Planting via planters

I used to have time to have a rather nice sized vegetable garden, but this summer I decided to try planters instead of tilling the ground and dealing with all of the other aspects of an outdoor garden.

Yesterday we were able to harvest our first tomatoes from the one outdoor planter -- they were just as sweet and amazing tasting as the ones grown from the traditional garden. My pepper plants also in outdoor planters are not quite ready yet, but should be in a few days.

I've also planted several herbs in an outside window box. I plan to move them into indoor planters when the weather gets too cold for them to be outside. That way I'll have year round access to fresh basil, dill, oregano and cilantro. The only down side to planting in containers is you do have to be much more diligent about watering, but the ease in being able to protect your plants if a severe storm rolls in and the extremely reduced weeding more than makes up for that.

New Snapdragons!

I've always loved snapdragons, so when just a few minutes ago I got an e-mail from Burpee that they had new flowers, I headed over to their website to see what they had. It was there I saw they had a new type of snapdragon...

We’re pleased to introduce the first dwarf double snapdragons. The upright spikes are brimming with fragrant 11/4" blooms, in a peachy palette of yellow and light orange. Remarkably long-blooming. Perfect for small bouquets.
Height: 12".

I could not resist...I ordered...

For the green thumbs out there...

In part because of the economy, but also because of the attention to organic and home grown produce, more and more people are turning to backyard greenhouses instead of relying on professional greenhouses for the basics such as seedlings.

There is a huge variation in the sizes of greenhouses used as residential greenhouses from the small table top type to the large outdoor units the size of a garage. It's also become more common to shop for greenhouse supplies and even plants online. Not to mention the wealth of information as to growing seasons and a variety of flowers and foods not typically thought of growing in your own backyard...

Visions of plum trees danced in their heads...

You may think that you can't buy trees on the internet, but you can. Not just one type of tree but a huge variety of fruit trees and several types of Plum trees can be ordered right from your home and delivered right to your home.

My daughter's place she lives in California has a few fruit trees in the backyard, it was my first time seeing kumquat trees or picking an orange right from the tree. Though I admit the type of oranges growing there were not exactly eating quality, they were a bit watery. Which is why if you want fruit trees, it's better to buy them from someone who specializes in them. I've often dreamed of having walnut trees when we own our home, my husband is addicted to them, and I can imagine how much fun he'd have in having a plentiful supply of free nuts to enjoy...