Happy Holidays!

May your holidays be filled with those

simple joys that mean the most to you!

I am doing a Happy Dance!

Thank you, Jennifer!  Next door we've had a huge old maple tree ever since we moved in here 35 years ago.  You can't believe the amount of maple seeds that buried much of my garden beds every spring!  And also collected on our roof and plugged up our gutters!  To make a long story short, due to portions of the tree coming down during storms, it has become a safety hazard so is on its last step in removal!  It is 18 degrees out there today and those tree guys are working hard to finish taking it down!  Brrrrrr!  But I am so very happy!  The end of 35 years of removing maple tree seeds every spring!

I am  looking forward to my first spring without tons of maple seeds to remove!  And how they loved to bury themselves in the base of my hostas, which required removal by hand to reach each one!  And then later the number of trees that start growing was  also quite the crop and sometimes growing entwined in perennial plants!  That was a real challenge to remove because you don't see them until they are quite big which requires the whole plant to be dug up to get the roots of the tree that have become tangled in the plant roots!

I am sure the cost of the four tree removal events for this monster has been at least $7,000 over the last 10 years.  The yard is totally fenced in so earlier this year required a huge crane to take down and remove major portions of it.

Amarylis time!

Denny enjoys planting amaryllis every year.  We used to keep them over and get them reblooming in the winter.  Once upon a time we had about a dozen to enjoy this way.  They love being packed into a large pot together and are so easy then to deal with outdoors in the summer while they gather energy again for winter joy!  That was before our AZ snowbird lifestyle.  

But this year I think the collection has started again now that we are MN snowbirds again!  He collected four of them this year.  One is a white one, and I don't recall we ever had one of those!  It was only $5 at Walmart and what a bargain.  Two stalks of flowers with a total of 9 blooms!  This year we kept them out of direct sunlight when they were in bloom and are amazed at how long those blooms are lasting!  Some got so tall that Denny went outdoors to borrow a few lily supports to use with them this year!  

Winter Porch Pot lit!

Yep, I lit up my porch pot and hanging basket, thanks to Denny's creative holiday lighting set up outside!

Love the effect in the porch pot!  It was a tip I learned in a class in Nov.!  Instead of sprinkling a string of lights throughout the pot, I took a string of 100 mini lights and gathered up groups of 15 lights in a bunch and used a rubber band to hold them together, then moved on about 6-8 more lights in the string and gathered another bunch of 15, etc.  Then when the pot was arranged, I just dropped those lights down here and there in the pot, which provided a different lighting effect.  I really like it!

The hanging basket I just did the usual, sprinkle the light string all over.  I think next year I'll do the gathering trick in the hanging basket also.   I so enjoy the hanging basket as it is visible through the window in the living room!

December's winter porch pot!

Got it done!  I was looking for a white lantern that could be lit but settled for a big fat red cardinal that leaped into my cart!  And then a smaller one flew into my cart so that became my theme outdoors for this winter!  

I'll get a picture of the big pot with the lights on and share how I did it in a few days!

Gobble, Gobble.....

Wishing each of you and your families a Happy Thanksgiving Season!

May you all be enjoying friends and family during this time of appreciation of all those who have been in your life!  

I am thankful this year to be celebrating three special family members who are with us today to hug!  Tim, my son-in-law who is doing just great following his double lung transplant three years ago, Ted, my grandson, who is just a one year survivor of a heart valve transplant and also a liver transplant!  And Brett, our grand son-in-law who had a sudden stroke late this summer while at work and is on the road to recovery!  What's with these younger men in our lives?  Not sure, but we are all sure appreciating their smiling faces at the dinner table today!

And thankful for those who provided the gift of life so these guys can still enjoy life with us!    I know their families are missing them at their table. Our heartfelt  thanks to them!

Winter Porch Pots!

It seems everyone is thinking Winter and Holiday Porch Pots and outdoor decorating right now!  Or at least the stores and garden centers are stocking and advertising them!

 Are you still thinking or are you  doing some shopping for them?  Or are you one of us who love to create your own design(s) and are collecting the greens and accents for this year?

Here are a few ideas from the recent class I attended at Sargent's on 2nd (with three other gardening friends)!  I am so looking forward to enjoying more décor pieces and enjoy them all winter this year!  Our snowbird winters are at an end!  

I notice these are suitable for all winter.   Or you could add a sparkly touch for December and remove the sparkle after New Year's turning the design into one suitable for all winter!  Lights always are a great touch for evenings!

