Some ideas about using Garden Ornaments, they add that Finishing Touch to a Garden

Posted on June 29, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Show the world your personality with garden ornaments.

Show the world your personality with garden ornaments.

Over the years I’ve learned a lot about gardening by going on garden tours, and analyzing what I was looking at. I figured out mass versus specimen planting, noticed and discovered that plants had different shaped leaves, realized a garden was not just green, but was made up of many different colors of foliage, and staggering plant heights was an important thing to do. I also realized evergreens were the true year round foundation of a zone 5-4 garden like mine in upstate New York.

After discovering all that, I finally opened my eyes to garden ornaments. Garden ornaments are like the accessories; a pair of earrings, bracelet, necklace, purse and shoes that add sparkle to that little black dress for a lady, making it shine, or for a man how that smart tie, pocket square, fun socks, polished shoes and watch set off his suit.

Personal style is really about the accessories that elevate an outfit and give it a certain specialness; the same applies to garden ornaments placed on your property. Continue reading →

Posted in Garden Design Principles, The Autumn(Fall) Garden, The Spring Garden, The Winter Garden | 8 Comments

Start a collection of Flower Arranging FROGS, they make arranging flowers a snap

Posted on May 21, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Some images of different shapes of Flower Arranging FROGS

Some images of different shapes of Flower Arranging FROGS

When most people come across a flower frog they don’t have a clue to what it is, or what you would possibly do with it. Most flower arranging frogs look like some kind of metal pin cushion with perfectly aligned rows of nails sticking straight up out of it (see illustrations 1).

Other frogs that are made of glass, metal or ceramic, might be the size of half an orange or grape fruit with many equal sized holed going straight down into it like illustrations 2.

Still other frogs might resemble the lid of a canning jar with a kind of wide mesh (wire) screen stretched over it (illustrations 3). Continue reading →

Posted in How-to, The Autumn(Fall) Garden, The Spring Garden, The Summer Garden | 2 Comments

Start collecting Small Glass Bottles, they make Great Flower Vases

Posted on May 12, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Display that perfect single flower head, or just a few buds in small clear glass bottles

Display that perfect single flower head, or just a few buds in small clear glass bottles

Along with my collection of ever handy, mostly clear glass vases, that I constantly use from Spring to Fall as receptacles for the ever-changing bouquets of flowers that come into the house, I have a large collection of small clear glass bottles. The clear glass bottles are perfect vessels for making petite arrangements in, or for holding that one perfect flower head. A small grouping of glass bottles, repurposed as vases, can be used throughout the house. These are some of the places I use mine, you might like trying them in your home also. Continue reading →

Posted in Interior Decorating Principles, The Autumn(Fall) Garden, The Spring Garden, The Summer Garden | 4 Comments

Some ideas for Designing / Laying out Flower Beds

Posted on May 4, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Some Easy and Imaginative ways to lay out Garden Beds

Some Easy and Imaginative ways to lay out Garden Beds

When most people thing about making a flower garden on their property, they clear a strip of land that runs along a fence or walkway (creating a border), or if imagination strikes they might try making a kidney bean-shaped bed that floats like an island out on some part of their lawn. Both the flower bed and border are just fine, and I have both of them myself, but after a while you need more planting options to make your garden layout interesting.

Recently, after writing a post about Planting a Garden Room on your Property (click on title to read), I started thinking about reshaping part of my vegetable and raspberry patch, along with my daylily and ornamental grass beds, to create a two-sided long vista walk that runs from my great border out back, back toward the house. I’ve come up with many different patterns for beds that are all interchangeable and any one, or all of them can work on any kind of land, no matter the slope of the property or its shape. Continue reading →

Posted in Garden Design Principles, The Autumn(Fall) Garden, The Spring Garden | Leave a comment

Planting Hellebores (Lenten Roses) to Celebrate Spring

Posted on April 25, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Helleborus, Hellebore, Lenten Rose, Christmas Rose, Helleborus x hybridus, Helleborus orientalis (The many names for Hellebores)

Helleborus, Hellebore, Lenten Rose, Christmas Rose, Helleborus x hybridus, Helleborus orientalis (The many names for Hellebores)

The hellebore is a wonderful plant that heralds Spring in the garden. Hellebores, or Lenten Roses as they are sometimes called, start blooming around the beginning of the Christian religious period called Lent, in some warm locations, but in my upstate New York garden where the soil freezes hard, the Lenten Rose blooms for Easter, no matter if it is an early or late one (end of March to mid April).

Hellebores come in many colors from a creamy white, to yellow, pale pinks, fuchsia pink, red, purplish tones, blue-violet, burgundy, blackish burgundy, and greenish hues. Speckled variations are also seen. Lenten Roses can be single petaled (actually sepals) or doubles (multiple layers of petals) depending on the cultivar. Flower heads, according to the variety can be small or big, hanging, straight forward facing, and some will direct their faces upward. The texture of some hellebore blossoms reminds me of soft leather, whereas others of a silk-cotton blend of fabric, and some even look wax-like. Continue reading →

Posted in The Spring Garden | 2 Comments

Forget the Sterling Silver or Silver-Plate, buy 18/10 Polished Stainless Steel flatware instead

Posted on April 20, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
My William-Sonoma Morgan Pattern 18/10 Polished Stainless Steel Flatware

My William-Sonoma Morgan Pattern 18/10 Polished Stainless Steel Flatware

For years, when it came to setting an elegant dining table, sterling silver or silver-plated flatware was all that was used. Most people get their fine dining utensils at the time of marriage, or through an inheritance from a loved one. All those sterling or silver-plated pieces can be / are quite beautiful, but beside being expensive, you have to periodically clean them, as they have a tendency to tarnish.

