What’s Up in the Garden

Published on February 25, 2018April 27, 2019 by Gerri6 Comments

A change of season always brings excitement! After weeks of grey, cloudy skies the slightly warmer weather definitely has me yearning for Spring!

This past week, in between the scattered raindrops, RH and I have been observing the damage to our garden from the hard freeze. In southeast Texas, we usually have fairly mild winters. This year was different. Temperatures dropped below freezing and stayed there for a couple of days. Our somewhat tropical garden took quite a beating. Although all potted plants were stored safely in the garage and we covered the plants that we knew would struggle in a freeze, the cold weather really took a toll on our previously lovely garden. ( I do realize there are places in the world that would delight in our mild winters and are probably chuckling at our gardening woes. We are a bit spoiled in this region! )

While I did enjoy the cooler temperatures, it was so nice to see highs peeking into the seventies this week, although we are still being inundated with lots of rain and grey skies. My husband is truly the passionate gardener, and he has begun trimming away and hauling off branches filled with ugly, dead leaves. After surveying the bleakness of our garden, we ran out and purchased a few Daylilies and Lavender in an attempt to bring some life back into the space. I know that the Daylilies will thrive as they love our hot and humid climate. However after purchasing the Lavender I learned that they prefer a less humid climate. Well, I do love Lavender so I want to at least make an attempt. We shall have to wait and see.

Everyday day, with sweet Bear close on my heals, I walk around the garden searching for bits of green sprouting through. The tulips I planted last Fall are slowly pushing through the ground and I can see bits of green around our Mexican Heather. However, I’m afraid it’s going to be a long, slow process though.

To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow.

– Audrey Hepburn

The garden is my place of delight, peace and contentment. I look to my garden to be a retreat from the busyness of the day. A special place to relax, enjoy and simply breathe. However, as with most things worthwhile, gardening is a process. So for now, I will simply wait, nurture and believe in tomorrow.

Wishing you blessings as we await Spring. – Gerri

**The photos shown in this post are from last summer’s garden. Hopefully, I will have new photo’s for you soon.

How to Build a Raised Bed for Your Garden – part 2

Published on September 18, 2016April 27, 2019 by Gerri1 Comment

I am so excited that we have completed our garden and I wanted to share with you the final steps! This really has been a relatively simple project. This is really easy for me to say since my husband did most of the work. However, the time involved in this project was only a few hours. This could have been done in a day. We broke it into to two separate afternoons simply for our own convenience.

Step 2 really just includes laying the ground cover, adding the soil, and the exciting part is adding the plants!

For our ground cover, we chose Vigoro Weed Block Fabric from Home Depot. We simply covered the ground with this fabric and stapled it to the sides of the cedar boards.

Then came the mulch. We used an inexpensive mix of topsoil and composted manure to layer the ground. For our top layer of soil we used 6 bags of Kellogg Raised Bed and Potting Mix.

The best part was adding the plants. After some research about the best place to purchase vegetable plants, we headed off to a lovely little nursery near us called Plants for all Seasons. I seriously could spend all day in this place wandering around and exploring the wide variety of goodies for your garden. As usual, my husband attempted to keep me on task.

One of the main things we wanted in our garden are tomatoes. We decided on Celebrity Tomatoes because they are the best selling tomato. We also purchased summer squash, basil, rosemary, and oregano. We wanted to plant some seeds as well, so we purchased Kentucky Wonder Green Beans, and cucumbers.

We actually finished planting a couple of weeks ago, but as to frequently happens, life gets busy and keeps me away from posting. I am amazed how much the plants have grown and the seedlings that we planted are already popping up!

I will definitely keep you posted on the progress of our little garden. Hopefully, we will be slicing up fresh tomatoes and cooking summer squash for dinner in no time!

xxoo Gerri

Time in the Garden

Published on August 10, 2016April 27, 2019 by Gerri5 Comments

Who doesn’t enjoy spending time relaxing and taking in nature in a beautiful garden. But did you know that relaxing or working in the garden can actually benefit your health?

The sights, smells and sounds of a garden promote relaxation and reduce stress. If you actually spend time working in the garden, planting or pulling weeds, you get the added benefit of physical activity.

Spending time in a garden is a way to nurture and replenish our spirit. In general, our society spends way too much time at the computer or plugged in to other electronic devices. All of this time spent focusing on electronics can create attention fatigue adding to our already stressful lives.

The effortless form of attention spent enjoying a beautiful garden helps us replenish that attention fatigue which leads to reducing stress and improving our mood. Just 15 minutes a day spent spent soaking in the sun in a beautiful garden atmosphere can elevate your mood.

Another benefit to gardening is that it is a great form of physical activity. Digging, planting, weeding, and watering gives your body plenty of opportunity to move and stretch without hitting the gym.

You don’t need a big backyard to enjoy the benefits of gardening. If you have a small patio you can get started with adding small houseplants or even container gardening.

The most important thing is to break away from your electronic devices and begin enjoying the improved mood and health benefits of spending time in a garden. As we approach the end of summer, it’s not too late to try your hand at some simple gardening and discover for yourself an elevated mood and improved health!

Happy Gardening!

Let me know what’s growing in your garden! I love hearing from you!