Why I Oughta...

I put together my first (ever) evergreen wreath this weekend.  Using a mix of Fraser Fir limbs from our tree and some Cypress branches and boxwoods from our yard, I created a few dozen 'bunches' of materials.  I watched one wreath-making video (Thanks, Garden Answer) and sort-of figured out how to make the wreath using those 'piles' or 'bunches'.   Nat brought home Silver Dollar Eucalytus and Magnolia leaves from Trader Joes (one bunch of each) and I cut those up and stacked them on each pile.   From there, it was just winding floral wire around the grapevine frame to attach the pile/bunch to the frame.  I moved around the frame, eventually closing-in the whole thing.   Below is a photo of the (my first) wreath hanging on our front door. I'm already thinking about what to do next time and what I like about this first effort. I like the layering and the contrast from the cypress and fir and eucalyptus.  I also like the contrasting colors...

Last year, it seemed like I made way more winter, evergreen arrangements than I've done this year.  But, unlike this year, I didn't *count* them last year.  So, I'm just going off 'feel'.   This season, the arrangement-making started off strong, but I haven't had the occassion to make them (hostess gifts, mostly) yet, so it has tapered-off. I last posted #3 and #4 in November when we put together two small ones that went to Naperville and across town in Downers.   Today, I'm showing #5 in a vintage (Made in Japan) Christmas planter/mug with a wreath on the front of what looks like a 'faux chimney' along with a cute Santa Claus hanging out on the handle.  See below for a couple of photos showing this latest arrangement featuring evergreens (spruce, fir, juniper, boxwoods) and two kinds of eucalyptus and a pinecone-on-a-stick.  I filled this same container last year (post and photo) and I used more branching .  I think I like last year's bette...

The past few days, we've had some melting of the snow around here.  We've already experienced 17" of snowfall thus far and Winter hasn't even started.  The snow came fast and heavy.  That created a couple of issues for me:  the piles next to the driveway were getting pretty tall.  And...the plants were covered.   That's actually a good thing.  And, potentially a bad thing.  Snowcover is a good thing in terms of insulation.  We're headed into a period of very cold temperatures soon and having the snow down for insulation is a positive thing for plant health.   But, on the negative side, the heavy snow weighs down limbs.  And, for boxwoods, that's potentially a problem.  With enough weight, the evergreen shrubs will splay open.  And, if held there long enough, creates the potential for wreaking havoc on the shape of these shrub balls.   The two sets of boxwoods that are the most mature (ones out front of ...

A little bit over three weeks ago, we planted three Blossom Peacock Amaryllis bulbs in a single container proceeded to tuck them in with a little bit of moss to cover the soil.  These were slightly smaller bulbs than the ones we get at the local garden center and they weren't showing any signs of life, so I wasn't sure what we'd get from them.   After arranging them, we brought them over to my Mom's house where she proceeded to tend to them and put them in a bright spot.   Fast forward three weeks, and these have taken off: All three bulbs have straps of foliage that have arrived and two of the bulbs have a bud that is gaining height.   When they're this tall is when I typically shift to the 'poison phase' of watering.  Instead of pure tap water, these will now get about 10% alcohol mixed with the water.  To (hopefully) stunt the height a little bit (without burning the roots).  Here's a post about how I did this Paperwhite bulbs ....

We had our large front porch galvanized 'trough' container done by Churchill Garden Design of Downers Grove this week and Elise delivered a nature-inspired, festive arrangement that feels right for our house and our family.  If you look closely, you'll see a variety of evergreens, some dyed eculyptus, pinecones and branches in greens, browns, reds and even white.  What jumps out to me is not just the variety in terms of palate she chose (the analogous greens and browns), but more importantly:  the texture(s).  There's short, fine needles mixed with broader foliage.  Cascading habit/form mixed with upright, rigid shapes.  Arching tips and draping edges.  Harder shapes and structure backgrounded with softer, organic flows.  Have a look below: Here's a link to Churchill Garden Designs Instagram page where she features the porches she's been doing around the suburbs.   And,  here's her post (embedded below) showing our container: ...

