Flowers for us all

Chives

2010-07-17T17:11:00.003-06:00

You'll love having chives in your garden they are pretty and tasty too. Chives are cool-season, cold-tolerant perennials that prefer full sun and fertile, well-drained soils. Seeds should be planted 1/4 inch deep and plant spacing should be 4-6 inches apart in all directions. Harvest chives when needed by cutting or breaking with fingers remove the leaves close to the ground. They spread so easily by seed that you could even start one in a pot indoors.
http://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/factsheet/HG_2004-01.pdf is a great resource for any gardener I found a lot of the technical chive details there.

Roses

2010-07-16T10:44:00.005-06:00

One of the staples of any garden should be the Rose. However many gardeners believe that roses are to complicated to grow and make beautiful however it is quite the opposite.

Rose's blooms can look so different from one variety to the next. One determining factor is the petal count some roses have as little as 4 or 5 petals or as many as 80 + petal per flower. This rose is one of the latter with many petals per flower.

Their are so many great choices you can always find the perfect rose for any sunny spot in your garden.

This variety is a climbing rose perfect for arbors or fences.

Roses are a perennial which means they come back every year after they are planted.

Roses do not need to be big or take up a whole lot of space to be beautiful. have you ever given or been given a miniature rose as a mother's day gift. Has it sat on your table until it stopped blooming just to be tossed? Instead plant them in your yard for a beautiful display that will not take over the garden.

It is true that roses need to be pruned, but if it is done right even that can be minimal and "relatively" pain free. Most people incorrectly prune their roses in the fall, but, if you prune in the fall and have bad winter kill you can lose a lot of of the plant. Instead prune in the spring, by cutting off all the winter kill and then if needed cut a little further to keep your rose under your control.

You do not need a lot of rose plants in a row as you commonly see. However you can plant one here and there along your plantings for a great display through-out your garden.

Fertilizer is not a necessity to keep your roses looking good however it is highly recommended to get the best looking foliage and blooms each year. You do not need to go out and buy the most expensive rose fertilizer on the market or even a rose fertilizer at all, you can simply use a general garden fertilizer and it will work just fine.

If you just try your luck with roses I know you will love them. Just try one. Next time you see a miniature rose at your local grocery store try planting it in your garden and you will not be disappointed.

Every rose in this small bed is a miniature they line the front walk. I count 6 can you see them all?
If you just try your luck with roses I know you will love them. Just try one. Next time you see a miniature rose at your local grocery store try planting it in your garden and you will not be disappointed.

Special thanks to my Mom and her garden for letting me feature them. I miss my garden back in American Fork but thank Lloyd and Amy and Javier for taking good care of it, unfortunately I am not able to have a garden at the moment ,but, I will soon!!! :)

Give Away

2010-02-11T11:53:00.000-07:00

My wife is giving away some of her gorgeous earrings and bracelets at My Give Away Today Tomorrow Feb 12th be sure to go enter and check out her gorgeous jewelry.

Check out the jewelry here justenoughstyle.etsy.com

1 Dollar End Of Season Sale

2009-11-15T13:38:00.000-07:00

Come to my shop for our $1.00 season end seeds sale. These are some of the items you'll find here.

Peonies and Iris

2009-09-04T08:40:00.001-06:00

Check out my Iris here

2009-09-01T10:51:00.000-06:00

Shirley Poppies Gorgeous!

Red with a a white cross in the middle what will nature come up with next?

So Beautiful up close!!!

Gorgeous Salmon and White!!!

Gorgeous pinks in different shades

Beautiful pink

White with pink edge

Red With white center close-up so pretty!!! Pure white with a beautiful yellow center pretty!

Check them out here at my etsy shop www.sweetoldstuff.etsy.com

thanks Wes

Orange Beauties

2009-08-31T15:13:00.006-06:00

This is a beautiful perennial poppy that is very drought resistant. It grows wild in the fields of Alpine, Utah planted there by pioneers hundreds of years ago. They do best in full sun but also do well in partial shade (Partial shade is where I grow mine they get about 6 hours of morning sun they do tend to get tall and leggy though). They will Grow in almost any soil (I grow them in clay soil here no matter how hard I try to remedy it). The flowers grow on about 1-2 foot stems (depending on amount of shade) on bush like plants that are about 2 feet in diameter when fully grown takes 1 season to become full grown (blooming size). They grow in zones 3-9. Check it out here Sweetoldstuff.etsy.com

2009-04-05T17:35:00.005-06:00

Springtime in the Rockies

(Whoa those colors hurt my eyes sorry)

2009-03-17T12:58:00.005-06:00

My dream Lawn Mower completely Gas/Emissions free. I like mowing the lawn but hate the smell that sticks with me after I mow. And plus I love the environment and would rather not use gas to mow my lawn or send fumes to who knows where. I got an E-mail advertising the new WORX lawn mower and some of their other electric lawn tools and they sound pretty cool to me.