Holiday decorating!

Last week I attended a seminar at one of our area popular Garden Centers with a Florist Dept. (Sargents on 2nd)!  What fun and what great ideas were shared by their skilled staff!  

The demos ranged from holiday themed floral and indoor décor to stunning outdoor planters that will be suitable to enjoy all winter!

I found this newer Amaryllis pretty exciting in the below arrangement!  The exciting part is that that bulb is fairly well encased in a wax substance that acts as its container of potting soil and source of water to grow!  All it needs is a location with adequate light (not direct sun) and it will grow and bloom!  What a great gift for someone who does not have the location or ability to take on the responsibility of plant care any more!  Not to mention how easy to create a beautiful holiday or seasonal arrangement to enjoy!  (And we have just such a friend who has always enjoyed Amaryllis but no longer can handle the watering,  etc. any more!)

Simple to do, this was just added to an artificial candle ring of greens!

Here is what to look  for at your favorite florist or garden center:

We can hardly wait to deliver this holiday treat to our friends this year, so they can continue to enjoy their favorite holiday flowers!

More Kokadama's!

I now have a trio of them displayed together using succulents!

The plants that were in these balls did not do well, they were pieces of fairy garden plants I had outside. I guess they didn't like the indoor conditions to well!  So, I recalled Ginni told me she had made some Tokadomas with succulents by just poking a hole in the ball!  It worked great!  I just lifted out the not healthy plants and stuck the succulent roots into the hole and pressed the top to close the hole!  And the balls are still in good condition to support other plants!

Mini African Violet

Recently a  visit and lunch with friends ended up at Bachman's in Minneapolis .  Yep, they are gardeners!  I just could not resist this adorable mini African Violet!  The plant is only about 3 inches high from the base of the plant to the tip of the highest flower! I just could not resist adding it to my kitchen table garden bed containing 3 other mini's!  Yes, these mini's keep me checking to see if they need a drink every few days, but they are so adorable! I enjoy the extra attention they need!  They are under a lamp so really are a focus these grayer days of late fall/early winter!  They put smiles on my face often!

My daughter's garden view

My daughter and I do not consider her a gardener...…. not even a plant inside and even an arrangement of fresh flowers does not interest her!

I must admit, this view from her living room looking out is a beautiful view of a landscape design created by mother nature!  Really, with a view like this as you look thru the windows who needs a flower garden out there!

Kari mows the lawn during that season and gazes upon a few shrubs and three Karl Forrester Grasses that comprise her nod to gardening.  I noticed she tends a pot of Basil on her deck in the summer so I arrived with a fresh pot of basil for indoors and she was delighted!  I understand someone brought her an outdoor planter of flowering plants this summer that she even took care of!  Maybe there is a bit of gardener in her afterall!  At least there are signs of a few baby steps with caution but I don't expect it to grow much further. It's the taste of fresh basil with tomatoes that she loves, not growing the plants!

We had a delightful weekend visit with them and as usual, I soaked up the sight from inside her living room enjoying the calm and peaceful picture that is ever changing by season, weather conditions and the time of the day! A bit of wildlife floated by on the lake and in the sky to enhance the scene.   

They live on Rush Lake, just north of the Twin Cities, in Minnesota for the last several years, after growing up and raising their family in Rochester.  The peaceful and quieter lifestyle there is their dream come true and Tim enjoys his fishing hobby in all seasons.  The conversation was centered on Denny's return to winter in MN bringing him back to ice fishing and getting him equipped to do that again.  I think I vetoed a snowmobile to travel on frozen lakes with!  A tour of Tim's new ice shack has become a big attraction for Denny to return there this winter for some ice fishing action.  So long as I can curl up with a book and glass of wine by the warm fireplace, I'm all for it!  I might need to shop for a pair of boots tho!

                  

This morning was an overcast day announcing winter is approaching fast!

  

Fall color

Finally, our Autumn Blaze maple tree turned color!  It is worth waiting for but sure did not last long this year!  It does not change color until almost mid October and quickly within 3 days it is absolutely blazing!  When the leaves started dropping, it was like raining beautiful color for a few days!  

Mums the word!

Fall and mums just go together ……    I always add some to a  planter  by our garage in the fall to replace summer flowers and foliage in a big planter.  Winter gets an appropriate change also!