When we were kids, my mother used her set of Rogers silver-plate flatware for eight, that was a wedding gift. It came out of its felt lined mahogany box 3 times a year, right before dining. All the knives, forks and spoons had to be polished because while not in use they had all blackened. I remember, after a certain age, taking the silver polish and a cloth and running over it, so the Rogers would be gleaming at dinner time.

Years late, when I had started hosting dinners for family and friends, the idea of getting a proper set of flatware was a must. Being a busy person, and not wanting the maintenance of cleaning flatware to serve 12, instead of looking at silver-plate or sterling silver (and sterling now costs a fortune), I looked into high quality polished stainless steel. Continue reading →

Posted in Interior Decorating Principles | 16 Comments

TWELVE reasons to buy WHITE DISHES

Posted on April 12, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Forget the colored or patterned plates, you will tire of them eventually

Forget the colored or patterned plates, you will tire of them eventually

Buying a set of dishes can be a really easy task, but first you have to get past the large selection of colored and patterned plates, bowls and cups that are seasonally offered. Dishes with roses on them, contemporary or traditional patterns, wild animals, seasonal patterns, etc might all be quite beautiful or fun to look at, buy you are locked into a certain amount of colors you can only use if you purchase them. If you buy dishes that have Thanksgiving or Christmas theme patterns on them, you will only be able to use them for a short window of time, and you then have to also have a place to store them, when not in use. My suggestion to you, if you are buying dishes for your first apartment or house, or are just tired of what you have, is to only buy white ones. I have come up with 12 reasons that might help you to possibly consider them. Continue reading →

Posted in Interior Decorating Principles | 11 Comments

Plant some Gladiolus in your Garden, they make Great Summer Flower Arrangements

Posted on March 26, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome
Gladiolus, planting, fertilizing and Winter storage

Gladiolus, planting, fertilizing and Winter storage

Gladiolus are one of those flowers that have been around for ever years. They are often seen as part of flower arrangements, and make quite glamorous displays by themselves in tall trumpet-shaped vases.

Gladiolus come in just about every color except a true blue or jet black, so there are colors that fit everyone’s taste, or interior decorating scheme.

Gladiolus corms for Spring planting are available at garden centers, big box stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s, discount stores like Wal-Mart and K-Mart, supermarkets and through mail order catalogs. Gladiolus as cut flowers can be found for purchase year-round at florist stores and supermarkets, as well as farm stands seasonally (mid to late summer). They often come in bunches of 12 stems.

Gladiolus are easy to grow in my home garden and don’t take up much planting space. Continue reading →

Posted in Roses, Peonies, Tulips, etc, The Autumn(Fall) Garden, The Spring Garden, The Summer Garden | 2 Comments

Container planted or in the ground, Canna Plants are a Focal Point with a Tropical Vibe

Posted on March 18, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome

Plant some Canna Lily rhizomes, add a Tropical Vibe to your Garden

Plant some Canna Lily rhizomes, add a Tropical Look to your Garden

One of the easiest to grow and definitely a show stopper in the garden is the Canna Plant. The canna is also called the Canna Lily, although it is not a true lily, but is a relative of both the ginger plant and the banana tree.

With its large leaves, and exotic looking flowers it adds a tropical vibe to my upstate New York (USA zone 4-5 garden).

Canna foliage comes in a variety of colors; you will see plants with bright green, gold (chartreuse) and burgundy toned leaves. Bi-colored foliage options are also available, where you will find combinations of green and gold, green, gold and burgundy or burgundy and green. Canna flowers are primarily red, orange or yellow, or any combination of those colors.

Cannas can be purchased at nationally known hardware stores like Home Depot or Lowe’s, discount stores like Wal-Mart or K-mart and supermarkets, as well as at garden centers, Spring plant sales and through mail order catalogs. Mail order will offer more exotic options.

Cannas can add height to a garden; they come in dwarf, medium and tall varieties. Standard varieties grow 4 to 6 feet tall, but big boys like Canna Musifolia aka Canna Grande can reach 8 to 10 feet tall.

Cannas quickly multiple, so when you make your first purchase of the rhizomes, or pre-started plants, don’t go overboard and buy too many of the same variety. Three happy and well sited cannas can produce a large basket of rhizomes to plant the following year. Continue reading →

Posted in The Autumn(Fall) Garden, The Spring Garden, The Summer Garden | 8 Comments

Picking the RIGHT paint colors to go with the wood in your home…Color Theory

Posted on March 9, 2013 by fredgonsowskigardenhome

Picking the Right color paints, fabrics, and carpeting to go with your wood furniture and woodwork

Picking the Right Color paints, fabrics, and carpeting to go with your wood furniture and woodwork

Too often people don’t give a bit of thought about the color of their wood furniture, or woodwork in their home when interior decorating. They pick out paint, fabrics, wallpaper and carpeting, put them in the room they are decorating, and for some reason something is off, but they can’t put their finger on it. The truth is wood is a color too; not the neutral element people think it is.

When picking paint colors, fabrics, carpeting colors, etc, a person has to first figure out if their wood furniture is either yellow based (warm) or blue based (cool), and adjust their color choices from there. Continue reading →

Posted in Interior Decorating Principles | 71 Comments