But, the lawn mower sounds the best for me. So please help me in my dream of owning my own sweet WORX lawn mower and click on the links here and get your own When you click on my links you'll automatically save $70.00 off MSRP making this lawn mower a steal at $429.00. I hope that you will see how cool this lawn mower is as I have.

"No gas... no oil... no smelly exhaust - and now, no cord. The WORX 19-inch Cordless Mower features a powerful 24-volt battery capable of cutting up to 12,000 square feet of lawn on a single charge"

Miss Amaryllis... Although You Photograph Well, a Picture Doesn't Capture Your Charm

2009-03-16T18:06:00.016-06:00

Holiday Amaryllis

Hippeastrum 'Minerva'

This year I did not force my Hippeastrum to bloom during the Christmas season (I had hoped to, but...) but this one was "Just Perfect" for Valentines. (Minerva is a funny name for an amaryllis though.... um no offence to anyone named Minerva)

Hippeastrum 'Minerva'

I like this pot this is a new addition to my pot inventory. I bought it this year at "The D.I." (our local charity store) for under $2.00. Good buy? I love getting all my pots at "The D.I."

Hippeastrum 'Minerva'

Making a gorgeous and very impressive display this is one of the biggest Hippeastrum I have seen. It measured over 2 feet tall not including the bulb, just starting from the stem to the top.

Amaryllis 'Apple Blossom'

AKA

Our Clearance Puppy

This Amaryllis bloomed next, it's an apple blossom hippeastrum that was not nearly as tall but just as beautiful as the other. We bought it on clearance for $2.99 at Home depot about jan. 20th. It bloomed about the 20th of Feb. It was a wonderful buy. We've nick named it "Our Clearance Puppy" Like "Marley" from "Marley and Me". You should check it out at B&N (see side panel)

My B-day Amaryllis

Amaryllis 'Susan'

Grown in a beautiful green and white glass vase with just rocks and water. I was afraid it wouldn't bloom but it put up a very short stock and just a few days later it bloomed on the shortest stem i have seen only about 2 inches from the bulb (but, you can't really tell here). It's leaves also just gave up after it bloomed are just laying limp to the side of the vase very sad really. But, Hopefully It'll get enough sun (and fertilizer if I do not forget) to give me a good showing next year. Have any of you had luck growing amaryllis in water? So I've had the largest and most healthy Amaryllis and the shortest weakest that I've ever seen.

Amaryllis 'Susan'

Perfect Fortune!!!

We had another bloom the last of Feb. early mar. (just in time for my B-day) a beautiful dark pink named Susan. One is in bud right now named Nymph a beautiful double. I love these showy flowers.

2009-02-03T16:24:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving in YUMA

2009-01-26T17:52:00.005-07:00

This year we spent Thanksgiving in Yuma, Arizona leaving the snow for the mid-winter glow of the snowbirds in beautiful Yuma. I don't have any pictures of the Yuma landscape but I have plenty of the snow we left behind if only for a blissful moment.

UTAH

Utah a couple weeks after our return. I must admit it is very beautiful cold yet, beautiful. No mater how much we grumble we wouldn't trade the winter months for anything

2009-01-23T18:44:00.003-07:00

WELL TIME TO UPDATE WHAT DO YA THINK?

Orange Beastlings

So, yeah, Halloween happened, summer is over, and fall began. What is fall with out these orange beasts. This year mine weren't beasts but baby beastlings. We had lots of fun this Halloween, we carved "PUNKINS" with friends. I dressed like a farmer Jess dressed like a flower, and Sophie a lady bug. A gardeners halloween family. Don't cha think ?

2008-08-16T21:49:00.000-06:00

New Shade Garden and Path

2008-08-16T21:38:00.004-06:00

All under the walnut tree.

Welome to The Daylily Days of Summer

2008-07-21T14:09:00.003-06:00

Boy I love daylilles, my Mom and I ordered 50 more to split between our gardens. (There is a real good deal she found on the side of my Blog) --->

I am excited. My Mother's Garden is awesome whereas I am still her padawan learner. Sorry I am bad at names too but, if you have educated guesses on any names or maybe just what you'd name them let me know.

Green Thumb Sunday

2008-07-20T14:47:00.004-06:00

Green Thumb Sunday

Welcome Summer I'm so "Glad" You're here.

Lets Have Some Lettuce!!!

2008-07-18T18:32:00.010-06:00

We have had great success with our lettuce this year. We do not use any pesticides so there are one or two small holes here and there, but that is so much better than any pesticide if you ask me. We grew it and that's the best part about it. It is Romain "Parris Island" it's delicious (I would know I just had it in a salad for dinner). It has a great flavor. Last year our lettuce was bitter and tough even early in the season. However, this variety is the best ever. But that is my opinion biased due to the fact that we grew it ourselves, the satisfaction alone is enough to make my heart swell with pride but, topped with a good dressing it's even better.

