#ornamental oregano

[wiley-treehouse-gardens]

[charlesreeza]

Rudbeckia in my humble pollinator garden, now in its third year

[tomorrowillbeyou]

My simply awsome recipe that is my favourite to make although i don't make it so often. cheesy potatoes

get some big baking potatoes and cover them in butter and spear them with a fork then bake them in whichever way you choose you can do this in the microwave or oven or whatever

while they are baking get some butter and oil and chop up some onion (maybe like 1 small onion for 3 potatoes idk) chop it quite small and fry it kind of low in the butter and oil and then crush up garlic and when the onion gets soft and a bit brown add the garlic in and then turn off the heat after a couple of minutes

take out the potatoes, while they are still hot slice them in half lengthways (so the halves lie flat) and scoop out the middle and put it in a bowl

get a block of cheddar and grate a bit less than 1/2 as much cheddar as there is potato insides in the bowl. put it with the potatoes and also add the onion/garlic, here you can add cream, milk and yoghurt to make it super creamy, also salt and pepper, also herbs (i like to put in thyme and dill and this like ornamental sage from the garden sometimes and sometimes oregano). all of these ingredients are optional but greatly increase the awsomeness. you can also add any other random stuff you think would taste good in such a potato.

mash it all together until its all mixed and taste it and if it doesn't taste awsome to you add stuff to make it better using your own judgement and brain

scoop it back into the potato skins, there will be more mixture than there originally was but its cool just heap it up because it tastes nice

sprinkle a bit of cheddar cheese on top of each one and also maybe even fancy chunky salt if you have some

put it in the oven at like 180 ish (but doesn't matter that much) for 10 minutes and then put them under the grill for 2 minutes to get browned on top (My american correspondents are telling me this is called a broiler)

then eat it and it will be tasty but maybe don't eat it if.you are lactose intolerant. LOVE❤️

[apilgrimpassingby]

Designing A Traditionalist Commune

Inspired by chatting with @tradgirllife and @unprofessionalcat about this kind of thing and wanting to share my plans; this is going to be one long post.

Village Layout

Throughout, I will be presupposing a commune of c.100 families adding up to c.500 people. Also, because UK and US English sometimes use the same name for different plants and vice versa, all plants will also come with scientific names. Additionally, this is calibrated to the climate and ecology of Britain; adjust for where you live.

At the centre of the village is the church, which will also double as the meeting place for the village (this will be important later). It sits at the centre of 1000 acres of communally-held sheep pasture planted with clover, (trifolium pratense) dandelions (taraxacum officinale), yarrow (achillea millefolium) and maize (zea mays; this one is useful if the potato crop fails), with this same space including various other facilities - a printing shop, a blacksmith's, a stream for water and a glassworks. The dead are also buried here, with small, subtle gravestones.

Ringing that are houses (design will be discussed soon), each with an acre of land containing potatoes (peel helps feed chickens and a very dense, low-effort-to-prepare carbohydrate source), sweetcorn, beans and squash (the sweetcorn forms a trellis for the beans, the beans fix nitrogen for the sweetcorn and the squash helps both retain moisture) and carrots and onions (carrots ward off onion flies and onions ward off carrot flies), and a fruit grove with chickens (the trees provide the chickens with interesting insects to eat and that in turn keeps the trees pest-free). As for area, 4000 square feet (doubled to 8000 for paths and storage) will feed a single person on a vegetarian diet for a year. There are 43,650 square feet in an acre. 8000X5 = 40,000 for vegetables, with the remaining 3650 square feet being used for chickens and fruit.

Ringing that, in turn, is a forest of Himalayan birch (betula utilis) for firewood and writing material, Sitka spruce (picea sitchensis) for timber and resin/glue and white willow (salix alba) for baskets, painkiller and tannin (for leather-making) production with ponds containing tench (tinca tinca) and mallards (anas platyrhynchos) for meat and eggs (in addition, ground fish bones can be added to chicken feed). Ground shrubs will be similar to those in the sheep field.