This post is going-up in December, but the photo is from mid/late November (before Thanksgiving).  We had a good storm come through with a couple of days of wind that blew all the needles off of this tree and most of the rest of the trees in our yard.  But, before the needles fell... the Bald Cypress that is planted IB2DWs put on a nice 'fall show' this year.  Below is a photo showing the shape and color of the tree.   8-Year Old Bald Cypress Tree With Fall Color in Zone 6a Earlier this year, I pruned this tree (dormant pruning) for the first time and took some of the lower limbs off the trunk to lift up the canopy .    I'll probably get out there again late this Winter and take a branch of two off in order to raise the canopy up even more.  Hard to remember planting this tree as a tiny whip back in Fall of 2018 when we had different neighbors.  Seven years later, this is (probably) the most-successful small tree planting that we've had on o...

About three weeks ago, we planted a pair of large amaryllis bulbs in some terra cotta containers (that we had on hand for this very purpose) and had dreams of Christmas blooms.   The first one (without moss) is a Flamed Amadeus Amaryllis that had good roots, but was showing no growth.  Not even foliage tips.  Now, three weeks (or so) later along with a little bit of water, a lot of light and even some warm conditions (these are on a stone table that sits on top of a heat vent in a full southern-exposure window in our dining room), we're seeing the first bud tips emerge from the bulb.  Below is a look at the Flamed Amadeus Amaryllis just starting to show the first bud tip. Shine Dream Amaryllis is the name of the other bulb we planted.  This one has moss around the top of the soil, but was treated the same (water, light, heat).   This one (below) is showing two flower bud tips coming out of the top of the bulb and is a little big further along....

For Thanksgiving, I put together a pair of evergreen and eucalyptus arrangements for the two hosts (are we still saying "hostess"?) we were visiting that day.  These are arrangement three and four that I've posted on the blog.  Here is #2 .   One of these has Curly Willow while the other one has more Magnolia leaves.  But, they're *mostly* identical to the previous ones.  I found some Viburnum berries, but decided against including them in these.   These are (notably) in a quart mason jar (on the right) and a thrifted glass (on the left).  They are both smaller than some of the ones that I put together last year.  By design.    Here's one that was tall and wide from last year that I gave to my Mom .  And, here's two other larger ones (in thrifted vases) that I gave my sisters last year.  This year's version fit in the car cupholders, for ease of transport. We have a month-or-so until Christmas, so I'll probably see i...

Last week, I posted about how there were a few Disneyland Roses that were still popping-off outside .  A couple days ago, I decided to cut them off and bring them inside to stick in a vase.  Who doesn't want Disneyland Roses for Thanksgiving, right?  I don't totally understand how (or why?) these are blooming, but I'm happy to take the flowers.  At the same time, I fear that these tender parts won't harden-off before *REAL* winter arrives.  But, in the end...does that really matter?  In the past, I've cut the canes down to under a foot in the Spring and the new growth comes out of those canes.   Here, below, are a couple photos of the Thanksgiving Disneyland Roses.  These are dark pink.  Darker than they are most of the growing season.   Here, below, is a look at some of the posts I've written about my experience with Disneyland Roses via this Google Search widget:

Yesterday, I posted a photo of the first evergreen arrangement that we put together and talked about how it was the first of a bunch that were on their way.  That first one was small and tightly pulled together.  This second one below is a bit more wild.  It has sprays that open up and cast their tips broadly.  This includes blue spruce, thuja, a couple kinds of eucalyptus, some Magnolia, a short-needled fir with tiny (and pretty cute) pinecones and a couple branches of curly willow.  Foraged, mostly.  Eucalyptus is from TJ's.  This one is also in a mason jar for easy transportation - as this one is destined for across town.  Winter arrangement with eucalyptus, boxwood, fir and blue spruce

