There was a time when Renee Shepherd’s business was mostly about flowers. But these days she’s thinking about rutabaga and celeriac more than zinnias and cosmos. Shepherd has been in the seed business for more than 25 years and has owned Renee’s Garden since 1998, so it’s safe to say that she has a good idea about what is going ...
I have a few horticultural experiments going on in my house right now. This is unusual for me because I rarely have the patience for such things, but this time of year calls for finding new things to amuse ones self. All of the cuttings are currently residing in one pot, but if they root successfully I’ll pot them on ...
I had two thoughts when I first saw Rochelle Greayer’s book Cultivating Garden Style: that this book was completely different from every other gardening book I’ve seen, and that it must have been an incredible task to pull it together. Maybe it’s more helpful to tell you what Cultivating Garden Style is not. It’s not a book that will tell ...
Yesterday Matt Mattus outlined his theory that there is a dahlia shortage on his blog Growing with Plants. (Sidenote: There are a very small number of gardening blogs that I consider to be the cream of the crop, and Matt’s is one. Check it out if you’re looking for serious advice on how to grow plants). He based this on ...
It is mind boggling to me that last year was the first in my life that I have started seeds indoors to give the garden a jump start. I’ve done a lot of growing from seeds planted directly in the garden, but I last year was the first year that I’ve started things inside. I can’t tell you how much ...
Remember back in fall when I shared my idea to line the apron of the driveway with containerized trees? I wouldn’t say that the reaction from readers was enthusiastic. I completely understand why. It’s not entirely congruous with the rest of the yard and several people had warranted concerns about the care that containerized trees would require, to say nothing ...
Rarely do I have occasion to see my neighbors’ yards in daylight these days. On weekdays most dog walks happen at dusk or later and on weekends we head to the beach whenever possible. So it was a most pleasant surprise when I spotted something surprising in a neighbor’s yard when stiff winter winds forced us to walk on the ...
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.
I love wrapping gifts. I wish I had unlimited time and money to lavishly wrap every gift I give, but that’s just not the case. In the past, I’ve done wrapping themes but now I’ve amassed such a collection of papers and ribbon that I mix it up quite a bit. Paper Source, which is […]
As I’ve mentioned, a lot of stuff was left behind by the previous owner when we bought our house. One item was the Calder-esque mobile that hangs in the living room. Even though it’s in a bit of a weird spot, I’ve always liked it there and we never moved it. I’d like to know […]
Oh sure, I know the whole world has their houses all done up for Christmas and you probably thought you were going to see some Christmas decorations in mine one of these days. Well, let’s just say it is a very slow process, although one that I’m still enjoying. We aren’t hosting any parties (that […]
It’s not often that I report back on Monday with what I did over the weekend (because usually I started a project that I didn’t finish so there’s not much to report on), but even though I did not one iota of Christmas decorating (whoops) this weekend, it was an excellent holiday time. Saturday I […]
Happy Friday, everyone! ‘Tis the season to hurry up and get decorating, I guess, so that is on my agenda for the weekend in addition to doing a little cookie baking with my BFF’s family (and meeting her adorable daughter for the first time) followed by an “ugly ornament exchange” with my other BFFs. Posts […]
There is a chance that perhaps I may have underestimated exactly what 40 magnolia stems looks like. Stuffed to the gills in the basement until I can decorate with them. And yes, Mr. Much More Patient is still running around in shorts. And yes, that’s a sneak peek of a thrift store find in progress […]
Gosh, here I was reveling in the extra-week-in-between-Christmas-and-Thanksgiving glow and all of a sudden it’s December and I’m freaking out a little bit. Every year I resolve to take time to actually enjoy the holiday season instead of scurrying around doing everything, and every year, I end up totally stressing myself out. The proble
It’s the last day of November. Seems strange since it feels very December-y lately (other than the weather) and it seems like Thanksgiving was ages ago. What better way to finish off the month than by resolving a problem I shared with you at the beginning of the month! That problem was the ugly lamp […]
Longtime readers of this blog will know that I have a love-hate relationship with poinsettias. I love them because they are one of the few plants that can bring some color into the house during these darkest days and because even if you do nothing else, a red poinsettia makes your house look holiday-ish. I […]
I can’t tell you how thankful I am that because of the early Thanksgiving this year we have an extra weekend thrown in before Christmas. It takes so much pressure off. The rest of the world, though, seems to be full-on into Christmas prep mode. Shopping, baking, decorating and lighting up their houses like crazy. […]
It’s the day before Thanksgiving so if there were ever a time to talk about food for the first time on the blog, I guess this is it. We go to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving every year and even though we have a rather small gathering, we of course make way too much food […]
Last week (or the week before maybe) I reminded you to plant your amaryllis bulbs. Well, folks, this is why you should do what I say, not what I do. Because I planted mine this weekend. There might still be time for them to be looking OK by Christmas, but I’m definitely pushing it. Anyway, […]
Hey, it’s Friday again. I love how that keeps happening. I have a few items on the agenda for the weekend including ordering some fabric from Calico Corners before their 25% off sale ends, cutting down just a few more things in the garden and putting cages around the plants that need protection from deer […]
I’ll be back later to show you a couple small updates that we’ve done in the house, but for now I just wanted to remind you that today is the last day to enter the giveaway for the vintage botanical chart from Bonnie & Bell. Don’t miss out!
