January 2012

Winter seems as if it came and went so quicly
that we didn't even know it was here! I'm sure before we know it, we'll have several inches of snow. And the gardener in all of us will be thanking mother nature for the snow cover on our perennials! Without the snow cover on our plants, it could be an interesting spring. The moisture provided by the snow melting is also welcomed in the spring.

Yesterday, I learned from someone that her tulips are out of the ground an inch. Amazing to hear such news! Unfortunately, there isn't much one can do about tulips peeking out with the warm weather. I'm not good at predicting the future, but I am pretty sure that there will be snow in the forecast soon.

I'm enjoying dreaming about my vegetable and herb garden. This spring, I am hopeful I will be able to spend more time than ever in my garden to make it the most beautiful garden ever. And when the last weed is pulled....I'll start on the other side of the garden. Weeds--- a continuous activity. : ) Though, I'll be sure to stock up on Preen when I'm at Sargent's to at least allow me less time in the garden and more time chillin' with my hubby!

Happy Garden Dreaming!
Wendy : )

December 1, 2011

Thanksgiving seems like it came and went. My favorite holiday was filled with joy and great food! Everyday, I give thanks for what I have - a wonderful husband, exceptional family and friends, good co-workers, my health and many other things, including living in a country where I can live and choose to do what I want.

All too often, I look around and see so many things being taken for granted, and I myself probably do the same thing at times. I encourage all of us to count our blessings! And let's look forward to a great winter followed by a welcomed, warm spring filled with flowers and sunshine.

Happy Holidays!
Wendy : )

November 1, 2011

I finally made it into my garden over the weekend to do a few much needed items before winter comes through the door.

The leeks have now been harvested and await the time for me to make a potato leek soup and put any extra leeks into the freezer. Last year, I preserved my leeks by cutting them and putting them into freezer bags. I used them all winter long in soups, casseroles and stir fry. I think leeks are by far the easiest vegetable to grow in the garden. If you haven't tried them, I highly recommend it.

My husband and I put in a lot of time, money and effort to plant many trees and arborvitae this summer. I am now watering them on a weekly basis. The soil is very dry, and the watering will help them overwinter. I am looking forward to the next couple of days of rain, and I hope the expected soaking rains are delivered by the weather man. And I said rain, not snow! I'm not quite ready for that, yet.

Halloween is now over, so it's time to decorate for my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving. A day I believe should be here every day. We should give thanks every day for what we have!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wendy

September 22 , 2011

My garden sure took a toll from the cold weather last week. However, I am not the least bit unhappy about it. For the last two weeks, I've been processing tomatoes and making spaghetti sauce. There's enough in the freezer to last me a good year. The tomatoes were excellent this year. I've talked to many gardeners, and others were not as fortunate with their tomatoes. Every year is different in the garden, that's for sure.

The cooler weather is seducing me into baking lately. I've made several batches of cookies that are en route to friends who are currently deployed to Kuwait. Those chocolate chunk cookies and gingersnaps will make their day - they taste so good! And in the next day or two, I plan to bake up some apple crisp or an apple pie. One of my girlfriends married her sweetie two weeks ago, and I was grateful to be a part of their special day. They also sent me home with many of the apples that were used as decorations. Now that they're home from their honeymoon, I'll have to take them an apple pie.

I'm looking forward to this weekend at Sargent's North, where we are having a Pumpkin Dessert contest. Bring in your favorite homemade dessert made with pumpkin. I hope we'll have many tasty desserts! I've been working out all week, so I can have plenty of dessert.

The cooler temperatures are making it harder to mow my lawn. Yesterday, I mowed with a sweatshirt and jeans on - that's pretty abnormal for me. I'm enjoying the cooler weather though. I hope all the farmer's in the area have a safe and great harvest.

Happy Gardening!
Wendy : )

August 19 , 2011

I'm eating cherry tomatoes like candy this week! A refreshing and delicious treat that will help me get all my daily veggies. The rest of the garden is looking great, though I haven't felt like canning, yet. Lucky for my friends and family, as I've told them to come over and pick what they want. As far as flowers, my mother and I are in love with hydrangeas. I think between the both of us, we've probably planted over 15 of those pretty little plants. And yes, we both live in the country and have plenty of space for those plants we just have to have! They are all blooming and are making great arrangements in the house.

Last time I left you with a "So many things to be thankful for...except wild parsnips." I had a run in with some sort of weed a couple weeks ago that made me break out just like wild parsnips...I was an unhappy camper for a week or so, but I'm thankful it wasn't worse! I appreciate gloves very much, which is why I now have placed 7 pair of gloves throughout all of my garden areas, so I'll always have a pair.
I hope your gardens are doing great, and you are enjoying this beautiful weather.
God and Mother Nature have been treating us good!

Happy Gardening!
Wendy : )


July 18, 2011

Over the weekend, I entered a couple of my containers into the LeRoy Container Gardening Contest. The contest is a great way to share your container gardens and to see what others are doing for their container gardens. Yippee, I was so excited to learn that I won! Now I can buy a few more plants for the garden!

My garden is starting to produce. The cucumbers and zucchini are delicious, and I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of tomatoes. The basil is growing aggressively in this weather, and I'll be filling the freezer with lots of pesto. Amazing how the hotter it gets, the faster the weeds grow. I've now applied oodles of Preen to prevent any more weeds from germinating. I'll have to start working out now because pulling all those weeds was actually a great workout for my arms! : ) Now that the gardens are looking great, I might be able to tackle my front foundation garden. It needs some extra attention that I always give to the veggie and herb garden. Some day, I plan to revamp the whole front yard, but for now, I may decide to read a book, while I listen to the beautiful new Dove Wind chimes I put up.

