Mini-birdhouses

My latest project - mini birdhouses to stick into planters.  I think I'm going to give this set to my parents :). 

Edible Flower Harvest

Ok, so I wasn't sure which blog this should fall under - home and garden, or food, because these pics are both!  That's right, EDIBLE FLOWERS!  For the record, I nibbled all of them and they either had no flavor or tasted horrible, so so much for my "flower salad" idea.  But they are pretty AND can be safely used as garnishes to any sweet or savory dish.  Check it out:

Above: Clockwise from top center: Marigold, three nasturtiums, pansies, alyssum and dianthus.  Pretty if not tasty!

 

My latest project - these adorable little birdhouses were only $1.00 (unpainted) from AC Moore in Bowie.  I love them!  Thinking of putting them in my three climatis basins.  Also thinking of painting another trio to donate to the garden club as a door prize..... would have bought more but these were the last of the stock.  Maybe I'll go back next week.  Such a fun (and inexpensive) craft! :)

Most recent crafting project: six dollar purchase from Cottage Chicks: 

BEFORE

 

AFTER:

 

Here's my backyard garden update!  I'm so excited about my new plants.  Take a look!

I can't get enough of the lupines - so pretty!! :D

Back Yard Garden Completed!

Well, my back yard garden is finally done!  I put in the last of the plants and mulched it today.  Have to cover the plants tonight, though, as it's supposed to get down for 40 degrees.  Here are some pics:

In the back row are three lupines (tutti frutti mix), then a row of herbs, then dianthus, and then seedlings and more herbs in the front.  Here are some of the plants I planted:

HERBS:
True Oregano - Origanum vulgare
Pineapple Sage Salvia elegans
Thyme 'Lime Green' - Thymus x citriodorus
French Thyme Thymus vulgaris
Thyme 'Silver Edge Lemon' - Thymus vulgaris 'Argentius citriodorus'
Winter Savory - "Dwarf Winter" - Satureja montana 'Nana' 'Dwarf Winter'
Hardy Sweet Marjoram - Origanum majoricum
Grey Common Garden Sage - Salvia officinalis Gray

I also planted three climatis in pots with trellises:

In my deck garden, in a pot, I planted the following herbs:

Lemon verbena - Aloysia triphylla
French sorrel - Rumex acetosa
Lovage - Levisticum officinale

Also, to my great delight, I found two new scented geraniums (pelargoniums): Apricot and French Vanilla.  I'm hoping to use these in addition to the ones I already have, to make scented sugars for baking.  YAY!

Gardening Update

H'lo, everyone!  Well, I've been busy in my garden, and my garden has been busy growing flowers!  First, an update on the front yard.  Three of the flowers I bought last year @ the Bowie/Crofton Plant sale have come up: two columbines and a bleeding heart.  Here they are:

 Above, the bleeding heart.  Adorable, right?  And I think it cost me all of 50 cents last year, as did the other plants! :D

 Above and below, columbines.  No blooms yet, though.  Maybe next year?

As for the back yard, I am happy to report my trip yesterday to Homestead Gardens was a success!  Have a peek at the gardens on either side of my gate.

 The back row boasts two lupine (mixed colors).  In the middle is a lavender plant, followed by a row of dianthus (Sweet William).  Then, in the very front - you can't really see them in this photo, but they are there, I promise, are seedlings I started from seed.  They include marigold, alyssum and German chamomile. I hope the little fellas survive and thrive!

 I think I'm going to buy one more lupine plant for each side and put it in the middle between the two plants that are already there.  Originally, I was going to put in double hollyhocks, but it is such a small space that I don't want it to look too busy.  Also, I got a flat of the dianthus for $18 (32 plants total) and I have a bunch left over:

I think I'll put these, along with the lily of the valley bulbs I bought, in the front yard (why is it that lily of the valleys are only sold in the spring and not the fall?  Strange).

Then, when May comes I'll buy some more perennial herbs to add to the existing lavender and rosemary, filling out that row.  I have bags of mulch to cover the gardens as well, but didn't want to mulch until I was done planting for the season.

Yesterday when I was planting the gardens, a big fat toad nearly scared me to death, so I moved my toad house to that side of the garden as he seems to prefer it.  I hope he comes back to stay and eats all my garden pests!  YAY! :)

Oh yes, and I bought two cultivars of lavender: English Lavender "Munstead" (Lavandula angustifolia) and Winter Bee Spanish Lavender (Lavandula stoechas, pat. no 20840)

More Birdhouses!

