garden — pleasure in simple things

Tag: garden

dahlias at white flower farm

October

Garden relatives to the sunflower, chrysanthemum and zinnia, dahlias are really gorgeous perennials!

They are native to warmer climates – Mexico and Central America. To keep them blooming here, the tubers need to be dug up in the fall, stored over the winter, and then planted again the following spring. (If they were in their native warm climate, they would re-sprout from their underground tubers to bloom each year.)

The idea of digging up the tubers every year has kept me from planting any in my own garden. There are just so many beautiful flowers to choose from – why choose one that requires so much work! I just don’t want to add another thing to my fall garden ‘to do’ list!

But, seeing the gorgeous dahlia display at White Flower Farm this year, I have to say I thought twice about changing my mind about planting some dahlias!

I visited the flower farm when the blooms were at peak and it was a drizzly day. I always love a garden on a rainy day – the colors are so much more impactful than on a sunny day!

Maybe a visit each fall to see the display at White Flower Farm can be even to satisfy my dahlia craving!

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

1 comment » | garden, inspiration

white anemones at whites

October

Botanical gardens or flower farms are a great resource to help decide on plant or flower choices for your own garden.

Seeing a plant in a pot is so different than seeing how it grows as part of an actual landscape!

A favorite spot for me to view planted gardens is White Flower Farm. You can probably guess why. There are always some great varieties of white flowers to admire! By virtue of the name, I guess it is pretty much a requirement to offer some great white flowers for sale!

On my last visit, I identified a new white flower variety I want for my own space. If I had seen it offered for sale in a pot, I doubt I would have paid much attention to it. But, ‘in the wild’ I fell completely in love!

My new current white favorite is a white anemone!

Pictured here are some photos of my current passion from my last visit to Whites. Aren’t they beautiful! Some great whiteness for the fall!

And now, Honorine Jobert Anemone is on my list of ‘must haves!’ What is on your list?

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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fall chair planting diy

October

Today I am hoping to inspire you to plant a chair. Yes, you read that correctly! An old chair is the perfect vehicle to create a beautiful fall planting.

First, find an old chair. I mean old! The older, the better – more character. It should be a chair that has (or once had) a caned seat or an upholstered seat. The reason for this is because you will remove that part to add plants.

The perfect candidate for a chair planting!

Once the cane or upholstery is removed, screening is stapled in its place using a staple gun. After the screening is in place, planting can happen! Just like any other outdoor container would be used, the screening serves as your container, providing drainage. So easy!

Before planting, decide if the chair you plan to use will be left vintage looking or if you will paint it in advance. A bright color, a color to match the flowers used, or a color to match your house or garden are all great choices.

I was inspired to start this project based on the photos here. I have plenty of colors of Annie Sloan paint and plan use that to paint a chair in advance of planting. I am keeping my fingers crossed I can find an appropriate discarded chair in the next week!

I hope I have inspired you to start a chair planting of your own!

Thanks for stopping by. Have a wonderful weekend!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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fall 2020 at terrain

September

Today I am embracing the season. I am providing a few of my favorite views from a fall visit to Terrain in Westport, Connecticut. These photos are sure to help inspire your fall creations! So, grab yourself a pumpkin latte and enjoy the show!

Happy fall from New England! I hope you are inspired to work on your own projects this weekend! Have a great one!

Thanks for stopping by! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

P.S. If that’s not enough – you can see some more of Terrain on my Instagram feed.

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the garden barn

June

When you have close friends that have fabulous gardens, you have the benefit of finding out about all their fabulous gardening resources!

Today, I am taking a field trip to one of these resources. Two of my friends frequent a place called the Garden Barn and I have never been – until now!

I could plan a whole outdoor constellation themed party with these two topiaries and plenty of little white lights! So fun!

I could never go wrong taking a recommendation from either of the two friends I mentioned with the fab gardens. I knew the Garden Barn would be great, but it was even better than my expectations. (The fact that I have been isolated for so long may have contributed to my excitement!)

From the moment of arrival, the variety and quantity of beautiful, healthy plants is overwhelming. And, the knowledgeable staff at the Garden Barn makes visiting a learning experience.

For today’s post, I decided to pick one unique item to showcase from my visit – topiaries. I haven’t seen these at any other garden store I have visited so I thought they would be fun to share!