It has been interesting to see how cities have transitioned into adding plants and tree plantings into the  cities landscapes on streets and bridges and even the state and  county interchanges have become works of art!   As  we've traveled  to other  areas of the country we've become aware of the increase art  and landscapes decorating the highways and cities all over!  Quite a change from 15-20 years ago when money was not spent on such things!

Rochester is not different from other cities of our size even on the Midwest  with our drastic change in our variety of gardening seasons!

With the Mayo Clinic growth and expansion of buildings they have landscapes that change seasonally and we've had the experience at our garden club of having a speakers from that area  tell us how they handle all that!  Jobs provided for sure in the areas of hardscape construction and horticulture areas in our country!

Now I am noticing our city is even into seasonal plantings!  On our way to downtown from where we live I recently noticed this planting on a bridge over a highway has been switched to fall with MUMS!   Not to mention we have a few bridges that even have trees planted on them and decorative lighting added to the landscape designs!  It is delightful to have such beautification.  No  wonder  our taxes keep increasing, what used to be considered a bit of extravagant expense has become necessary.

As a gardener, I often wonder what the cost is to provide all the plants and maintenance on these beds.  I also enjoy them!  The mums in this picture are huge, colorful, beautiful and bring a positive attitude experience to traveling down our streets!

Awards

Surprise Awards recognition at our Rochester Garden & Flower Club Oct. Meeting!

We do have an award program to recognize members for their contributions for "making things happen" in our organization and community!  I have served time on this committee in past years because I felt it important to give recognition to members for their participation in club activities and/or leadership action.  Everyone has something to contribute according to their time, energy level, skills and interests!  Nobody goes too far alone!  Personally the awards are not what motivates me but the recognition is always nice to receive!

But when the awards are given to you, it is always a surprise!  This time I was extremely surprised and also appreciate that it included the two of us who joined this fantastic organization about the same time (2001)!  At that time we began a long and strong friendship with the same passion of gardening, learning and valuing the friendships we have developed along the way!  It has been a fun and rewarding experience for each of us!  A friendship I deeply appreciate and value!

Both of us each received the "Distinguished Service Award" this for 2019! 

Door Prize

I won a door prize at last week's Hosta club meeting!

My name was drawn 2nd and we can choose from the selection so I spotted this adorable pumpkin with the tiny Croten plant in it!  And, needless to say, I grabbed it quickly!

Who doesn't enjoy a new Halloween décor piece!  Just turn it face to the wall and it can stay there as a pumpkin planter until Turkey Day is done!    Not to mention that little colorful plant will find a home in the spring in one of my fairy gardens!  I think its tropical feel will fit in just great in my "beach theme" fairy garden!  

Right now it is sitting on the kitchen table so we can enjoy it up close at least three times a day along with the darling yellow begonia that is residing there also.  Another touch of fall color!  I often  have several of the little pots the begonia is sitting in because I often pick those tiny plants up seasonally to enjoy.  I even find tiny poinsettia plants during the winter holidays!  Trader Joe's has them often at very reasonable prices!  Yep, the begonia will end up in a fairy garden in the spring also!  Unless I get bored and make an indoor one with house plants later in the winter!😉

Oh, in case you are wondering about the brown cup planter, I found that with the Coffee Plant seedlings at Home Depot for $4 and decided there was a spot for it in the kitchen for awhile!  The writing on the cup says " Cappuccino Express Cafe"!  

Getting books autographed by the author was fun!

Last week our Hosta Club had our annual meeting so it was a fun time once again to meet and greet hosta friends!  We took care of the election of new officers that were needed, voted to agree to host the 2022 Midwest Hosta Convention, and enjoyed a fantastic program!  Hosta people are fabulous providers of treats which are enjoyed during a break between the business meeting and program!

Once again we had the pleasure of listening to a delightful English accent!  Michael Schadrack is an author of several books on hostas, a previous resident of England, a hosta grower/collector, and entertainer with wit!   Michael provided us with lots of wisdom and gardening tips using pictures he took while visiting famous English Gardens.  He skillfully provided excellent education on designing garden beds using his pictures as examples!

I have two of the books he was involved in writing and remembered to bring them along to get his autograph on them! 

  Check out this website for more information about this interesting author and hosta gardening:

Click here to learn more about Hosta Gardening

Fall's First Freeze

Yep, woke up this morning to this beautiful sight!

We knew it was coming, it always does!    Time to dig out the bird bath heater for our feathered friends who come to the feeders and greet our "boys" as they perch on their climber by the window!