Here are some more birdhouses I painted - probably the last.  Kind of tired of this project now :)

This last one is one I made for my parents... hope they like it!! :)

Faerie Garden Bird Houses

I started a project last week (SPRING BREAK!) of painting bird houses to look like cute little fairy gardens.  The first two that I did are at my dad's house waiting to have their posts installed so that I can stand them up in the garden.  The third one, however, I just finished.  I am going to call it "Watermelon Cottage".  What do you think?

Here are side and back views and a close up of the front.  Note the faux grass/flowers I painted around the base.  They are meant to emulate English Daisies.

Also, I just remembered the last birdhouse of this style I made, I surrounded the bird hole up top with buttons as well.  But now I can't decide which color scheme to use... what do you think?


(A) Not sure about adding yellow :(

 (B) This green looks a little washed out

(C) I like how the dark green buttons are somewhat reminiscent of watermelon seeds, but they seem a bit on the large size..

(D) Pink and green varied buttons.

Vote now, vote often, and help me decide!

Labels For Garden Plants

"Labels" is too pedestrian a term.  The website from which I derived this idea termed this project as "garden jewelry," a term which more adequately describes these pretty (and functional!) garden ornaments.  To get started, you'll need a few supplies:

MATERIALS:

1. Can lids which have been cut so no sharp edges show (I use a Pampered Chef Can Opener which works perfectly for this purpose.
2. Sharpie markers, your choice of color
3. Beads and jewelry loops (optional)
4. Paint (spray paint, or acrylic - I used both at various points in the project)

TOOLS:

1. Needle-nosed pliers (I prefer the kind that have a spring in the middle so that they stay open naturally - it makes this process much easier)
2. Wire cutters (not shown)
3. Drill (not shown)
4. Low-melt glue gun (not shown)

The first thing I did was assemble the "jewels" that I wanted to hang down from the bottom of my lid/label:

 

 

The next step was drilling the holes, followed by spray painting the lids.  Next I (and by "I" I mean my dad - I'm not strong enough) cut the hangers into cute little "hooks" for the lids to hang on.  You can get 2 - 3 hooks from a single coat hanger, depending on how conservatively you make your cuts and how tall you need your hooks to be:

Finally, the fun part: Writing on and decorating the lids and attaching the jewels.  I used a low-melt glue gun to fill the small gaps in the jewelry loops because they didn't always stay closed and would slip off. 

Here are some "glamour" shots. 

 

Toad House Update

So I remembered today that I had read online that if you paint a terra cotta pot, you should paint inside and out, or else water will seep in to the pot and cause the paint to peel.  So, to that end, I had to finish painting my toad house.  I also made a little "Welcome" sign and embellished the windows with some faux window planters and flowers (painted on, of course!).  Here you go:

I can't wait to install this in my garden!  Just waiting to put my plants in, then in it goes!

Above, close up of my window!  So cute! (I painted a window on both "sides" of the house so either way you position the pot you can see a window)

Above, you can see I painted the inside of my pot dark green and the outside of the "lily pond" light green.

It's hard to see but the sign above says, "Frogs and Toads Welcome!"

By the way, I bought "Patio Paint outdoor" from the Michael's in Annapolis. The paint was located on the shelf above the ceramic pot and basin.  The pot was $2 and the basin was $1.  The paints were $1.79 each.  I purchased the following colors:

Apple Green
Mistletoe green
Carnation Pink
Blue Bahama

I accented the water lilies with some dark pink petals (Americana Gloss Enamels Razzle Berry) and yellow centers (Americana Gloss Enamels Bright Yellow) that I already had.  I painted the windows, flowers and lily pads free-hand.  But if you aren't as artistic, you might find some stickers in the scrapbooking section of Michael's that you could use instead.  Also, I used a black sharpie to write on the welcome sign.  Happy Gardening!

Toad House

For all you Mario aficionados out there, this is a different kind of toad house.  This is a real "house" (actually a terra cotta pot turned on its side) for real toads.  It's good to encourage their presence in your garden as they eat insects and other garden pests.  So here's mine!

I painted it by hand.  I bought the pot and basin and some outdoor paints @ Micheals.  The basin will fill with water and then the toads can drink from it or frolic in it or whatever toads do in water. :).  I will nestle the pot into the dirt a bit so it doesn't roll around and put a bit of dirt on the bottom - just a bit - to keep it in place.  It will be a cool resting spot in my garden for my toad and froggie friends!  YAY! :)

ps this link was my inspiration:

http://pinterest.com/pin/381046818442192469/