March 25th....more snow

Today's forecast was for more snow.  When I hear this I always think of the funny story about the man who was so excited to shovel snow during the first snowfall.  By the 2nd week he was less than excited about the white stuff.  This winter I'm beginning to feel a little like Jack Nicholson in the Shining!  Enough with the snow!

On a more positive side, we received a quote from a gutter guard company today.  MasterShield Gutter Guards.  They guarantee that their mesh shield deflects everything that is larger than 1/2 the size of a human hair. Pine needles seem to be a large part of their guarantee.  In fact they give a list of the types of pine needles on their website:

• eastern white pine
• western white pine
• sugar pine
• red pine
• pitch pine
• jack pine
• longleaf pine
• shortleaf pine
• loblolly pine
• slash pine
• Virginia pine
• ponderosa pine
• pinyon pine
• Jeffrey pine
• lodgepole pine

This made me curious as to what is a Loblolly Pine?  Pinus Taeda is commonly referred to Loblolly Pine.  The forestry industry refers to this tree as the Southern Yellow Pine.  This is the 2nd most common tree (as identified by the US Forestry Service) in the U.S., after the red maple.If we had a pine this tall we would be worried about pine needles in our gutters.  Fortunately for us our one lonely pine tree is much small than this tree.

Sometime this Spring (whenever it arrives) we will become the happy owners of gutter guards.  This will keep my husband safe, he likes to climb the ladder at every chance to clean out the gutters.  I'm not trying to keep him from moving about and exercising, just trying to keep his feet on the solid ground.

In the meantime I will keep watering my seedlings, and dreaming of warm Spring days. 

My orchid is blooming!

My excitement can't be contained, my orchid is blooming!  I've been unsuccessful for years at keeping an orchid alive let alone getting to bloom.  In my prior 3 homes I became very good at killing a wide variety of orchids.  Yes, I followed all the instructions, videos, advice from all the orchid growing experts, friends and fellow master gardeners.  It took us moving and building a home with windows that allow just the right amount of natural light.  Or maybe it is the humidifier on the furnace?  Maybe I just became calm enough to finally grow these delicate plants?

Isn't she just lovely?

My first clue that I was doing something right was earlier this winter she began producing more leaves.  I was confused, this is the normal time that my other orchids would begin to shed leaves.  I knew she liked me and our home.

So many colors that blend seamlessly together in this very common household orchid.

Isn't it amazing how much pleasure one can gain from one $9 plant?

The bud just beginning to open, we wait for days in anticipation of the opening of this delicate flower.

Garfield Park Conservatory will be hosting the annual Orchid show in April.

Maybe I will find a friend to keep her company?

Mulch...important things to know

I'm probably one of the few people you will meet who does actually enjoy spreading mulch.  Be it either the 5 cubic yards delivered to my driveway or picking it up bag by bag at the local garden center.  Something about the smell, feel and texture of mulch makes me a happy girl.

I've been on somewhat of a crusade  for a few years now.  My mission to share the proper way to mulch a tree.  Came across this diagram today on a Master Gardener site.  "Volcano Mulching" is a NO NO!

I'm not sure what started the piling up of mulch around the base of a tree.

"Was the landscaper just not willing to dig to the appropriate depth for the tree to be planted?" 

" Did someone start the trend thinking that trees with a giant hill of mulch was attractive? "

" Maybe they thought the tree was afraid to show a little "knee" and should be covered? "

Anyway you look at it, the run off of water and the suffocating of the root structure are a terrible way to to treat the beautiful trees in our landscapes.  Save your self some time and effort, flatten out the mulch, give the tree a slight doughnut (who doesn't love a Donut?) and keep the water going to the roots and let the trees knees show a bit.

This is the time of year I start planning out my mulch purchases.  Many of the local mulch retailers give great discounts if you pre-plan your mulch delivery.  Check out Tiffany Lawn and Garden they were offering great discounts this week due to the Flower and Patio Show.  I've also used Greendell. In the past they assisted with a large mulch supply for my former HOA and they have specials for Church programs. There is also GreenCycle they are taking the yard waste and other items that would normally be headed to the city dump and composting it into a usable product.


Composting... that will be tomorrow's blog.


A word of caution:  get your mulch from a reputable source, mulch that is properly composted.

A few pretty pictures

Just a few photos taken early this morning from 

the Flower & Patio Show's exhibit gardens.

Tulips and Daffodils always make me think of Spring

Azaleas and Rose Bushes remind me of my Grandmother

I've seen many very original uses for discarded or antique store finds.  Never have I seen a piano turned into a water feature.  Very unique concept, maybe it would be best used as a focal point at a venue or reception hall?  Thinking that the piece could change out annually to keep the crowds coming back every year for meetings and gatherings. Leaving them with anticipation for what this years centerpiece will be.