So glad we finished getting our garden bed perennial plants cut back and annuals pulled out last week.  The local compost site has been busy!  We were realizing how effective my downsizing of garden beds to low maintenance with size and plant varieties has helped reduce the winter prep labor!  Now to wait until the crop of hosta leaves die back and dry out a bit to reduce that labor project!  At that point just 30 minutes to reach down and pick up the leaves of 100 hostas, stuff them in bags and head to the compost site!  

Thrift Store Shopping!

Denny was looking for a TV converter box to convert a old TV to receive digital signals so we managed to visit three different thrift stores in our fair city before he found one!

So, while he was looking for his quest, I was snooping for pots to hold house plants in my indoor garden beds, of course!  I did find a few coasters that work well for some Kokedoma creations and Denny discovered a metal hanging basket for me to check out!  ( Yea, he's a good guy to tag along with!)

Yep, it is larger than the one I purchased earlier this summer with plans to use it for an outdoor winter arrangement.  I have just the spot to hang it!  He agreed to give it a fresh coat of black paint and for $3 it came home with us!  Not impressive as it is, but I see it filled with greens, etc.  

I am looking forward to having outdoor winter décor beyond December this year!  So, I will increase the amount of my artistic expression for sure!  Love working with greens with lights outside!  I've seen some new lanterns with flickering candles that really are becoming very attractive to me!  Thinking I can use one during different seasons, etc.  

Also I am looking forward to using my winter holiday set of dishes in Jan. and Feb. this year.  And also glad I kept my collection of "Winter" (not Christmas) indoor décor touches  (primarily snowmen) tucked away while we were snowbirding the last 13 years!  So I am looking forward to winter...(but not the snow and cold)!  

Here is my new hanging basket I will be filling with greens, etc.

    

A touch of Fall from across the Atlantic!

This week I received this photo and message from a dear gardening friend who shared her wonderful friendship while we were snowbirding in Mesa, AZ. these last 13 years!

She is touring Europe again right now!   

This was her message with the picture:  "I saw this fall flower arrangement at Saint Karl’s Catholic Church in Saint Moritz, Switzerland and I thought of you !"

Thanks for thinking of me and reminding us it is Fall other places besides in Minnesota right now!

Some new homes for Karl!

After arriving home Sat. AM with our trailer full of "Karl" we made quick work of splitting the rescued plants into smaller plants to get them ready for planting in their new homes.  We ended up with 33 plants for our neighbors across the street to enjoy!

Our neighbors back yards, across the street, are fenced in but just beyond the fences is an open field, which belongs to a church on that property!  Two neighbors are going to be lining the outside of their fences with "Karl Foerster", which will be such an attractive backdrop for their garden beds!  I can't wait to see it grow into a spectacular sight in just a few years!

I can't help but wonder if they will be shared on along the other neighboring fences as times passes!  What a spectacular sight that would become!

Rescuing Karl

Sat. AM we were part of the plant rescue crew at the Veterans Memorial Garden Beds thinning out our planting of Karl Foerster Grass to preserve its beautiful display!  Our local Garden Club plants and maintains some garden bed areas that are part of our awesome Veterans Memorial in Rochester! One of our community projects we've been involved with since the memorial was built!

It was time once again to tackle what would be a huge job for one or two people, but many hands, forks and shovels made quick work of this job in only 45 minutes!  We removed about 45 plants that were split into about 100 pieces for new plants to be replanted in new homes!  Some of the plants are being potted up and held in a garden bed until mid May 2020 for inventory for our annual fund raising Plant Sale!  Way more than we need for that, but homes were quickly found for the remaining popular perennial grass so none ended up in the compost site!  

This grass does not have deep roots and is not aggressive so is easily dug up if the ground is at least damp and conditions were right to make quick work of this project!  Great bunch of gardeners to do a project with, led by our Plant Sale Chairs, Barb S. and Deb R.! 

This will allow the remaining 45 plants more space to expand into and we will be back again in several more years to repeat this process!  

Our "Rescue Karl" Team with leaders Deb in purple by the trailer &  Barb is in the gold jacket!

Completed section of the project!

 

Turtles!

Or, rather, Turtlehead a great fall perennial!