With the season hitting Thanksgiving this week, it is time to start making some indoor winter arrangements.  I mean...at least it is in our house.  I've done these the past few years with foraged evergreens and some Trader Joe's foliage plants.  Last year, I went *BIG* with branches and such.  I've learned that smaller can be just as impactful.  Also...mason jars fit into cup holders, so they're super easy to transport.   Here, below is the first one.  This has some faux Winterberries along with a variety of evergreens like Thuja, boxwood, Yew and some sort of short-needled tree like fir.  I also stuck a pinecone in there that I picked up on the sidewalk a few houses up the block. Here, below is a Google search preview widget.  

Welp, dahlia tuber FOMO has struck again.  A few days ago, I showed off my Bonny Blooms tuber order and talked about some of the new (to me) dahlias .  And, earlier this month, I posted about how the marketing emails and TikToks and Instagram posts about tubers were getting me antsy about dahlia tuber ordering .  In that post , I showed a number of dahlias that I thought I'd like to try to grow from various growers.  Those growers included Bonny Blooms.  And, Triple Wren Farms.  And...the place that I've bought my dahlia tubers in the past:  Longfield Gardens .   I've had pretty good luck with their tubers - with one (Maarn) being a dud.  They stood by their warranty and sent another set of Maarn Tubers (after the first ones refused to sprout), but the second set were duds, too. In my first dahlia tuber FOMO post , I included a list of some dahlias that others had recommended.  And, in the Longfield Gardens section, I listed a handf...

Just a few days ago, I posted about how FOMO was arriving when it comes to Dahlia tubers around here.    In the course of doing the research from tuber sellers, I found a sale that was on-going.  That had...some dahlias that I couldn't resist clicking the 'add to cart' button.  Here's what I bought from Bonny Blooms: Some of these were 'planned'.  Others were....impulse buys. Bells Palermo Dahlia Via  Bonny Blooms Bells Palermo .  This one was more expensive than I'm used to, so I bought just one (a mistake, I know).  It is also taller than I prefer.  But, I bought it anway.  Here's what Bonny Blooms has to say about it: A stunning coral to dusty rose gold formal decorative that gradually unfurls around a beautiful green eye. The colors remind me of hazy summer evenings in the Sicilian city of Palermo. Breathtaking at dusk and during late summer sunsets. The plant is strong and productive while the blooms are angled perfectly for design...

Just yesterday, I posted my first Dahlia Tuber Ordering FOMO post about the initial tuber sale s that are about to start online.  This is coming off my second successful season 1 of growing dahlias in the ground for cut flowers.  But, before I can get busy ordering for next year, I have to dig-up and process the tubers that I have on-hand.  This season, we grew A LOT of dahlias.  Here at my house, I grew dahlias in the backyard, sideyard, front yard and IB2DWs.  I also gave away a few tubers - to my mom and sister.  We had something like 20-or-so tubers to start the year.  And, that means...the time has come to try to keep them over the winter.  Last year (my first year), I used the "Saran Wrap Method" to keep my tubers.  And, that seemed to work.  (Or, I just got lucky?).  I only lost a couple to rot with most of the rest coming thru the Winter and sprouting.   Here's a post from early December last year showing the Sara...

Something strange has happened on a one of our large Disneyland Rose bushes on the side of our house:  they are blooming.  At least...a couple of blooms.  And this is after some hard frosts.  This 'large' one is one of the newly planted Disneyland Roses from earlier this Spring.  Here's a post from October that tries to show off the size of these .  They're MUCH bigger than the other ones I've had in the past.    The photos below show a couple of blooms and if you look *behind* the blooms, you'll see some additional Floribunda Rose buds that are hanging around.  What the heck??  I'm attributing this to the little microclimate that exists along the side of our house.  These are tucked in against the house, with southern exposure and about fifteen-feet-away is our neighbor's house.   Disneyland Rose in Bloom After A Frost I didn't cut these off and I stopped pruning back anything on these roses since mid-October.  (I w...