Green Thumb Sunday

2008-07-13T15:37:00.005-06:00

Gaillardia ("Burgundy" I Believe). With an Heirloom roadside daylily (Hemerocallis fulva) I found and moved from under my apricot tree last year. Two garden "Easies" very drought resistant and mess up resistant. I love the height of these very easy day lilies I can plant them hidden behind things, until tada here they are!!! I love the new flowers on this even more than the mature flowers they are so cute like the one up in the right corner very pretty yellow center with a little red border.I hope you enjoy them on this beautiful Sunday in Utah.

Happy Independance Day

2008-07-04T17:06:00.004-06:00

New Coneflower

See next post for more independance day thoughts.

In the Beauty of the Lilies

2008-07-04T16:37:00.003-06:00

In the beauty of the lilies, this independance day, I would like to say thank you to all the men and women who are serving, were once serving, or will in the future be serving. Without those to protect freedom there would be no freedom.

Yellow !!!

2008-07-03T16:47:00.006-06:00

Green Thumb Sunday Can you find the bee in this Peace Rose

2008-06-15T21:01:00.006-06:00

Happy Green Thumb sunday and father's day to all of you I hope you've had a great day. Our roses started Blooming abiout a week ago. are all of you in warmer climates are just ending your rose season? We are so excited! My wife took this picture of one of our peace roses and found this bee enjoying the scent. good thing she didn't "stop to smell the roses.

The Beautiful Iris

2008-05-30T19:05:00.004-06:00

This one is one of our favorite of all the different iris we own. We bought it two years ago from Highland Nursery. I am so bad at names so I can't tell you the names of any Iris shown here.

This was a big shrub last year and this year it is a beautiful Gaggle of Iris yet still not as great as we would like it to be but probably will not ever get that way either we kinda let things grow how and where they want to an extent.

We transplanted these Iris last year from shady locations. they are beautiful so close together but, i think I must divide them already so if any one needs Iris please let me know I have plenty and many still unblooming in the shade.

This one was given to us by my Mother who divided her Iris 2 or 3 years ago.It is a gorgeous peach color.

Blue and Purple on Red

2008-05-23T10:25:00.006-06:00

Blue Flax Against our Red brick wall.

Purple Iris Against our Red shed

Walls can make such a good backdrop I never realized how much red wall space we have. I enjoy our Iris very much they are so beautiful more pics coming soon.

And I thought my Soil was Hard

2008-05-23T09:49:00.008-06:00

A tree growing out of a granite boulder in the Dry Creek Canyon of Alpine. I took this picture on a hike last summer but, have been thinking a lot about hard soil lately. I planted my veggie garden last sat. and my "dirt" felt about as hard as this boulder if not harder but,this little tree (I think it's a cedar) encourages me to say the least. So plant away even if you feel like you're in "between a rock and a hard place."

Double or Nothing?!?!?!

2008-05-21T20:41:00.009-06:00

Double Icelandic Poppy up from seed last year.Very pretty I didn't know they came in doubles. but, it just bloomed again and it is no longer double confusing? Yes very mabe 2 different seeds came up next to each other one a double and one single or mabe just a fluke of nature whatever it was I don't know. If anyone knows how this happened please enlighten me.

DAFFODILS

2008-04-25T10:34:00.004-06:00

We bought these Replete Daffodils along with Flower Drift Daffodils from Brecks bulbs last year

Tulips

2008-04-21T10:32:00.003-06:00

COSMOS

2008-04-09T19:01:00.008-06:00

Cosmos are beautiful tall full sun bush-like annuals. They grow to be between 2-3 feet tall. They do come in a miniture variety about 8 inches tall. They come in: white, pink, purple, orange, and even choclate. Plant the seeds in the fall or early spring. They'll start coming up in about April here in Utah. They will bloom from early summer to late fall esspesially if you continue to dead head the whole season long. Try these out I promise that you'll like them. They tend to be bigger than life if you let them take over. So they are perfect for a field in the full sun. Or here and there in a wild garden.

Have you planted your Gladioli?

2008-04-06T16:32:00.013-06:00

Ya, neither have I. Here in Utah we are zone 6. It is still getting quite cold at nights and may even snow next week but we are getting excited to plant them. Here Gladioli must be dug up and stored somewhere dry and dark for the winter. But, now it is about time to plant. They range in color from white to pink, orange or a combonation of colors.

POPPIES!!!

2008-04-06T14:54:00.012-06:00

Do you have poppies in you landscape? Which poppy is your favorite?

California Poppy

The California Poppy (annual/ tender perennial) comes in yellows, oranges, white, and even pink. It grows to about 12 inches tall on a small bushy plant with beautiful, dusty gray, feathery foliage. It is very drought tolerant but also will grow well with normal watering. it is propagated very easily from seed.

Oriental Poppy

The Oriental Poppy is a very beautiful perennial growing to about 15-24 inches tall with big blooms of reds, pinks, or purples. In this picture it is growing wild in front of a wild yellow rose in the "Poppy Fields"found in the mountains of Utah. Therefore you can tell it is also drought tolerant.

Shirley Poppy

Shirley poppy, mid summer blooming, between 24-36 inches tall, easily comes up from seed each spring. What do you think about the Shirley poppy?