House Design

Houses will be built out of straw bales, with a foundation of stones (to prevent damp seeping in), a coating of limewash (to add resistance to fire and water) and wooden cladding (to stop rain; Britain is very wet. Feel free to leave this out in a dry area). Straw bale building is cheap and (if you tie the bales tightly) very warm and surprisingly fire-resistant. However, I envision repairs and new houses leading to a gradual replacement with timber buildings. Rooves consist of a timber frame upon which is placed soil in which to grow herbs for consumption (for the UK I'm thinking oregano, yarrow, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme). This will necessitate strong rooves with gentle slopes, but will be doable, and will increase cultivation space and take advantage of the UK's fairly high rainfall.

Inside, the centre of the house is a wood-burning stove over which the cooking is done. Surrounding that are chairs which people sit on to consume meals, with wooden bookcases (books are printed on birch bark, with charcoal-based ink, wool string and spruce resin for binding and a leather cover) and assorted ornaments. I'm a man, ornamenting houses isn't my thing - women and girls reading this, provide your ideas. Windows are fairly small due to local production limitations, and so there are quite a few of them. In winter, the house is lit with candles made from beeswax or tallow (so we'll want a few beekeepers) and reeds (from around the ponds), made by one of these processes.

To the side are bedrooms. These are fairly unadorned, consisting of a wooden bed, a mattress made from wool and/or feathers, a blanket and pillow of the same and some personal possessions. Also there should be a spinning wheel for the woman of the house to use.

To the back and just outside is the compost toilet. It consists of a wooden shack over a chamber for excreta and another chamber for composting. A bit of guttering funnels urine outside into a barrel of straw (also for composting). Washing is done in a metal tub, with soap made of animal fat or vegetable oil and wood ash.

Clothing

Clothes are made of wool, dyed with nettles (urtica dioica) for grey-green, dandelions for pale yellow, and whatever else is locally available. In addition, natural sheep colours give a range of white, grey, brown and black. Shoes will be made of sheepskin, and some people taking up shoemaking will thus be much appreciated.

In terms of clothing, I'm not particular about styles. I imagine that men will dress something like this and women something like this, but I am very much not particular. I'm a man.

Diet

As composed from the ingredients above, mostly potatoes accompanying vegetable stews of a considerable range. Some treats, such as pancakes, cider and meat, but mostly fairly plain.

Political System

The village is governed by two bodies - the magistrates and the assembly.

The magistrates consist of three randomly-selected adult citizens, with the proviso that they cannot have committed a crime in the last three years and they cannot serve consecutive terms. They meet weekly to judge crimes and set the agenda for the assembly.

The assembly consists of all adults of the community, meeting monthly to vote on proposed laws and actions and vote on applicants for citizenship. The citizenship can vote to modify proposed laws.

Due to the lack of state apparatus, crimes are punished by fines (for minor crimes, especially property crimes), exile (for major crimes - those who are exiled have their crimes, date of exile and sentence length tattooed on their non-dominant hands) or execution (for serious crimes, although this needs to be put up to the assembly and only violent or sexual crimes can be capital).

Note to say if you like this and/or would like to live here, reblog with any comments, questions or criticisms you have.

[five-rivers]

I made soup one time using stuff from my garden. And by soup, I mean I filled up a blue and purple bowl with lukewarm water, then grabbed whatever was growing in my garden. Which was mint, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, a bunch of other herbs I can’t remember, and a tiny ornamental pepper that was not meant to be eaten. It ended up tasting like spicy water

To be fair I was like 14 when I did this and didn’t actually know how to make soup, I just wanted to eat stuff from my garden and soup seemed like a good idea

I applaud your initiative. May your future forays into the world of soup be more flavourful.

[geeses]

whats going good in your garden right now?

my tomatoes are turning red, and the bell peppers are starting to come into shape. the basils (sweet, tulsi, and thai) are so so fragrant and delicious. the okra has started to do its thing. the lemongrass and mint is thriving. the lemon balm and oregano need to be cut back with ferocity. there is more, but you get the jist.

there are also some perennials/ornamentals that are doing well, too. I made a little sedum garden in an old stump, and it looks adorable. it's like a little spot for the faeries to hang. a wild bunny has a burrow in the inner edge of the stump.

