By Claire Jones
What do you do with containers on your front porch or deck once you have yanked out those sorry-looking frost-killed petunias? Segue into the holiday season with beautiful fall/winter containers using "yard" material. Forage for material from your property on or around your home. Snips in hand, I venture into roadside edges and woods and …
Continue reading "Foraged Winter Greens for Seasonal Outdoor Arrangements"
Having Thanksgiving at your house? Whipping up a table centerpiece now will save you a lot of time on Thanksgiving Day. Living on a pretty large property (2 acres), is a lot of work with weeding, pruning, mulching, etc. The chores are endless. But it is all worth it when I look out my window …
Continue reading "Easy Thanksgiving Centerpieces"
Who says you have to decorate with holly, mistletoe and pine? When I spotted succulent Christmas trees made up at a local nursery last Christmas for hundreds of dollars,  I was inspired to create my own for Christmas. Succulents are so versatile that I use them in many decorating ways. Air plants are right up there in …
Continue reading "Deck the Halls-Succulent Christmas"
Who says that you have to decorate with holly, mistletoe, and pine at Christmas? Do it with succulents!
An easy centerpiece to whip up for your Thanksgiving table using a leftover pumpkin from Halloween can be done in half an hour. Drying flowers all summer long from my garden gave me ample stock to pick from and I had a bumper crop of dried sunflowers to use. The sliced dried oranges were dried …
Continue reading "Succulent Pumpkin Centerpiece"
Decorating for the fall season is always top of my list of feel good things to do. The variety and colors of pumpkins and gourds that are outside of the normal fall color range is exciting to arrange with. Also, succulents that have grown like crazy all summer need to be pruned, brought in to …
Continue reading "Succulent Thanksgiving"
Here in Maryland, we are still shell shocked from the smelly Stink Bug Invasion and we need to get ready for an even worse invasive species that is making its home here on the East Coast. Starting just four years ago in Bucks County Pennsylvania when a shipment of stone from Asia arrived with Lanternfly eggs …
Continue reading "Maryland is Bracing for an Invasion of the Spotted Lantern Fly"
In the veggie garden this year, eggplants, tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash all bombed. Rotting zucchini plants were everywhere and tomatoes that peaked early and then languished was the norm. The mid-Atlantic had record rainfall and it seemed every day there was a chance of showers. And shower it did! Non-stop for five solid months, it …
Continue reading "The Year of the Pepper"
With Halloween around the corner, pumpkin carving skills need to be honed and executed on the most perfect orange sphere that you can find in the pumpkin patch. If orange isn't your thing, there is a rainbow of colors to choose from. Check out my post on Decorating Pumpkins-Pumpkin Eye Candy. If carving a pumpkin …
Continue reading "Tips For Making Your Carved Pumpkins Last"
If you have never been to the Hampton Court Flower Show or other iconic English gardens, read on if you want to check this off on your bucket list. For a full rundown on my recent trip to the Chelsea Flower Show, and gardens in the Cotswolds and Wales, you need to check out my post. …
Continue reading "English Gardens-Grand Estates & Cottage Gardens"
An under-used and under-appreciated perennial in the U.S, Tricyrtus or Toad Lily, is gaining in popularity. Called toad lilies because of the spotting like a toad, these beautiful flowers thrive in moist deep shade to partial shade and come back year after year. In addition, the flowers have warty, sack-like bumps at the base of the …
Continue reading "Toad Lilies-Orchids of the Fall"
With the changing of the seasons, I like to update my miniature gardens to reflect the fall season, just like I decorate my house for Fall. Go to Springtime Miniature Gardens to see how my spring creations come together. For Christmas mini gardens, go to Miniature Gardens in the Winter and Miniature Christmas Garden Craze. The Fall …
Continue reading "Seasonal Fall Miniature Gardens"