Ten days ago, I posted a pizza oven construction update where I talked about the framing that I attached (with concrete anchors) to the block stand and poured hearth .  I used treated lumber to create a ledge and added tile-backer board to support the countertop.  That was in-preparation of the counter being installed.  Recently, the new soapstone counter (or landing) was installed.  A few photos showing the finished stone slab are below.  The soapstone extends beyond the edge of the oven enclosure and will still be 'proud' when the brick is attached. 

Last week, I received an email from Longfield Gardens with this subject line: Get Ready...Dahlia Pre-Orders Coming Soon! There's nothing quite like FOMO to make a dahlia gardener snap-to.  I haven't even dug out the tubers from our garden this season and we're already talking about pre-orders for next year.  Eek.  I need a plan. Some people have Black Friday.  Others live for 'Cyber Monday'.  But, then...there are dahlia growers who read this email (pasted below) and think:  Here we go. Where do we start?  I think the first place is to think about what worked and what didn't this year. What worked?  Melina Fluer.  Wizard of Oz.  Ivanetti.  Pooh.   What was 'mid' (as the kids say)?  Mystery Fox.  Some Melina Fleurs.    The Pablo Gallery border dahlias (slugs!) What didn't work?  Sweet Nathalie. Also...I need to think about how much MORE room I have for dahlias.  I figure...I'll always 'make roo...

I grew a Melina Fleur dahlia at my Mom's house in a container.  Or...well....she grew it.  It was one of the bulbs that I overwintered last year that I started in a one-gallon nursery container.  She transplanted it into a large pot and grew some cut flowers all season long.   It wasn't protected from the frost, so the foliage died back earlier in November.  When I was over there watching a recent Bears game, I dug the tubers out and brought them home.   My plan is to dig the tubers, let them cure for a couple of days and then...wrap them in Saran Wrap.   Below is a peek at the tubers that came out of her container.  One tuber went into the pot this year.  And, I was able to pull-apart three distinct tubers that (I think??) all appear to be viable (have eyes) on them.  Two are pretty large, one is smaller.  I bought some labels (this year!) and wrapped them around the stems of the tubers.   I'll leave these ...

November is the time when the outdoor garden gets put to bed for the year, but it is also the time when I turn to some indoor (seasonal) gardening.  That usually starts with Amaryllis bulbs - or as we call them around here:  Christmas flowers.   Last month, I posted some photos and details of the $10 Amaryllis bulbs that my local Orange Big Box store was carrying and talked about how their smaller (than what we normally buy) size would work well for a 'multiple' bulb container. My mom has this faux birch cache pot that seemed like a perfect vessel for three smaller Christmas flowers.   I figured I'd fill it up and we can deliver it back to her for the season. At the story, I picked-up and handled dozens of bulbs until I could find three that 'felt good' to me.  That meant that they were firm, green, had *some* roots and the foliage wasn't all strap-y and exposed already.  I've had bad luck with Big Box Amaryllis bulbs before (I've also had duds f...

The 'fall colors' don't stop with the reds and oranges and yellows.  Down IB2DWs (extended) near the sidewalk is the (now) two-year-old ( Planted in October 2023 ) Purple Smokebush/Smoke Tree.  This tree (shrub?) has been no-fuss since it went in the ground and has put on some size in the two growing seasons.  I've watered it in a limited way, but the neighbor's sprinkler system likely saturates the ground where the Smoke Bush's roots draw from around the canopy.   Did we get any of those ' smoke-like airy seed clusters ' to emerge on the tips of this tree this season? No. No...we did not.   But, we *are* getting a small purple, pink and maroon 'fall show' as the foliage changes color.  Below, is a look at the current state of the leaves on this tree that is down by our sidewalk: When I planted this , I wanted to add some texture and color contrast to the 'expanded' conifer garden that I was planting along the property line IB2DWs.  I h...