Gardens have the power to delight all of the senses, sight, sound, touch, taste and smell, and that is something to keep in mind while planning for a new season. How will your garden engage not only the eyes, but the other senses as well?

As I plan my yard, I am focusing on fragrance. I moved last fall, and so this is a new yard to me. Many plants I have loved in other yards drew me by their smell rather than their appearance. I need those favorites around me, and hope to discover some new ones as well.

Some things to pay attention to:

• Plant fragrant specimens where people will be spending time. This could mean along walkways, at the front entrance, or near the patio or deck. It's wonderful to walk along a path and be surprised by a fragrant flower. Look for plants that release their perfumes at night if that is when you use your patio or deck.
• Plant out of the wind. You don't want all the scent carried away to where you won't enjoy it.
• Think about blooming seasons. Use plants with different bloom times for season-long fragrance.
• That scent that attracts you also attracts bees. Consider children's play areas when planting fragrant plants.
• Don't forget about herbs. It's not just flowers that smell pretty. How about some herbs along a pathway,where leaves will release scent when bumped or rubbed. Herbs are perfect for container planting on a deck. Choose something lemony, floral, or minty that you can enjoy whenever you are outside. Just pick and crush a leaf or two, for a wonderful release of fragrance. I used to have a lemon balm that tried to take over my entire yard, but it had a rich citrusy floral fragrance that I can almost smell just writing about it.

Hmm, I may have to get another one of those.

C'mon, Let's Compost!

I am going to start a compost pile. I've never had one before, but there are just too many good reasons not to put it off.

First, I have tons of leaves, raked into piles at the very back of my lot. I will continue to pile yard waste back there, since I really don't have any other means of disposing of it.

Second, compost makes great mulch. It has a beautiful, deep dark color, prevents weeds, and will supply your plants with all the nutrients they need all summer long. And it's FREE!

Third, and most important, adding compost is one of the best things you can do for your soil. Soil that has been "improved" with chemicals year after year is barren and depleted. Adding compost will restore the nutrients, texture, and living micro-organisms that make up rich, healthy soil. I've only lived in this house for a few months, but the soil looks pretty barren to me. And from the bags of lawn care "stuff" he left in the garage, I don't think an organic gardener lived here! :)

Fourth, I'll cut down on trash, and landfill usage by recycling my kitchen scraps, unbleached paper towels, even newspapers into wonderful, fertile compost.

I hope you will consider starting your own compost heap. If you already have one, share with me. What have you done that really works?

This is the bin I purchased to get started.

I bought it at www.Yardlover.com.

Look What I Found!

Look What I Found!

All along my front walk, hopeful daffodils are poking up through the mulch, as though asking, "Is it time yet?"

Here in Virginia today, we are having snow flurries, with snow, sleet, rain and all the other forms of precipitation predicted for the next 48 hours.

BUT- dawn is coming earlier each day, and the sun is still above the mountains when I leave work, and now, the daffodils poking through. So I know spring MUST be on the way!

I don't worry too much when spring bulbs come up earlier than I think they should. As long as they have a good thick bed of mulch, they are usually just fine. They grow a little when a warm day encourages them, but unless there is an extended period of warmth, they probably won't get tall enough to be damaged by a cold snap. Sometimes I'll cover them with a thick layer of leaves, but if they are short like the ones in this picture, they usually survive just fine.

Earth Box Gardening

The Earth Box Gardening system sounds almost too good to be true. Here's what the inventor, Blake Whisenant promises: "higher yields, minimum maintenance, and gardening that is friendly to our environment. It can be used to grow tomatoes and peppers, herbs, flowers, salad and spinach, strawberries, even melons!
Earth Box with Optional Stake Kit
Here's how it works:

1. Place the screen in the bottom and insert the watering tube.
2. Fill the Earth Box all the way to the top with moist potting soil.
3. Add 2 cups of granular fertilizer.
4. Seal with the cover(included)
5. Cut "X" shapes in the cover and plant seedlings.
6. Keep the water reservoir filled. YOU CANNOT OVER WATER!

That's all there is to it. Plants have a constant supply of water and nutrients, without any guess work. Plus, your Earth Box includes wheels, so you can move it around your yard, deck or patio. What could be easier? I'm going to be planting 3 Earth Box gardens, just like I did last year. Look for my photos as the season progresses. Send me your Earth Box photos too, so we can see how your garden grows!

This is my new yard. I moved in at the end of October, so I have not done anything except rake leaves. There are some things I really like~ the back yard is wooded with mature oaks, and the landscaping does have a variety of color and texture. But SO MANY BUSHES! I'm going to let things come to life, and I will love having the Rhododendron and azaleas, but the boxwoods have to go. At least most of them. They just don't do anything for me.

I have some ideas for things I want, old favorites, and other things I've never had room to try. I'll post the changes here, and you can give me thumbs up or down as I go.

I spent Saturday evening in my backyard, sitting by the fire pit with a drink and a friend. It was a beautiful evening, in the 40's with a clear sky. It was quiet, and dark except for the crackling flames and the night sky, and there was just no more perfect place to spend a Saturday evening.

Which got me to thinking about why I garden. I'm not inteested in the biggest tomatoes, or the prize winning Zinnias. I don't can and freeze a winter's worth of veggies. I don't have exotic landscapes, or all the latest and greatest varieties. I enjoy the gardens of people who do those things, but they don't motivate me. Those things feel like work to me, and I already have enough work to do!
For me, gardening is all about feeling good. I want a place outdoors where people feel happy and relaxed. I want it to be a place to have fun. I want to wander around, seeing what's changed, what's growing, what smells good, what's ready to pick.

That makes me happy!

I have a new favorite gardening tool, it's called a Leatherman Hybrid pruner. I just used one for the first time, and now I'll never be happy working in my yard again until I have my own. It looks like regular pruner, which it is, but it has 10 other tools folded into the handle. A lot of times I'm skeptical about "all in one" tools because they are flimsy and "gadgety", but this one wasn't. Every thing really worked!

And I loved that because my problem is I don't just do one job at a time. I may go out to prune a tree, but then I see dandelions under it, so I have to go back in and get my weeder. Then I finally remember to remove those old rotten stakes from when a new tree was planted but I don't have my wire cutters. And then back to pruning, except there's one branch that really needs a saw, so I go get it. Does this sound familiar, or is it just me?
but if I had a Leatherman I could wander happily from job to job, which is my favorite way to garden, with 11 tools in my hand!
Yeah, I definitely need one of these! Any body else have one?

Flower Power

I just read a really interesting thing about cut flowers. It was in reference to a study done by Harvard medical school talking about the health benefits of cut flowers. Like ~ people who have flowers in their home worry less, have lower anxiety and have a more elevated mood that those who don't have flowers.

People with flowers in their homes also feel more compassionate towards others.

Having flowers around gives off a calming energy.

Flowers can help over come "morning blues."

That really fascinated me, because of how happy I always feel when I have cut flowers in the house. Plus, now that I know it is not just an indulgent luxury, but an actual HEALTH issue :) I'm going to make sure I always have some at home, and maybe on my desk at work too!

Happy Valentine's Day!