Have a wonderful weekend! Thanks for stopping by.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

P.S. If ever in the vicinity of Vernon, Connecticut, make a stop at The Garden Barn.

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easy garden diy

June

Some years back, I blogged about some easy DIY garden stakes based on some I had seen. On a recent visit to my friend Wendy’s garden, I noticed she had added a bird to one of these stakes in an arrangement she created for her side door. It is SO adorable, I need to share!

You can read the original post/tutorial by clicking here if you’d like to create your own. Just add a cute bird like Wendy did!

Thanks for stopping by!

Note: The other photos in this post are also from Wendy’s gardens. (Of course, I had to find a way to add some white flowers to the post!)

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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a purple pop of flowers

May

We just had some snow here in Connecticut – not typical weather for May. The cold snaps have made all the flower gardeners hesitant to get started with putting out annuals this year.

I usually use Mother’s Day as my ‘safe to plant’ indicator, but I know some of the experts say not to plant until after the new moon.

With all the hesitation to get plants in the ground, it was so refreshing to see my friend Phyllis has started working on her garden décor. The plantings she had put around her side entrance really look fabulous. She changes things up each season and for spring she has incorporated a splash of purple into her creations.

I hope seeing these flowers make you smile as much as I did when I saw them!

Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous weekend!

To see Phyllis’s porch in autumn, click here.
For a tutorial on making DIY garden teepees, click here.
For a tour of Phyllis’s garden in summer, click here.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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make the list!

March

I sat down one night last week and began to think of all the little projects that I always have on my mind but never seem to have the time to accomplish. I thought I really didn’t want all this extra time at home to go by and find myself regretting not getting some of these projects accomplished!

So, I made a list of the projects I plan to tackle. I don’t know about you, but the hardest part about spending all this time at home, for me, is to slow down my pace! My normal routine of working 3 jobs doesn’t leave much free time and normally I am constantly on the go! Without going to these 3 jobs, I really have to slow down my pace – otherwise I would have all my projects done in a few days! My biggest challenge has definitely been pacing myself!

You may remember I used evergreens to put together a holiday arrangement in my hanging basket.

In these uncertain times, I can’t make plans to do anything that would have a cost attached to it. Of course, some of the projects I were imagining had to be eliminated from the list right away because they required a big purchase. But the organized person I am, I had already acquired and stored away supplies for some of the projects I had planned for a future time.

Here are the first projects on my list!

Create a spring planting for my hanging basket.
Paint the legs on the Ikea bench by the back door.
Refresh a sign that needs an update for my friend Wendy.
Reorganize my top dresser drawer.

Number 1. on my list – check! An easy spring update for my hanging basket!

I had to spend a little bit to buy a couple weather-resistant plants – I purchased them at a local herb farm. (Good thing they are weather resistant – it is snowing as I write this!) I already have paint for the bench and I had purchased some organizers some time ago from The Container Store to help with my drawer organization when I was ready. I have plenty of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint on hand that I can use for Wendy’s sign. The start of the list – with supplies at the ready!

Thanks for stopping by! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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terrain holiday 2019

November

If you follow this blog, you know one of my favorite places to shop is Terrain. I am super lucky to have a store location so close to me in Westport, CT. Each year, I feel an obligation to share some photos with you because I know many of you are not able to shop at this fabulous store!

Each holiday (actually, each season) Terrain has a really wonderful open house and it is one of the best places to visit for some real holiday inspiration.

This year, I am not able to squeeze in even a short trip to the open house next Saturday.

So I made a quick visit this past weekend to get a glimpse of the beginnings of this year’s preparations!

Today I am sharing a few photos with you and I will share some additional photos on Friday.

I hope you enjoyed this little photo trip to the Westport Terrain. Stop back on Friday when I share my favorite part of this year’s holiday decor at Terrain – the pink accents! Here is a little preview:

Thanks for stopping by! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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autumn in connecticut

October

I know I complain about the end of summer but it is only because I hate to see my favorite season end!

Fall though, certainly has some redeeming qualities…

I was able to appreciate some of them this weekend!

I spent some time with family and when we took the time to slow down a little bit, we were able to reflect and appreciate the outdoor beauty of our state at this time of the year!