Flower Gardening – The Gardener Wife

Butterfly Pea Flower: Germination Tips and Tricks

Butterfly Pea seeds are rather difficult to start, so I’m going to share what has worked for me.

Making Rose Potpourri

from Garden Flowers and Herbs I may earn commissions for purchases made through any Amazon links in this post. See disclosure here. A Creative Way to Use Fragrant Herbs and Flowers from the Garden! Since Valentine’s Day is almost here, I’ve got roses on my mind—but they’re certainly not blooming in my garden now! ThereContinue reading “Making Rose Potpourri”

Bloom!

Good morning from my kitchen garden! The first sunflower to bloom for me this year is on a pretty sad looking plant. It got knocked over during a heavy rainstorm and then started growing crooked. Ever since I propped it back up (see my Summer Kitchen Garden Tour), its leaves have been wilted. Yet itContinue reading “Bloom!”

Chicago Botanic Garden Memories

One of my favorite places to get inspiration for my garden is the Chicago Botanic Garden. It’s one of the places I mentioned when I was recently asked, “What is Chicago known for?” If you know me, then you know I had to talk about Chicago’s gardens when asked that question. I love the wayContinue reading “Chicago Botanic Garden Memories”

Tour of My Gardens

The best part of the garden walk was seeing and talking to my newsletter readers, social media followers, and garden club friends.

Pruning Lilacs

To get the most blooms on your lilacs, prune them right after blooming each year.

Hardening Off Plants

Spring is an exciting time because I can start planting cool-season crops. It’s also a frustrating time as the weather changes from one extreme to another. Within one week we’ve had lows of 28°F and highs of 81°F. That’s why you need to know the best time for planting different kinds of seeds and transplantsContinue reading “Hardening Off Plants”

Sow What about Seed Swapping

January 30, 2021, was National Seed Swap Day. Don’t worry if you missed it because there are many seed swapping opportunities throughout the year. Gardeners have, of course, been swapping seeds for ages. And we certainly don’t limit this activity to one day a year! I wrote about making your own seed packets in my newsletterContinue reading “Sow What about Seed Swapping”