I happened to be driving past the local thrift store this weekend and just popped in for a quick run through to make sure I didn’t need anything (ha, need, that’s funny). Things were pretty well picked over, which seems to be the usual state of things at this particular store as I understand the employees usually grab the best ...
I took a little heat from a family member last week (just a tiny little bit) when I said on the blog that I don’t do placeholders. It was in reference to the vintage botanical charts I recently hung in the kitchen, which I was so thrilled to have hanging there because that wall was empty for about three years ...
OK, folks, today is the big day. I am SO excited to be offering this amazing giveaway from Bonnie & Bell. You might remember that I spent three years staring at a giant blank wall in the kitchen while I searched for the perfect art. I absolutely fell in love with some of the photos I was seeing of vintage ...
I once read that bloggers should never apologize for posting bad photos. Instead they just shouldn’t post them. That is probably good advice, but I’m going to completely ignore it for today. These photos deserve to be apologized for, because if you thought the photos coming out of my iPhone were lacking, wait until you see these gems from my ...
We’ve been looking for a new sofa sort of off and on and a few months ago I walked into the place where we bought our last sofa and talked to the same designer who sold me the one we currently have. I told her exactly what I was looking for and she walked me around the showroom pointing out ...
I’m absolutely delighted to be bringing you this tutorial today. I have to say this is one of my favorite projects ever and I couldn’t be more pleased with the results. This wasn’t even a project I had planned, but I fell in love with the fabric and after giving it some thought, I realized that jumping into my first ...
Busy, busy, busy. That’s the theme around here lately. The weather took at decided turn towards downright chilly over the past week reminding me of all the things that need to get finished outside before the snow flies. But you know how you can be flying along checking things off the to-do list and then everything comes to a screeching ...
The Impatient Gardener blog was started in 2009 and its library of posts includes practical how-tos, plant guides, favorite garden gear, successes and failures and much more. If you’re looking for something specific, the search function at the top of the page can help.
The area for the new vegetable garden was finally started this week. Leveling has begun, a messy process that involves moving around a lot of dirt. The next step is building the raised beds and I thought the decision making behind the beds deserved its own post. Gardening in raised beds is very popular, and […]
It’s raining out and I can feel the to-do list getting longer rather than shorter. Currently the list includes: Weeding. Shocker! It’s been alternating rain and sun, heat and damn near freezing here, which means the weeds are popping up faster than I can grab them. Designing my containers for the year. I can’t believe […]
How do you feel about petunias? My guess is that you feel very strongly about them; you probably either love them or hate them. I had no idea a flower could elicit such strong feeling in such vastly different directions, but I’ve recently become away that petunias are controversial. If you love them you see […]
One of the jobs for the weekend was digging out three large Viburnum lantana ‘Mohican’ shrubs from the “back” (which is really the side, but that is a story that is too long to go into) of the property. One by one, they’ve been fading, with more parts of each looking worse by the month. […]
This whole “Impatient Gardener” thing isn’t just a gimmick. I struggle with impatience, and although I’m getting better with it, this time of year is especially challenging on the impatience front. The landscaper we hired to do the grading for the new vegetable garden told me it would be done this week and now it’s [
The first real days in the garden are special. The jobs at this time of year are not particularly exciting or interesting, but I usually write about them anyway because being back in the garden is special in and of itself. Although the weekend here wasn’t all that nice, we’re looking at some more seasonal […]
Two weeks ago it was snowing at my house, but not until after it sleeted for awhile. It was miserable. Or so I was told. I was fortunate enough to be enjoying gorgeous California sunshine surrounded by amazing plants. I have much to tell you about those plants, but first I wanted to share the […]
I was skeptical when I first heard about Calamintha nepeta ‘Montrose White’. I’d been to multiple garden talks in which speakers extolled the virtues of this plant. It was a “must-have” they said. But I didn’t think it looked particularly spectacular in photos. Still, I’m a sucker for a new-to-me plant if multiple people have [&hellip
Many gardeners in the north are looking at snow in the forecast this weekend. My most sincere condolences. That is just not OK. I wonder if this lousy spring is a harbinger of an equally cruddy summer to come or if Mother Nature will make up for lost temperatures and cook us this summer. I’m […]
I didn’t intend to start cleaning up the garden over the weekend. The thermometer never got over 40 and there is snow cover on about 40 percent of the garden. But on Sunday, after walk on the beach with the dogs (in which we saw two bald eagles fly just overhead, quite a rare sight […]
A quick note: This post is sponsored by 3-IN-ONE® Multi-Purpose Oil, but you know I will always tell it like it is, so all words and opinions are entirely my own. This post may also include affiliate links. Thanks for supporting the brands that support this blog. It’s hard to think of something that matches […]
Oh my, us gardeners are a sad lot indeed these days. Judging by the comments on my last post and what I’m reading on Facebook, it seems like everyone is feeling the pain of some very confusing spring weather. Sad as it is, I’m taking a lot of comfort in knowing that I’m not alone […]
I can say one thing about this crazy “spring” weather that has blanketed my garden in yet more white stuff: I’m not alone. I’m feeling a little whiny about the almost 6 inches of snow we got overnight (and the fact that they say more is on the way this weekend), but I know what […]
Anyone can garden in a container. The first gardening I did on my own was in my first apartment after I graduated from college. I lived in the upstairs of a duplex and got the landlord to let me put a single plastic pot on the sunny driveway. I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t call that […]