I always take away something from each of these type of shows that I attend.  I found this very formal reflecting pond soothing.  Yes, the large splashy gorgeous ponds installed right across the aisle way beg you to pet the fish and put your toes in the water.  This one spoke to me in many different ways.  The stillness of the water (to me) is very inviting.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season.

Look what popped up today!

Here in Indiana we are once again facing Winter's brutal grasping hand.  Snow, Sleet and rain and blustery winds.  Yesterday we had a beautiful Spring day that had the kids out riding bikes and playing ball.  I did see the beginning of the daffodils in my cousins yard this morning, thank goodness they do not mind the snow (too much).

Inside the warmth of my hearth room the tomato seeds found the conditions to their liking and popped through the soil!!  My youngest child squealed with glee a the site of them just now.  Her first question "Which ones are boys and which ones are girls?", merrily jumping up and down.  "I want to name one Charlotte"

I began to explain the make up of the tomato plant, which quickly brought the 10 year old brain to a halt, taking all the fun out of naming the plants.  I guess Beefsteak and San Marzano are not great names for plants and they need a first middle and last name.

Meet Charlotte (the one on the right) Marie San Marzano the tomato plant.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season.

Ladybug Ladybug fly away home....

I'm  sure many of us rhymed this little tune as children as we gleefully blew the little ladybug off of ourselves

I felt very special today while out cleaning up the landscape beds this little gal (or guy) came along to visit with me. Today's beautiful sunshine and the warm feeling of the earth again made me for a few minutes forget the harshness of this past winter.

Hurry along little ladybug find a snug place to stay for the next few days, we will visit again soon.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season.

Crabgrass my summertime nemesis

When is the perfect time to treat for crabgrass? That question (and a few more) were asked of me early this morning at the Flower & Patio show.

Here in Indiana we have been frozen most of the winter (this is unusual for us) and normally I've begun to purchase the crabgrass preventative and dust off the spreader by now.  Lucky for me John Orick of Purdue University was hanging out this morning with us and he is a "Turf Guy".  He says wait, as long as we have it on the lawn by the first week of April we should be okay this year.

Here is a great document from Purdue University on Crabgrass control

http://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/AY/AY-10-W.pdf

This photo could have been of my lawn last summer.  Brand new lawn applied by a professional landscape company (courtesy of our home builder) we still found ourselves with the unwelcome crabgrass visitor. By this time it was too late our only control method was to physically pull it out (which we did).   No it did not arrive in the sod, it chose to make itself at home between the squares.

Our back yard was a different problem, we pretty much only had crabgrass.  Making the best of the situation we allowed most of them to stay with us for the season.

After speaking with "The Turf Guy" for a little bit longer I may try to spread some very early grass seed this week and see if maybe (keeping fingers crossed) we can get the back lawn to flourish this year.  Our backyard parties go so much better when guests are not standing in mud. If the growing of grass doesn't go as planned our next step will be to completely hard scape the yard!  Starting with a Bocce Ball court, large fish pond and extensive patio areas. I'm starting to think this might be the way to go.

Do you have any tried and true tips or tricks that you use for your lawn?

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

Let's talk Bees

Garth (my DH - dear husband) and I have a deep admiration of the honey bee.  Every year we say we are going to become the proud sponsors of a honey bee hive, and every year we "chicken out".  Huge responsibility!  Maybe this year we will take baby steps and attend the state conference and learn more about this deeply rewarding hobby.

I have always planted many perennials that support the dietary needs of the honey bee. Recently I stumbled across this adorable chart and wanted to share with you.

Many of these I have growing in my gardens, and a few are on my list to plant this year.  If you would like assistance with integrating these into your gardening landscape let me know.  

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

Looking for signs of Spring

It feels like Spring outside today!  Wandered around my yard for a few minutes enjoying the sun's warmth and the earth's squishy-ness.

 Gil and I checked out the temporary fish pond all seems well.  Small pond heater is still functioning and the fish were moving about.

We are looking forward to building a much larger pond this coming summer.

After much searching we only found this small bit of green color.  Not much, yet encouraging that our world did not freeze solid destroying all plant life in our yard.  :)

Looking forward to all the bulbs emerging from their winter slumber.


Time to clean up the remaining leaves on the lawn.  With the small break in snow this would be a great time to spread crab grass preventative.

 Adding that to the to do list for tomorrow.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

Hardscapes Galore

The Indiana Flower and Patio Show will begin this next week here in my hometown.  I was allowed entrance today to wander through the construction zone.  Rubbing elbows with the designers, planners and builders of this amazing exhibit of nature brought inside and warmed to life during this brief period of time.

