1. Wash vase with bleach and water, NOT dish soap. Dish soap can leave behind a residue that can shorten the flowers’ life span in your vase. 2. Cut flowers early in the morning or late in the evening, when your flowers are holding the most moisture. 3. Remove all leaves that would be in the water, and give each flower stem a 2nd fresh cut as you place it into your vase.
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Seasonal Splendors has the best customer service. There is always someone with a smile who will help you out. They offer a wide assortment of healthy annuals and perennials. I learned about my favorite elephant ear–King of the Nile, West Indian Kale–there last year and bought fishnet-stocking coleus as well as scarlet runner bean. They also sell fabulous pots and will take the time to find just the right plants for them. Winterland Nursery is right next door and has any kind of shrub or tree you might be looking for. I found nice-sized, healthy Annabelle hydrangeas there last year.
8. Felly’s Flowers, (map)
3 Tips for a Great-looking, Long-lasting Bouquet
23 FebTop 10 Seed and Garden Catalogs
17 Feb
Poring over seed catalogs and gardening books is my favorite winter pastime. A cup of coffee in one hand and my journal for notes in the other, I love planning my next season’s garden. And now I find that as I plan my own garden, creative ideas pop up for my clients’ gardens as well. One example: I created a garden design last year that has a really nice foundation of plantings for each season, and I thought how great to layer herbs in throughout the whole garden. It would be beautiful to weave in rosemary, basil, thyme, parsley and lemon basil, with rosemary spilling over the rock ledge. This particular client loves to cook and has small children, so it would be fun for them to clip and cook. They also live on a busy street, so how fun for the neighbors to get a whiff of rosemary as they walk by.
Here are some of my favorite catalogs and the reasons I love them so:
1. White Flower Farm www.whiteflowerfarm.com White Flower Farm was my first catalog love affair. It is the best catalog in terms of quality of pictures and description of plants. You can learn more from this catalog than many gardening books. This company is OUTSTANDING for customer service. If something dies, they will replace it or give you a store credit, no questions asked. Their plants and bulbs are of superior quality.
2. Jung Seeds & Plants www.jungseed.com ”Respected for Quality, Value and Service, Seeds, Plants, Bulbs, Supplies, Gifts” I have ordered from Jung Catalog. They have the best prices, beyond fair and reasonable, and they always throw in random freebies. Old-fashioned in a way and very charming, they have everything from perennials, shrubs, and edibles to seeds and garden tools. You could easily plan your whole season, place one large order, and have it all delivered to your door. My dad does this. For years, he has ordered almost everything for his Door County garden from Jung Seeds & Plants, and he has the healthiest, most prolific garden and yard.
3. Seed Savers Exchange www.seedsavers.org I first learned about and fell in love with Seed Savers Exchange when they had a cute little store on charming Monroe Street in Madison, Wisconsin. I randomly bought 0ld-fashioned vining petunias, and my gardens have never been the same since. I was so sad to see this store leave Monroe Street. There has never been a garden store on Monroe Street since (hint, hint; Mel’s Green Garden can dream, right?). But they are in Decorah, Iowa, and I long to visit them there. And Seed Savers produces a beautiful catalog. What I love most is, they tell you when something is poisonous, and at what stage the seed or plant is poisonous. I buy seeds from SSE every season.
4. Van Engelen www.vanengelen.com ”The best Dutch flower bulbs at the best prices” I ignored this catalog for a long time. Then a dear friend asked me if I had read Tasha Tudor’s gardening books. I hadn’t, so I checked them out at the library and fell madly in love with Tasha’s gardening style. In her book she listed Van Engelen as a resource for purchasing her bulbs. That was enough motivation for me to step outside my comfort bubble. WOW. I have never seen larger, healthier, cheaper high-quality bulbs. I am a customer for life. I ordered every kind of allium. I didn’t realize at that point of my gardening journey that you can have an allium blooming every day of the spring/summer/fall. Van Engelen has a superior bulb at the fairest price. Thank you, Tasha Tudor.
5. Klehm’s Song Sparrow www.songsparrow.com ”Farm and Nursery, Rare and Specialty Plants” I learned about this amazing catalog from being a member of the Wisconsin Hardy Plant Society. Check this catalog out.
6. Logee’s www.logees.com Logee’s is your place for tropicals. I learned about Logee’s from watching them on a Martha Stewart Show. They have the tropicals , whether you are looking for a banana plant, King Tut grass, elephant ear, jasmine or an orange tree. They will have a healthy plant ready to ship to you at a good price. My sister orders from them more than I do.
7. Ambergate Gardens www.ambergategardens.com ”Distinctive Perennial Flowers, Bare Root, Mail Order Catalog” I heard about this Minnesota-based company when the owner spoke at a Wisconsin Hardy Plant Society. He gave a wonderful talk on shade plants. I had no idea how many varieties of shade plants were out there. So, for example, if you want an ornamental grass, tall or short, they carry a variety that will succeed in the shade.
8. Spring Hill Nurseries springhillnursery.com Everything I have ordered and planted from Spring Hill Nurseries has been successful. They sometimes have great offers in their catalogs; but what I like best is, they have full garden designs in their catalogs with exactly what to buy. Inspirational ideas!
