Double Duty

If I can use something over again in my garden, I do. This saves me a bit of money and makes me think that I am smart (ha ha). After doing some bathroom remodeling I put the old mirror into the garden so the birds could enjoy looking at themselves.

Old cottage cheese containers have a hole cut out in the bottom and get used as collars to protect my pepper plants from cutworms.

And even the alliums get extra life after the flowers are spent. I take a can of spray paint and have instant garden adornment. This is a cheap way to keep your garden interesting, and as I am always looking for ways to be frugal, a can of spray paint fits the bill.

Old Herbaceous

There is a wonderful book that I read recently called "Old Herbaceous" written by Reginald Arkell about the relationship between a woman and her gardener. In speaking about him she says:

“But he was a little trying. One minute he would exasperate you, because he would do things his way, and then he would be so sweet you almost wanted to cry.”

Further along she says:

“Pinnegar was a gardener…just a gardener… and gardeners are all a little like that.”

So that’s my excuse! I like to do things my way because that is what gardeners are like! Actually, I just like to do things that will give me good produce, beautiful flowers, and healthy plants. If something doesn’t work, then try something else.

I have been in the process of outlining my mother’s garden with mulch to keep the weeds in the woods, including poison ivy, at bay. I lay wet newspapers down several sheets thick and then top them with pine bark mulch. It sure saves on the time I spend weeding! And the newspapers eventually rot so no problem there. I would never have the time to take care of two gardens without newspapers helping me out. I never seem to have enough of them to do what I want to do either!







The bright daisy-like flowers of Feverfew are in bloom right now. This is such a reliable plant. I planted it many years ago in hopes that the self-help books I had read about it would cure me of the headaches I used to get. It didn’t help with the headaches, but this plant sure brightens my garden with the lovely flowers. It does self seed, however they are easily controlled and it is good to start with a new plant from scratch every now and then as the older ones don’t continue to thrive forever.





The giant alliums are through, but that doesn’t mean I am through with them. I took some spray pain and give a few of them a bit of color. They won’t last until the end of the summer of course; the elements will get to them first. But they will last a little while and give me a some brightness in my day.

Garden Walk 2010

After a several year hiatus Saginaw decided to have a garden walk this year. I bought my ticket and was able to get to three gardens before being at my designated garden for the rest of the afternoon as a volunteer for the Master Gardener’s. And what lovely gardens there were to see!



The Picard garden gives the flavor of a tropical island, complete with pool and tiki bar. I love the idea of putting a rather invasive grass sunk into the ground in a pot and then surrounded by stone. What a good idea!



My assigned destination for the rest of the afternoon was the Rios garden. Suc a treasure in the heart of the city and not too far from the Hoyt Library where I have worked for the past 30 years. Even though the weather was a bit brisk and of course I didn’t dress properly (I think this is summer and I seem to forget that this is also Michigan) the afternoon was a pure delight.





This garden has a front section and a back section; the front is a sunny area with many sun perennials including Maltese Cross and Joe Pye Weed. There is a lovely pond, complete with fountain and fish.


The back area of this garden is quite shaded and has a super collection of hostas among many other shade loving plants. The white impatiens set off all the different shades of green. These colors combined just lovely!





The Rios garden also has a number of roosters and chickens. I suspect slugs are at a minimum here. What a useful pet to have!

And to complete this wonderful afternoon those of us who came to this garden were given a tour of this wonderful 1886 house that is in the process of being restored to its’ original splendor. All in all it was a find day for a garden walk and I hope it is held again next year.

What is blooming in my garden right now? Well everything is about 2 weeks early this year, probably helped along by a lot of rain and some sporadic warm weather. The alliums are at their peak right now and I also have a clematis that is blooming its’ head off. This is a plant I added to my garden last summer so of course I an exceedingly pleased.




I also have hollyhocks starting to bloom and the roses are weighing the netting they hang from down they are so thick. I have some pots with wave petunias, a plant that cannot help but please.




Soon I will be harvesting garlic and once the basil takes off there will be pesto. Can tomatoes be far behind? Bring on the summer! I am ready to eat!