 These amazing hydrangeas are always a show stopping favorite.  Do you have these wonderful plants in your landscape?  Tips and tricks you might use to keep them blooming in color year after year?  My Grandmother's home always had amazing blooming bushes.  She did nothing special to keep the color of the Hydrangeas or to keep her Rhododendron and Azaleas blooming and happy.   Her home was made of limestone with real metal gutters, over the years the combination of the two elements gave her soil the perfect mix for these flowering bushes.  She was lucky many of us need to amend the soil to accommodate these beauties.  If you need help, just give a shout.

I've noticed that many home owners tend, to not over do it when it comes to planting in their yards.  A few trees, a few shrubs and maybe a few perennials to even it all out. Maybe only the allotted 2 trees and 4 shrubs provided by a new home builder is all that ever makes into their "landscaping scheme".  When speaking with many of my friends and neighbors they are fearful of planting the wrong plants or uncertain of maintenance.  Are you one of these types?

The landscapers at these type of garden shows are not over crowding, they are demonstrating what you could have if you did plant heavily in this manner, giving your home landscape instant curb appeal.

 Notice the gorgeous red twigs that would have given great winter interest rising above the small compact evergreens.  With the placement of a few early spring annuals that adore the colder temps you suddenly are welcoming Spring into your yard.  The small green plant to the left is commonly called Pig Squeak (Bergenia cordifolia) and yes it would be green all year long, with very delicate flowers in the summer.

Many of you might be worried that this many plants so close together would become overcrowded very quickly.  If the correct varieties are chosen at the time of planting they may well be slow growers, longer life, with few diseases.  Some plants (perennials) will spread quickly and could over take the garden, I call these my sharing plants.  Most of us have them, and we love to share them with our friends and neighbors.  When planning additions to your landscapes ask your friends, I'm sure most will have a plant start they would lovingly share with you.

I did title this blog "Hardscapes Galore" - moving along to that topic.  When we talk about hardscaping we typically do not go to this extreme.  This is an example of the Urban Homesteaders exhibit at the F&P Show.  This picture does give me great ideas on the moving of earth and use of boulders (or other large rock like materials)  Since this exhibit will be removed they used a plastic to keep the gravel/dirt mix in place.  I'm a huge fan of the use of natural products, and recycled products.  A former residence I used all broken concrete pieces from driveways/sidewalks/patios to form the hardscape walls in my landscape.  Will share that in a future blog.

When starting out your landscape design think about layering, and retaining walls, patios and other features of your yard that can become a focal point or accent.

Some of us start with a huge focal point, be it a patio, pergola or deck.  Then bring in the plants in around it to accent and soften the harsh edges.  This is a picture of one of the exhibits under construction.  Remember to run your electric or water lines before you start planting. Always, always call the utility companies before you dig!



I'm off to check my seedlings (no they have not sprouted yet) and begin my design of my pergola with patio additions.  In the midst of all of this cold weather I feel the most motivated to plan ways to change my hardscapes for this coming year!

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

Ranunculus a flower with many vowels

I fell head over heals for this crazy flower last year when I visited Carlsbad, CA during the flower festival.  If you are ever in the area during the months of March and April you should make the trip to the flower fields. Just south of LA and just north of San Diego, snuggled along the shore line of the ocean. The sight is breathtaking, I would imagine it is much like wandering through Holland during the tulip festival (A trip to Holland is on my bucket list)

Ranunculus - Ra-Nun-culus - the Tecolote strain is pictured here in the Carlsbad flower fields.  Pictures do not do justice to these very delicate whispers of a flower.  The way the sunlight plays off their many colors is an amazing display of the beauty of nature.  Each part of the flower seems to have it's own vibrant color.

Unfortunately for gardeners such as I, we do not live in a climate that this gorgeous flower could survive outdoors.  They are predominately found in Zones 8-11 planted in the Fall and bloom in March.

 Much to my surprise I was wandering through a local shop that contained many indoor decorating items and I stumbled across a few bulbs in a box. I became super excited over the prospect of having a few of these blooming inside during the next few months, maybe, hopefully I could once again see this beautiful flower?

From my research I'm not certain this name is correct to the picture.  I'm very hopeful for what is pictured on the box and not a Persian Buttercup (much smaller not double petals).  None the less, I skipped to the checkout to pay for my new found prize anticipating what might be inside.  Remember the box of Cracker Jack, the lovely caramel popcorn and nut mixture in a box that always contained a prize!  That was one of my childhood favorites.  I'm hopeful that this little beauty will be my adult hood favorite.

As instructed (and per a few websites) I soaked the corms overnight in room temp water.  Within the hour they had begun to grow and plump up.  I was so excited it was hard to leave them soaking for so long.

By morning they were ready to plant.  I chose to use two pots instead of one for these corms.  One went into a pot slightly smaller than what was provided in the box and the other two went in together to a pot slightly larger than the one provided.  I did use the peat medium that was provided.  I take great delight in watching a very hard disc of compressed peat expand to life within minutes of being placed in a tub of warm water.