At last I am enjoying some Turtlehead blooms!  I've had a problem in the past with this plant not growing for me.  Maybe I found it's happy spot this time!  It is definitely part shade along the fence in back of the house!  It gets a bit of sun maybe early morning from the East and then again in  the afternoon  from the west. It snuggles up near a favorite climetis so maybe it likes its neighbor?  Whatever, I've really enjoyed the gentle pink blooms now for about 4 weeks in Sept. when most of my perennials have made their annual visit and said "goodbye until next year".  This one is just outside the bedroom window so I get to visit it twice a day when I am opening or closing the blinds!

I recall picking this one up at our annual garden club plant sale in the spring and it was only marked "pink turtlehead" so I do not know the variety.  I am hoping the same person donates a few more plants of it this coming spring so I can get a few more to sprinkle in along that fence.

For more information about Turtlehead CLICK HERE!

A Day of Gardening Enrichment!

Yep, one this fall even!  Our garden club arranged one and it was a lovely Saturday spent networking and learning some new gardening tricks and information!  Although I am not "into Herbs" the keynote speaker was inspiring and the most interesting speaker I've experienced on this topic!

Then three breakout sessions followed with lunch tucked in there and time to visit the vendors that were there!  One of the speakers shared some exciting tips on creating outdoor planters for the fall season which can extend to Thanksgiving!  So, that's 2 1/2 months to change up our tired summer displays out there!  I was scheduled to help Ginni do a "make and take" Kokedama breakout session, which we did two sessions of!  That was  fun adventure!  Ginni is such a talented artist so her creative arrangement and planters are so inspiring!  Oh, I also won a nice door prize, a full grown Purple Fountain Grass, perfect to pop into a planter that was holding some tired looking petunias!

Yep, I ended up getting reinspired to do Kokedama gardening so have several gift ones to put together now to share the fun with friends, etc!  I guess the 5 I made ahead to display ideas at the class will find homes in my indoor garden beds, etc. Some I designed to hang so they won't take up much space!   But, I couldn't resist buying myself a lovely new fern to "ball up"!  (more about that one later)

My winter garden bed for the West Window!

WOW!

It sure didn't take long for me to start filling in this garden bed!  The lowest shelf holds two succulent fairy gardens that should enjoy a longer life this year!  Usually I've just had to compost these in the fall, growing them as annuals, due to snowbirding south for three months!  So, they will make the transition to indoors quite well and I did a good job of killing any critters that had been visiting them outdoors.  I noticed last year that even without care while I was gone several cactus plants survived the winter, so... I am looking forward to keeping these growing and saving a bit more $ in the spring!   

I've discovered Home Depot and WalMart have been stocking up their house plant departments with tons of fresh and nicely priced plants!  When I can buy a nice size indoor plant for only $2.93 I just couldn't pass them up!  I only have one African Violet so far, because I had just found a bargain container for only $3 and the perfect color violet for it for only $3.98 at Home Depot!  I still have room to add a variety of African Violets yet!  I found two unusual ferns, variety is the spice of life!  Also I've selected a variety of plant shapes to keep it interesting. 

And I can have the fun of swapping out the different varieties throughout the house all winter!  I already shifted two indoor fairy gardens from the kitchen table into here and some new plants (one coffee plants in an adorable coffee cup) into the kitchen for a change!

Now I need to find some bargain containers also! Maybe I should pick out a variety of violet flowers colors and then look for the containers to compliment the plants?  Need to add some color!    I tried a few mini rose plants but they were not happy right away so ended up in the garbage can within 10 days!  Seems like that is a familiar experience from the past?   

One of my winter indoor garden beds!

This is the garden bed in the south window of "my dressing room"!

Well, it didn't take long to pull out 20 of the annual plants in my Fairy Gardens that I want to winter over indoors this winter!  This rack held some of my fairy gardens on my deck and fit just right by this south window!  I've had plants growing well in this spot in the past, so..... I will  see if I have to add a grow light or two as time goes on.  Meanwhile the indoor temp is about what the outdoor temp is right now and they were growing in a part shade environment so my theory is they would adjust quickly.  Time will tell!  They are all indoor plants normally or lower zone plants that won't survive the MN winter even in the garage.

Most of them are ferns, a few low growing ground cover type plants, a vine I usually use on a miniature garden size trellis, and a lower zone one that I manipulate into a flowering tree.  All of these were split into smaller plants, placed into fresh new potting soil and debugged with insecticide!  

I used some of these plants for the Kokedomas I made also.  This would sure save me some $ in the spring if this works as well and give me a fun project for winter!  Gee, I think I can even hang a few small Kokedamas on this!

Kokedama!

What's a Kokedama?    Fun is what it is!