[tameblog]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[ramestoryworld]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[alexha2210]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[angusstory]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[wiley-treehouse-gardens]

Treehouse Gardens

[charlesreeza]

One of the tiniest flowers in my garden is on this "Kent's Beauty" ornamental oregano. It measures 1/2" x 1/4". The plant is grown for its foliage rather than the flowers.

Photo by Charles Reeza

[tumibaba]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[romaleen]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[monaleen101]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link

[iamownerofme]

Hi GPODers! A couple of weeks ago we got to see how Mark Montgelas grows a wonderful assortment of food and flowers in the northeast (Mark’s Ornamental Vegetable Garden in Vermont), and today we get to see how Dawn Fountain does the same in the opposite corner of the US, at her home in Surprise, Arizona. Dawn sent in a beautiful description of her garden experience, her existing beds, and all of the joy she gets from this rewarding hobby, so I will let her take it away: I have been gardening since 1994. I have always had a small garden—a couple of plants—just for something to do with my neighbor. When I married my husband 18 years ago, he helped build me a ‘huge’ garden that went around the whole back wall of our house. Unfortunately, I became allergic to just about everything back there and it scared me off gardening for a while. In April 2024, we moved back out to Arizona (we now live in Surprise, AZ) and instantly I saw lots of room. The whole back yard, in true Arizona style, is usually rocks. My husband jumped into action and built me raised beds. He also put a little fence around a small area so I could have a memorial garden for my grandparents and parents. NOW I grow herbs (basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, oregano, stevia). My basil plants grew to 5+ feet tall so, with so much—along with the other herbs and things I grow—I have become interested in making infused oils and honeys. Basil (or mixed herbed) oil is my favorite to cook with. I love serving my dinners with freshly made herbed breads and butters. ALSO infused honey—rose (yes, the flower) is the best!!!! My family loves it. I have a butterfly garden and sunflowers. In there I have lavender – which makes really good honey too. Dawn’s sunflower garden with a matching metal sunflower and a happy gnome guarding her cheerful blooms. I even have house plants and my favorite thing to do is to cut roses and flowers from my garden and have a mini garden inside. In my main garden I have corn, carrots, beets, strawberries, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes (2 kinds – they grew 6 ft tall), basil, mustard greens, lettuce, kale, onions, stevia, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, cilantro, peppers, 3 types of mint…  I also have a few other plants – blueberries, blackberries, avocado tree, lemon tree, orange tree. I just got a planter built where I will start a spring flower garden. I love sitting at my dining room table and seeing the bees and hummingbirds enjoy the feeders. I also have cilantro and 5 types of roses. When I go out back to get some green for dinner – my husband calls it ‘shopping’. LOL A closer look at all those beautiful greens that Dawn grows, including the absolutely massive basil plants on the right! My garden is where I go to be alone, where I am the happiest, and where I find my true peace. My grandson loves coming over and ‘snack’ through my garden. He loved the day he came over and he and his sister got to pick out of my garden. She got to eat the carrots she picked. He got to make pickles. I have already started my seeds indoors for my spring garden (19 types so far) and have it marked in my planner when it’s going outside. I have it all planned out and I have a chart for when it started, sprouting, going outside… My local nursery even does free classes and I attend those frequently. Can you tell I love this? Thank you so much for sharing your very special garden with us, Dawn! Your love for all you grow is so evident in your photos and words. I’m also very inspired by your adventures in oil and honey infusions 😋 OK folks, we’ve seen veggie gardens in the northeast and now the southwest. Where are my edible gardeners in the PNW? The midwest? How about the Great Plains or the southeast? Whether you’ve got rows and rows of raised beds or a small patch for growing some herbs, we’d love to see it on Garden Photo of the Day! Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.   Have a garden you’d like to share? Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit! To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden. Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening! Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here. Fine Gardening Recommended Products A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY. Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides. Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs. Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil. Source link