So many things to be thankful for...except wild parsnips.

Happy Gardening!
Wendy

June 23, 2011

Wow! May and June flew by me when I wasn't looking. Amazing how fast time flies, when we're out in the garden. And I think I've planted a few too many containers this year...well, my husband thinks I did. The patio is filled with over a dozen containers, but I can't help it, there's so many choices! It's a good thing, too, because those flowers sure dress up the patio.
My two 'Endless Summer' Hydrangeas have the most flower buds on it that I have ever seen. They are going to be amazing the whole month of July, so I anticipate having numerous garden parties with my friends to show them off. Everything else is looking great, too. Veggies and herbs are all planted. In fact, the other night, I marinated steaks in thyme, rosemary and basil. What a delicious treat! And boy are my strawberries tasty! I enjoy sharing them with family and friends ...especially when they do the picking. Thanks, Cheryl! : ) The birds have also been impressive in the gardens and at my feeders this year; they are so relaxing to watch. I'm almost at the point in the yard, where I can grab a book and read a couple chapters when I'm not working. If only it would warm up a bit, so I don't have to wear a sweatshirt. I hope your gardens are looking fantastic. Send me some pictures if you'd like, I'm always inspired by other gardens. wathon@sargentsgardens.com

Have a great time in the garden!
Wendy

April 26, 2011

The lettuce and radishes I planted a couple weeks ago are starting to look like they should. It is amazing how those plants are enjoying this cool weather and will soon deliver delicious treats to my husband and I. Over my gardening years, my taste buds are finally developing a taste for radishes. Yeah! There are so many herbs and vegetables that I plant, and some I grow just for fun. I guess that's why gardening is considered one of my passions; I do it for fun! One of the plants I haven't really developed an appetite for is eggplant. Every year I plant it, because it is easy to grow and fun to watch develop. In the beginning, it has large, purple flowers that develop into eggplants. Each plant produces several eggplants for my friends and family to enjoy...because no matter what recipe it is, I still don't like it. My taste buds haven't figured that one out yet. Last season, I played "How Big can It Grow" with my eggplant. Boy, did I have a monster in the garden! One eggplant grew larger than a football! Many gardeners will play this game with zucchini when they run out of things to make with it.

My lawn is greening up with all this rain, and I'll be putting down my Fertilome Crabgrass Preventer plus Lawn Food next week. It is really an important step in my lawn care practice, as I turn a country lawn into a lush, weed-free lawn. Moles have also been hanging out in my lawn, so I'll be adding Mole Max to get them to head back to the hayfield. The Mole Max is 100% castor oil, so it shouldn't do any harm to my cat. He's a great hunter and has even caught a mole, interesting little creatures.

I hope some of this rain and cold weather goes away soon, so we can dig into spring with flowers and fun!

Hope to see you in the garden (center) soon!

Wendy

March 21, 2011
This past Saturday, I sure had a great time with members of the Rochester Flower & Garden Club! They met up with me at 2nd Street, and I talked to them about a lot of the new and exciting plants we'll have available this season. It was also exciting participating in the fairy garden class with Tami and Katie. My fairy herb garden turned out better than I could imagine, and I'm anxious to see if a fairy finds the thyme and basil in it. Stay tuned as I will be sharing more photos of fairy gardens with you. So many fun things you can do for the fairies!

On April 16, I will also be introducing our New and Exciting plants to you. Sign up to come, so I can make sure there's a chair waiting for you. To tempt you a little bit, here is some great info on some of the new perennials we're growing for your gardens this season! I love this time of year, when I get to share with all of you the good things to come...once the snow all melts!
Have a super duper day!
Wendy

March 1, 2011

Yesterday, I finalized the herbs and vegetables we will be carrying at our north store this year. One of my favorite parts of my job is searching out unique and fantastic herbs and vegetables for you to grow in your gardens and on your patios. I'll have several new herbs and vegetables, including some different eggplants, peppers and many heirloom tomatoes. In addition, some really different herbs, such as Papaloquelite. A name like that I just had to have at the north store. The other name for it is summer cilantro, and it has flavors of mint and cilantro. Use it in traditional Aztec dishes and salsas, usually eaten raw. An easy to grow annual.

Check my blog early next week for the list of veggies and herbs, I'll have for you. Until then...stay warm and think yummy goodness in the garden!

February 23, 2011
As much as I didn't want more snow, I am glad that I received at least four inches at my house. The snow melted completely off of one of my gardens, and I was getting a little worried about my new 'Josephine' clematis that I planted last season. It has such gorgeous blossoms, I would hate to lose it!

The last week has been busy as I do research on our new introductions to Sargent's this year. Annuals, perennials, trees and much more! In the spring, I speak in front of several groups talking about What's New in 2011. It's always a fun time preparing for them, because I am looking at flowers and plants all day long. A gardener's dream come true, I would guess.

Our grower Cathy Maxson helps out in introducing plants, too. Due to the big storm, the Zumbro Valley Hort Club meeting was postponed, but she's looking forward to sharing with them at their March meeting. If you are interested in having someone speak to your group, send me an email. We're always enthusiastic in helping spread the gardening word!

It was great to see many of you at the home show in Rochester. The smell of all the flowers really had me longing for spring!
Spring will come, it will just take a bit more time.

Have a great day!
Wendy Thon
Gardener & MNLA Certified Professional
wathon@sargentsgardens.com

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