 It does make me wonder did the person who packaged these put much thought into the size of the pot?  Or was it a gamble, good price on a plastic pot, would fit into the box, and including 3 corms would ensure that one would grow?  Was all of this more of a packaging issue not necessarily a perfect growing condition scenario?

I did come across a great YouTube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDPW8dKKTrU  This gentlemen is very entertaining and it seems my pot choice is "spot on".

Now I wait.  Oh the patience a gardener must endure.  While I'm waiting I will amuse my self watching the peppers and parsley grow.

If you find that you would like assistance in planning out your summer gardens, give me a shout, it's never to late to give your home some color.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

Tomato, Pepper and future Salsa!

Today is my brother's birthday (Happy Birthday Mike) and in honor of him I planted the seeds for the Salsa garden.  Tomato, Peppers, Onion, Parsley and Cilantro.  Ole'

In my wandering yesterday I stumbled across a seed starter kit in a very unlikely place for a really great price!  The bonus part is that this happens to be the type I prefer to use, completely biodegradable and made from organic recycled materials. What more could I have asked for?  The price of the seed packets were already 50% off!  WooHoo, happy dance time.

The bottom tray is also of the same composite.  I've never used a completely fiber container.  Very hopeful that it will hold water/moisture as much as the package is claiming.  If not I can always place a plastic tray under it with a few pebbles to keep the moisture levels appropriate for young plants.

I did purchase their brand of starter mix the ingredient list seemed to fit my needs and the price was good as well.  I sometimes giggle at the thought of buying "dirt" when my entire yard has a wonderful layer of the substance.  Unfortunately right now it is covered by snow, and is also very frozen.  Pre-mixed dirt it is for the time being.  On a bright note I was able to get into the compost bin the other day and add the bucket from the house as well as give it a good stir.

I planted two flats of veggies and herbs.  This one is entirely tomatoes.  I chose San Marzano heirlooms said to be the best for sauce) and Beefsteak because we like a good slicing tomato).  The other flat has Roma tomatoes, Cayenne Peppers Jalapeno Peppers, Cilantro, Curly Parsley and Libson Onions (also known as Scallions).  Let me know if I can start some veggies for your garden.

It's time to get those tomato and pepper seeds in the dirt, started inside our warm comfy homes.  Spring will be here before we know it.  Mother's Day is just around the corner, and I want to be ready to plant my garden outdoors.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

March 3rd.... received more snow

Over the weekend we were scheduled for 6-12" of snow.  Lucky for us the keepers of the snow skipped over us and only delivered a small amount with a little ice and sleet to make our travels more exciting.

Picture of the backyard complete with visitor tracks.  It seems pretty appropriate that "Frozen" won Best Animated Picture during Oscars yesterday evening.  This has certainly been a very frozen year.

Despite Olaf still hanging out in our front lawn.  This week is very exciting!

Time to start the seeds indoors, time to bring some warmth of the earth inside our homes.

Peppers could have been started last month, YET it is Indiana and the weather has been fierce, I think we have time to start them this week and still have a very successful crop.

This week we plant Tomatoes and Peppers.

One Broken Nail Garden and Landscaping is at your service. 

 Accepting clients for the 2014 growing season. 

February 27 2014 still below freezing

Here in the Midwest (specifically Indiana) we are still below freezing.  I was remembering fondly that by this time last year my gorgeous Mexican Heather had begun to bloom.

Picture from our prior front yard, just a few miles away.  It likes to be the first blooms of spring and carries on until the heat of summer hits hard.  Beautiful low compact evergreen plant.  I'm searching for more of these to plant at our new residence.  Or I will be sharing how to propagate this species later this year.  If you know where I can find this plant (I purchased these at Lowes in 2008) I would greatly appreciate the assistance.

You are probably wondering why I titled this blog "One Broken Nail".  I'm very fond of having beautiful fingernails and I've worn acrylic type nails  (keeps me from biting them) for so many years I've forgotten what it is like without them.  With all my gardening, landscape projects and the building of a new home I always seem to have one broken nail.  Thank goodness for having the best most tolerant manicurist who appreciates my garden stories and exploits.

My friends laugh at the way I use these "nails" as extensions to my gardening tools.  It is nothing for me to open a bag of dirt with the edge of a nail, or use it much like a spade into the dirt to plant a small bulb or tender young plant.  I say go ahead, pamper yourself a small bit even when you are an avid gardener. Take care of your skin as well as your nails (toes too) during the busy planting season.  I keep a heavy gardening balm in my "tool kit" so that I can soften my hands throughout the day.  Never hesitate to use natural oils when cleaning, this will also help soften your hands.  Happy Gardening!