Garden Expo 2013

Under the cover of being a new homeowner planning garden and landscaping this spring and summer, I attended the garden expo here in Madison. But the true reason I went was to hunt down succulents. Now, before you roll your eyes and call me a crazed obsessive-compulsive, I did learn about leaf mulch compost, garden borders and I bought two really cool art-metal trellises. However, my eye was constantly roving for my true loves and I was not disappointed.

I almost bought one of these purple/black beauties but held off until we had seen everything.

 Firesticks. I can't believe I don't have one of these.

There was a whole bunch of really nice (and expensive) mini succulent gardens. Don't you love the carved stone owls?

While stopped in front of a booth selling siding or windows or driveway pavers, I happened to look down and see a little oasis of slightly sad-looking potted aloes. But I freaked when I noticed the Epiphyllum among them. The $4 price tag made the decision easy.

She needs a little TLC--some pruning, a re-pot and a good watering, but I couldn't be happier.

Check out the cool woody stems. It's probably a cutting off a much larger, old plant.

It's Hot--Like it or Not

It's a scorcher here in Wisconsin! This was the scene before we got the air conditioner fixed late last week. Poor babies! They were so hot, they were both napping laying on their backs! Cute, but sad!

Unlike the cats, however, my plants are LOVING the heat, inside and outside the house. My Euphorbia Quadrangularius that I've had maybe a month and a half has sprouted several branches--one of them almost 7 inches long! I think if I looked hard enough I could see it growing!

I can't believe I haven't posted photos of my garden yet this year! It's really looking nice and everyone seems to be very happy and healthy.

I found this fun hippo planter at an antique store recently. How cute is he?!

One of my favorite plants is this fan aloe. It's been doing very well, despite frequent re-pottings to find a good fit.

A shot of most of the garden. Adler loves to come out and chew on the catnip growing in pots.

I have an absolutely beautiful cactus bloom that just started to open last week.

Amazing--I love cactus flowers!!

In-between taking care of all my plants, I've had a little time for thrift shopping :) These are my finds over the last weekend. My favorite is the pair of vintage owl mugs I got for $.69 each. I found a really great hand-woven wool table runner, a cool book on houseplants from the '70's, an interesting book about the desert (I adore the cover design), a roll of funky paper that I can frame, and a pair of brand-new baskets that can be hung on the wall. What a haul--and it all looks so pretty together!

Garden Tour

The leaves are already starting to fly, so I thought I should share photos of my garden before all the plants come inside. One of my most favorite things about our apartment is the large deck/balcony we have off the living room which allows me to put almost all my plants outside for the warm months of the year. It gets sun a good part of the day, and is just perfect for my cacti and succulents.

Above is a tall Aeonium I bought from a very interesting greenhouse near Milwaukee. Matt and I were visiting his friend for a weekend and while out, we drove by several large greenhouses and stopped at one. As soon as we walked in the door, there were cacti and succulents almost as far as the eye could see (well, maybe not that many). The plants looked a little neglected (some had outgrown their pots--including this Aeonium, and there was lots of dead fallen leaves all over) and none had prices on them. So after awhile of "ooh-ing" and "ahh-ing" at all the interesting and unusual varieties, I selected a few plants and this is one of them. To the right is a sedum "burrow's tail" that is growing like mad.

My cat, Adler (his full name is Adler Lloyd Bernard Frackleton) loves to sit on our Leopold bench Matt's dad built for us. I am growing herbs and tomatoes this year (first time ever) and they are all doing really well.

My two tomato plants--one is an heirloom "purple"-something. The fruit off this plant is incredible. The top half of the ripe tomato is dark green while the bottom half is a burgundy red. Inside the flesh is juicy blood red and has an amazing sweet, earthy taste. The other plant is less impressive--just your run-of-the-mill red tomatoes. I will most definitely be growing the heirlooms again next year.

Towards the left of this photo is my smart idea for fitting lots of cacti and succulents in a small area. I bought an inexpensive metal shelving kit at Home Depot (less than $20). It looks great and can be re-purposed during the winter to hold pots and soil in the garage, or whatever else you might need it for. One caveat is that it can be difficult to reach plants towards the back without moving others out of the way.

Last year I just had two small outdoor side-tables that I used for holding plants which looked ok, but I think now this year our deck really looks great.

Above, at the top of the photo, and below is one of my favorite plants. It is another of the lot I bought in Milwaukee. Crassula Rogersii. It has grown like crazy since I repotted it and put it outside.

I love scouring thrift stores and garage sales for vintage and hand-made pots and other decorative pieces, which you can see throughout my photos.

Wise Old Garden Owl watches over everything and brings Peace and Good Luck :)