I'm also making a few miniature garden gnomes. Check back soon for pictures!

starting my seeds

As I research and prepare to build my raised garden beds, seeds are being coaxed to grow. I put a few of the bigger seeded varieties in a Jiffy seed starter with 72 peat pellets. As long as I keep an eye on them and don't let them dry out, they should do fine. They might need to be transplanted into a bigger space before planting in the garden, but I'll cross that bridge when it comes.

The tiny seeds, like thyme and mint, never seem to work when I plant them. Both herbs are fantastic and I would love to be able to start them from seed in order to get more plants with less money. They just never seem to germinate. As a last effort, I am trying a method that I saw online.

The method seems easy enough. Basically, you just wring out excess water from a wet paper towel, add the seeds, and put the paper towel into a resealable plastic bag. I'm trying 2 sets of each seed to see whether the towel should be folded or not. Check back for an update on the experiment.

When/if the seeds germinate, I'll be putting the sprouts in the "disposable" aluminum takeout containers with clear plastic lids. Once the seedlings have leaves, I'll remove the lids so they can breath.

Let's see how the seed sprouting experiment goes! Check back in a few days or so.

Happy gardening!

raised beds

Last year's gardening experience was rather enjoyable. Other than a few set backs such as the tomato blight and "4 plant eggplant massacre", the garden did well. This year, I decided to make a tiny garden at home too. The decision was easy; I love having garden fresh veggies and herbs right outside the door.

Planning and execution will be a bit tricky, but it will all be worth it in the end. Sunny areas are a tad sparse from numerous trees surrounding a large part of the yard; and the soil quality is definitely not the best with all its clay and stones.

In an effort to combat these obstacles, I'm going to build a few raised beds in the sunnier sections. Websites like Better Homes & Gardens offer tips and discuss the many benefits of using raised beds.

Check back later on this week or next to see how I decide to make my raised garden beds. I have a lot of research and price checking to do.

shadow box goodies

The Shadow Box is one of my favorite greenhouse/nurseries and Saturday's trip to this spectacular gardening center was delightful! With its stunning array of plant life, knowledgeable staff, and all things garden-related, the Shadow Box is sure to please. The 3 large greenhouses and outdoor area are a plant lover's dream.

Rows upon rows of beautiful greenery fill the 3 large greenhouses. The picture below is just a sampling of the green splendor you can witness through a visit to the Shadow Box.



Since it is still pretty early in the year, I restrained myself and only picked out a few plants and things to bring home. (If I had the space, I'd probably bring home the entire greenhouse. Plants are awesome!)

As a person that likes to try new things, I picked up a few different flowers I've never tried before. The spider pink African Daisy (osteospermum ecklonis) looked pretty neat, so I thought I'd see how one does in the flower bed. Depending on how it takes to the soil, I might pick up a few more. We shall see.

I also picked out 2 different double impatiens to plant along with some trailing plants in hanging baskets. The appleblossom variety will be planted with a soft green licorice plant; and the red star variety will be planted with a laguna sky blue lobelia.

The mini red rose bush was too cute to pass up so I also picked up one of them. Everything on the little plant is identical to a regular size rose bush, just miniature. It even has its own mini thorns. Such a cute plant. :)

To wrap up the trip, we picked up a few peat pellets (they are fantastic, I'll have to go back for a few more), a package of garlic bulbs, and some seeds. Now I just have to get my seeds started.


Here I am with my first batch of Shadow Box goodies. :) Happy gardening!

shadow box!

Yippee! I'm off to the shadow box for my first trip this year. Check back to see what fun garden stuff I picked up.

eggplants

Let's take a moment to silently remember our fallen plants taken down by malicious little pests. Dreams of delicious produce destroyed by the tiny jaws of harmful insects. This is the damage a colony of flea beetles can do in very little time. I tried everything from beating them with a stick to giving the poor plant baths in effort to get rid of the pests. Alas, sadly, nothing could stop their reign of terror. Then, like magic, they disappeared!

The joy of their absence didn't last long. "Teenage" Japanese beetles (not quite a beetle, yet not really a grub worm either) decided to move in and finished them off. The poor plants and I didn't stand a chance!

Due to the terribly failed attempt to save a single eggplant from the onslaught of pests, I seriously contemplated removing them from my garden plans altogether. After all, with that kind of pest wreaking havoc on them, how could I possibly grow a productive eggplant?

Well, as I was reading through various companion plants, I found an article about garlic. One of the perks of planting garlic (other than the delicious recipes in which it can be use) is that it deters various garden pests like beetles. I also read that catnip deters flea beetles. Therefore, I'm going to give the eggplants another try and plant them next to some garlic along with a healthy bunch of catnip. I might put the catnip in pots so it doesn't spread as much throughout the garden. Only time will tell if it will work.

marigolds

Claims have been made regarding the benefits of planting marigolds as a companion to vegetable gardens. They are supposed to repel various unwanted guests such as aphids and beetles, and some have gone so far as to claim that planting a row of them around the garden can help to deter nibbling bunnies. From last year's experience, I can honestly say that they do not seem to help with flea beetles AT ALL. However, nothing seems to get rid of those horrible, eggplant destroying pests so I won't hold it against them. All in all, the flowers are small, pretty, and attract beneficial insects, like bumble bees, to the garden. They will be invited back this year.

counting down to outdoor garden season

Yay! With gardening season just around the corner, I'm going to The Shadow Box this week! I'll just be picking up a few packets of seeds, dirt, and starter trays this time around. The adorable little seedlings with all their delicious potential will have to wait another few weeks until the threat of frost has passed. I can hardly wait to start planting!

This year's garden adventure will include most of last year's plant participants. However, I decided to cut a few from the line up and replace them with more feasible alternatives. The cayenne and tabasco peppers will not be making an appearance this year (unless they come up as volunteers), and I haven't decided whether I will be planting eggplants again. The hot pepper plants were cute, but I never really used the peppers for anything. I like eggplant, but the plants didn't make it last year. First they were attacked by flea beetles. Then "teenage" grub worms destroyed what was left of them. So, unless I can come up with a better way to grow them, they will not be part of this year's garden.

The offspring of last year's tomatillo forest will probably come up as volunteers this year. They are quite tasty and I enjoy using them in salsas and other dishes. I just have to keep them from taking over the entire garden this time around. Last year, I ended up being glad that they took over a good part of the garden because the tomato blight didn't have a noticeable effect on them.

More garden plans will be shared soon. As we wait for outdoor garden time, do you have a garden? If so, what do you like to grow in your garden?

Thinking Spring

Nobody told the snow, but Spring is just around the corner. Soon the ground will be thawed and ready for work. A trip to the Shadow Box is definitely in order and I better get working on those seeds. I'm so excited! I can't wait to watch the little seedlings emerge and grow. Just thinking of all the goodies they'll produce makes me happy!