Update

Here are some pictures of my first roses of the season:

And the lettuce I started in the beginning of February:

And the first broccoli and brussels sprouts seeds I started:

One of the early roma tomato seeds I started:

Some lettuce sprouts:

Collard Greens:

And last but not least, my chamomile has really grown.  I had been frustrated that it hadn’t done so well.  Maybe it just needed a little warmer spot.  Don’t mind the spearmint from a neighboring pot that is trying to take over the chamomile’s space.

Preparing for Spring

Preparing for Spring
By Rebecca Klamert

Dirt catches 
beneath my nails.
The humidity mixes
with the fragrant flowers
of the orange tree.
Leaves emerge from seeds
as they reach for the sun.
My hand brushes
the silky leaves of sage
that claims my fingers
as it lingers.
I sort through seed
packets as I plan
for the snow to melt.

Big Planting Weekend

First, I don’t think I ever blogged about my orchids.  I bought an orchid plant before Christmas from somewhere unexpected like Aldi.  It is displayed in our bathroom and I am constantly amazed with how long it is still looking beautiful.  Besides the couple of buds that hadn’t bloomed yet, it looks just like when we got it in December.  Here is a picture I took when we first got it:

Now, on to today’s plantings.  Here is what I planted today:

• Tomatoes (Oregon Spring, Roma, and Cherry)
• Peppers (Yellow, Jalapeno, and Cayenne)
• Brussels Sprouts (may be too late but my earlier ones are spindly)
• Collard Greens
• Lettuce
• Spinach
• Impatiens
• Lavender
• Convolvulus
• Bunny Tails Grass
• Forest Fire Celosia
• Coreopsis
• Cosmos
• Columbine Peppermint Candy

Here are a couple of pictures of my sunroom in full swing.

Here is the broccoli:

My first orange tree blossoms have bloomed:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And for those of you looking for the first signs of spring, I saw my first robin today.

The Season of Flowers has Begun

I have so many buds getting ready to flower that it is exciting!

First, my mini rose bush (which if you remember I brought in from the sun room a month or so ago) has new buds every day.  Here are two new pictures:

Then there is my orange tree:

And I noticed my lemon tree has started to get buds as well:

To add to all that my sage is forming buds for the first time.:

And my rosemary even has a few purple flowers:

Chicago Flower and Garden Show

Today we took a daytrip to Chicago for the Flower and Garden Show which continues through next weekend.  I was quite excited to see my photos on display.  Here are my two photos and photos I took of the photo competition display.

 

Abstract Category

Best in Show

The Loveliest Smile by Chrapin Pongtornpipat

Some of the Macro Category

Another neat thing about the show are all the gardens to give you ideas.  Here are a few of my favorites.

This was Show Garden #9 designed by Brian Helfrich of Aquascape Designs.

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This was Show Garden #15 designed by Erika Allen and built by Growing Power, Inc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was Show Garden #17 designed by Susan White, Joe Vandervlugt, and Patrick Romijn.  I just love tulips!

Here are a few unique ideas from Show Garden #20 (collaborators Hudson Valley Seed Library, ILASLA, and LiveWell).  I never would have thought of using gutters as a planter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a picture from Show Garden #19 designed by Patrick Ewing and Mark Kanazawa.

And finally, hyacinths from Show Garden #14 designed by Susan White, Joe Vandervlugt, and Patrick Romijn.

I also attended a couple of lectures.  One, titled Easy & Affordable Makeovers, was presented by Melinda Myers.  She used to live in the city of Milwaukee with a small city lot but has recently purchased a home in Waukesha with a lot more yard.  She has published various books and is an editor for Birds & Blooms.  She was a really great presenter and I purchased her book entitled, Small Space Gardening.  She also had a couple of books specific to Wisconsin that looked really interesting.  Some day I want to spend some time re-designing a our backyard….

Update

I took a few pictures today to show the progress of my seeds.
Look closely to see that my basil has finally started sprouting!

My lettuce sprouts keep getting bigger and the lettuce still growing from the fall had a huge growth spurt.


On to some flower seeds.  First my delphiniums and then my daisies.










And to save the best for last, I have two buds on my mini rose bush!