9. Johnny’s Selected Seeds www.johnnyseeds.com I have shopped here indirectly. The grower I buy from purchases his seeds from Seed Savers Exchange and Johnny’s Selected Seeds. Everything I get from this grower ROCKS! My dad also buys his seeds from Johnny’s. Again, success! I have enjoyed the fruits (and vegetables) of my dad’s seedlings in my garden and on my dinner plate.
1o. Flora Grubb Gardens floragrubb.com I love everything about Flora Grubb. She has introduced me to airless plants like tillandsia and vertical gardening with fabulous Woolly Pockets, both still on my wish list. Flora Grubb also has amazing terrariums–so popular right now. She has sass and style and is a very talented garden/floral designer.
Honorable Mention: Klein’s Floral & Greenhouses in Madison, Wisconsin www.kleinsfloral.com While they are not a mail-order-catalog store, they DO DELIVER. So if you know exactly what you want, you can place an order and have them deliver for a small fee. If you are an impulse buyer, have small children or are short on time but love digging in dirt, place an order and have it delivered! Last year, I had King Tut grass, flats of purple petunias, gladiolus bulbs, and black ornamental millet delivered.
Tip of the Day
17 Feb
Daffodils make a great spring bouquet! Just make sure they STAND ALONE, as they will kill any other flowers you add to the bouquet.
Growing flowers. But delivering smiles
4 AugI’ve been having a ton of fun with my weekly flower share this summer. It’s great putting together the bouquets each week, but the best part is seeing the smiles when people come to pick them up. Seeing those smiles is incredibly gratifying.
I want to give others that same gratification. It’s been a bumper crop in the yard this year so I’ve decided to open up the bouquet opportunities a bit more. I want you all to see those smiles when you deliver a bouquet to someone special.
I’m now taking orders for individual bouquets and floral arrangements. I can do any size for birthdays, anniversaries or the little moments where you just want to make someone smile. With enough warning, I’m happy to help you add multiple arrangements for dinner parties or outdoor entertainment.
Shoot me an email at mel@melsgreengarden.com and let me know how I can help you deliver smiles.
Top 10 garden stores in Madison, Wisconsin
8 Apr1. Seasonal Splendors Greenhouse/Winterland Nursery (map)
Scarlett Runner Bean from Seasonal Splendor growing vertically to hide Mel's Green Garden's Rain Barrels
Seasonal Splendors has the best customer service. There is always someone with a smile who will help you out. They offer a wide assortment of healthy annuals and perennials. I learned about my favorite elephant ear–King of the Nile, West Indian Kale–there last year and bought fishnet-stocking coleus as well as scarlet runner bean. They also sell fabulous pots and will take the time to find just the right plants for them. Winterland Nursery is right next door and has any kind of shrub or tree you might be looking for. I found nice-sized, healthy Annabelle hydrangeas there last year.
2. Johannsen’s Greenhouse (map)
Johannsen’s is the best store for both the beginner and advanced gardener. I would highly recommend going there if you are a new gardener, as they do an excellent job keeping perennials separate from annuals and tropicals. In other stores this can be confusing, and when you are first starting out, you might think you are buying a perennial when you are really buying a tropical. For example, last spring I saw tropicals clearly labeled as perennials in a big-box store. I knew those tropicals would not be hardy in our zone, but a novice gardener might buy them and then think they have a brown thumb and give up. Johannsen’s also has very fair prices, and my favorite part is they always help you out to your car. Always! So they are my favorite place to go with kids!
3. Jung Garden Center (map)
In my opinion, Jung’s has the best selection of winter greens. You can get roping of all kinds, wreaths, and every kind of evergreen to stuff planters and window boxes. We always buy our Christmas tree at Jung’s. I also love Jung’s for their grass seed. They sell a high-quality grass seed at a reasonable price, and it is not treated with chemicals. They are a great store if you are looking for annuals, perennials, trees or shrubs.
4. Farmer’s Market, Hilldale Shopping Center
I love going to the Farmers’ Market. My kids love, love, love going to the Farmers’ market too. I found the best celosia last year at the Farmers’ Market and will buy a couple of flats of it this year. I always buy my old-fashioned climbing petunias from Almost There Farm at the Hilldale Farmers’ Market. Almost There Farm has loads of healthy annuals and perennials for sale at the Farmers’ Market. If you haven’t been to the Hilldale Farmers’ Market recently, check it out. It gets Most Improved. Last year they had music and popcorn, and it’s very kid-friendly, especially on a Wednesday morning.
5. The Bruce Company (map)
The Bruce Company is an excellent store. It is so dependable. They always have what I am looking for, even late in the season. So if you happen to see something you simply must have later in the season and you want to try it out, chances are The Bruce Company will still have it. I bought fabulous artichokes there last year. The Bruce Company is also great if you have any tough horticulture questions. They are great even over the phone. They also carry my favorite seeds: Seed Savers. So if you have procrastinated and not ordered your seeds, pop in to The Bruce Company and you can start your seeds today.
