My Garden Online Blog

Edens Florist and Garden Shop

Mary Kuppe — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 00:15:01 +0000

I contacted them today to order flowers for my daughter’s birthday. It was so nice to speak to someone who was pleasant, helpful and knew florals! If you are shopping for an arrangement, please contact Edens Florist (508-748-0225):

http://www.edensflorist.net/

Plant of the week: Delphinium

Mary Kuppe — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:43:23 +0000

This perennial stands above the rest - no pun intended! The long stems have large flowers that range in color from blue, purple, pink or white. I bought mine from Northwind Farm in Wisconsin; they were so beautiful and stately. Unfortunately, they didn’t come back. Reading through some gardening tips, I was pleased to read that Delphinium’s aren’t easy. You’ll need to prepare the soil before planting and cover them with 1-2 inches of organic matter in the spring.

Height = 4 to 6 feet; Blooms in early spring/summer

Plant of the week: Cleome

Mary Kuppe — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 22:57:11 +0000

Spider Flower

Half hardy annual that grow tall and sturdy. Planted in the back of a border, these will certainly catch your eye and attract the butterflies! I saw a large grouping of them in front of a hotel in Wisconsin and was floored by their height and color. The stem is topped by globe shaped flowers in colors of white; pink and rose.

Easy to start from seed in the spring. Remove the plants after flowering but be careful of the thorny stems and the scent (wear gloves!)

Height = 2 to 3 feet; Blooms in summer

House Plants filter indoor air?

Mary Kuppe — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 22:38:39 +0000

Living in Chicago, we spent a lot of time indoors during the winter months. This morning I picked up an old copy of Garden Design magazine (April 2009 - www.gardendesign.com), and read the article on Sansevierias. The Sansevieria was named one of the best plants for cleaning indoor air toxins by NASA and it’s low maintenance! Mid-February indoor air - could it use a boost? I thought I’d give it a try.

So I went shopping this afternoon to my local nursery and they had quite a variety of Sansevieria’s including those with gold edging or speckled foliage. I settled for the trifasciata which is the most common but I liked the height and price! They are also incredibly easy to grow - indirect light and little water (good drainage is critical) will keep them happy for a long time.

Alberta Rider School in Oregon

Mary Kuppe — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 03:08:11 +0000

I am thrilled that Woodward School and Alberta Rider have joined me on Twitter; I think their teaching method is so exciting and offers so much for the students in the area. The Alberta Rider school will be restoring an acre of property to native plants and hopefully creating a wildlife habitat! A website promoting an Oregon Better Living Expo provides details on both schools; please read up on these wonderful projects that can’t help but provide a healthy education for the kids!

http://www.betterlivingshow.org/Albertariderelementaryschool.htm

Composting

Mary Kuppe — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 03:29:36 +0000

Since I live in Chicago, composting isn’t on the top of my “to-do” list but I found this interesting website dedicated to composting (http://www.compostguide.com/). Question for those who know-what can you do with kitchen scraps during the winter months other than throw them away?

Post Cards from Woodward Gardens

Mary Kuppe — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 02:47:34 +0000

Woodward Gardens in Oregon is a student garden located at the Mary Woodward Elementary School. The school has captured the beauty of the garden in a lovely collection of postcards shown on this site:

http://www.betterlivingshow.org/garden-themed-cards.htm

Please help support this wonderful project by ordering some cards ($1.00 each!!).

Gardening and Poetry?

Mary Kuppe — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 04:08:03 +0000

My mother tried to get me to read Shakespeare as a young adult - she knew I needed all the guidance I could find! Had she only pointed out that Shakepeare had made many references to plants, I may have tried plowing through one or two! Luckily, Nancy Shumacker Pollan has done the work for us by publishing the beautifully illustrated book “Shakespeare’s Garden”. My favorite page - Pansy (Hamlet IV,5); in my opinion, nothing beats a pansy. Please visit Borders or Barnes and Nobles to pick up a copy of this lovely book.

Christmas Plants

Mary Kuppe — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 03:39:19 +0000

I have a Christmas Cactus that is 10 years old; unfortunately, it blooms at Thanksgiving instead of Christmas. No matter - it is still a fabulous plant.

What do you do with your dried out bouquets or holiday plants?

Rabbits; again

Mary Kuppe — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 00:22:23 +0000

I spent weekends “battening down the hatches” on my yard; covered each fence area with chicken wire, then black landscaping carpet. i even got my kids to join in the fun - nothing like using a staple gun randomly along a fence line! As we were working our way around the yard, I had the image of 1 of the rabbits sitting behind me, munching on a plant, laughing as I labored away trying to keep him out. I decided I had to try to re-create the image and with the help of Ed Pollick (www.edwardpollick.com) I have the image to show you. Enjoy!