Several years ago I attended a class on making a Kokedama, with 2 other gardening friends, using a mini orchid plant!  It was fun, mine didn't live long but the others did for quite awhile!   Kokedama is a interesting way to grow and display a plant using a Japanese method.  Kokedama is a method of growing a plant in a moss ball and can be hung or displayed on a platform/container. Very attractive and interesting!

Recently, Ginni, one of our trio, decided to do a "Make and Take Kokedama Event" for a workshop put on by our garden club!  Ginni has continued to make these and even has earned some ribbons at the MN State Fair!  So when Ginni asked me to assist her,  I agreed!  It is getting close to the time to do this so I decided I'd better brush up on how to make one!  While I was potting up some Fairy Garden plants to bring in for my winter garden project, it seemed a good opportunity to experiment and see what I remembered!  I stopped at a florist to get some Sheet Moss and looked up a recipe for the soil to use!  Denny has a handy supply of fishing line to use....and presto!

What fun I had!  In no time at all I had made three of them and became pretty excited about this upcoming workshop!  Here are two of my quick creations:

I decided to just do a display with these!

Now I can't wait to help out at the workshop!  These would make some awesome gifts!  Check this video out and consider having some fun!  It is quick to do and fairly inexpensive!  We figure the cost for this workshop will be less than $10 a Kokedoma!

Video on how to make a Kokedama CLICK HERE

What does a front door plant container tell about the home owner?

Interesting question?   

Well, this planter is at the front door of a very friendly gardener who is always willing to share excitement and information about the fun she has gardening!  She has an awesome fun sense of humor and enthusiasm for exploring and enjoying the wonderful world of growing plants and trees!

Lucky is the person who gets acquainted with her and experiences her gardening world!  I met Mary Ann many years ago while searching for some gardens for our Annual Garden Tour!  We visit frequently on Facebook sharing pictures, humor and friendship! We even visit each others gardens on occasion!

This visit included the gardening friend who introduced us, a truly wonderful visit!

Welcome to "Figgy", "Polly's" new companion!

"Figgy" came home with me today from Home Depot!

The boys gave him a welcome sniff and strolled away calmly accepting him to our family!  Polly actually cuddle up nicely and together they are making a nifty looking team! 

I was shopping for some insecticide when I noticed this huge display of new large plants and just had to stop to explore them!  As I was considering if a Fiddle-leaf Fig would be happy in my living room window next to Polly, a nice younger woman was also giving them some examinations.  So, as usual for me, I asked her if she was familiar with them and she responded she has 5 and is being tempted by these to add another one to her home!  So, as we continued our conversation she agreed to help me pick out a good specimen while she was doing the same thing!  Needless to say, I left with lots of confidence with "Figgy" in my cart!  Nice big plant for only $19!  (Well, I also picked up a beautiful african violet, but more about that in another post!)  And, my new friend left with my personal business card with the garden club website listed on it because our conversation drifted to that subject also!  ahem.....

  CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON FIDDLE-LEAF FIG PLANTS

Fire and Ice!!

Nothing like August and Sept. to bring on the Hydrangea blooms!

So carefree, so beautiful, so reliable for spectacular sights!

We were visiting a gardening friend, Mary Ann, recently, and I fell in love with her "Fire and Ice"!  It is in the turning pink stage in this picture.

'Fire & Ice'

Click here for more information on 'Fire and Ice'

Moving a plant to a better home is a good solution some times!

I was so excited a few years ago when I purchased little "Bobo" hydrangea but disappointed in it's performance.  So, last fall I decided to move it to a spot where it would get more sun and look what happened this summer!  It is soooo happy in its new home!  And, I am sooo happy also!

A visit to K Mart.....

looking for clear saucers for my new garden bed in the guest bedroom....  turned out to be a nice adventure!  A brand new display of orchids was so attractive!  And so healthy looking!  I looked at the prices and they were very attractive also!  So, one miniature (for $6.93) and one full size (for $10.93) just hopped right into my cart because they liked the invitation to a brand new growing location without much competition right now!

I am thinking the miniature looks a bit lonely and might need a companion?  She is sooo adorable!

And then when I got home, I checked the little succulent fairy garden that I had sprayed with "kill any varmints" bug spray to prepare it to come indoors and decided it could move inside and onto the "new garden bed" in the guest room also!

So, the adventure has begun...…       hmmmm I recall seeing mini rose bushes for $5 at HyVee recently!