6. Klein’s Floral & Greenhouses (map)
I tried Klein’s Floral & Greenhouses for the first time last summer, after hearing their presentation at Garden Expo. I had a hard time the summer before finding King Tut grass, and they promised they would be well-stocked. They were well-stocked not only with King Tut grass, but with everything else I wanted and needed. I bought one of my biggest 2010 garden hits there: ornamental millet. I can’t wait to shop there again in 2011.
King Tut Grass in San Francisco
7. Garden To Be (www.gardentobe.com)
I had the opportunity to purchase plants from Garden To Be last spring. Everything I grew from them was so successful: the best indeterminate tomatoes and 5 different types of basil (the lemon basil was a family favorite). I can’t wait to place my order this year. They have the best edibles. Basil, thyme and tomatoes, oh my! The best way to find them is by email.
8. Felly’s Flowers, (map)
Felly’s has the best dinner-plate dahlias up and growing strong. They, too, have a great assortment of everything: edibles, shrubs, roses, annuals, perennials.
9. Whole Foods (map)
Whole Foods sells very healthy plants, and everything I buy from them does exceptionally well. They have an excellent selection of edibles, both seeds and starter plants. While you might pay a little more here, Whole Foods proves the saying You get what you pay for.
10. Brennan’s Market (map)
Brennan’s is a great place to find healthy edibles and tropicals. I have bought purple heart there as well as cordyline and Persian shield. They always have one of the earliest sales in summer.
Persian Shield from Brennans
Honorable Mention: The Flower Factory (map)
I finally made it to the Flower Factory last summer with one of my favorite gardening pals. What a place! This is a great day-trip to take with a friend. They have an absolutely outstanding inventory. It seems like they have every color and type of every species. For example, if you are looking for a peony, you will find every color in the rainbow there.
Poison….Beware….Caution….
17 FebAnyone who knows me well knows I am “a worrier,” an “over-protective mom” of three, so it was important to me to be educated and keep my kids and dog safe when I garden.
This was my main motivation for creating a green and organic yard and garden, as I learned that most kids absorb those nasty chemicals through their skin rather than ingest them through what they eat or drink. They absorb it from running barefoot in their own backyard so I am careful not to grow anything that could irritate or harm them in any way.
I have read again and again to steer clear of the following poisonous plants:
Monkshood
Foxglove
Caladium
Gibsonii Castor Bean
Angel Trumpet, also know as Datura or Brugmansia
Colchicum
Create a Cutting Garden
25 JanLet’s have a show of hands: When you go to the grocery store, do you grab that beautiful bouquet, or wish you could? Then plant a Cutting Garden.
I love having fresh flowers to bring inside the house and to give to friends and neighbors all summer long. It is simple to grow beautiful flowers to cut. The key is planting the right flower or seed in the right spot. Don’t have the right spot, full sun, or the time? No worries! You can always sign up to get Mel’s Green Garden Flower Share all summer long.
But to try your own Cutting Garden, here is the secret to my success:
1. Plant in the right spot. You must have a lot of sun to get the best bouquets. So sometimes that means planting behind your garage, where you don’t get the benefit of seeing it from your kitchen window. But hey, that makes cutting it that much easier.
2. Plant into good soil. For insurance, whether planting seeds or a flat of flowers, I always add some new, good-quality soil or humus in with the old.
3. Plant the right plant. In more than 12 years of gardening, I’ve bought the wrong plants, the high-maintenance ones, and planted the impossible seeds. But after years of learning from my mistakes, I can offer some great show-stoppers for you to try. If I can do it, you can do it! To make a great bouquet plant the following:
Lilies
Dahlias
Snapdragons
Grasses
Ornamental Millet
Autumn Joy
Hydrangeas (Annabelle and Limelight are my favorites.)
Celosia
Cosmos
Peonies
Zinnias
4. Practice succession planting. A great way to have blooms all summer long is to plant both the plant and the seed. I do this with snapdragons, ornamental millet, cosmos and zinnias. Buy the plant and the seed. Plant the plant in the ground and sprinkle the seed around it. By the time your first plant has matured and been cut into a bouquet, your little seedling will be up and growing, almost ready for your next bouquet.
Never forget: Flowers are most beautiful when they are given away!
Tip of the Day – Use Autumn Joy to fill gaps
12 Dec
Have a spot you need to fill in your perennial bed? Not sure where to start? Autumn Joy looks great everywhere I put it, and after 6 years it is everywhere in my garden.
I have managed to divide this gem of a plant into almost every area of my yard, front and back. It is really easy to divide and move around, which is what makes it such a great problem-solver when you need to fill gaps in your gardening landscape. And it helps that it is hardy in both sun and shade!
I used to exclusively plant it in the back of the border but have recently experimented in the front as well. I like this the best because of its lasting, seasonal flexibility with color. In the summer, it is a beautiful green and then in the fall it transitions to a show-stopper burgundy.
The Autumn Joy’s flexibility extends to floral arrangements as well. I routinely add it to the bouquets in my flower share service – both as a green filler in the summer as well as adding some texture and dark red colors to bouquets in the Fall.
So the next time you have a gap to fill, try the Autumn Joy!
