Sprouts Friday Featured Favorites: Bealtaine Cottage

Several years ago, Sprouts posted our 20 Favorite YouTube Gardeners. It's consistently our most popular post. Since then, more gardeners have shared their wisdom and gardens on YouTube. Each Friday, we will feature one garden channel we find inspiring.

This week's featured YouTube Gardener is one we've been watching for years now and have recommended before, but if you haven't been introduced to Bealtaine Cottage, you must take a look. Colette has renewed her three acres in Ireland with permaculture for the past 13 years. You will love this channel!

Summer Update-Portland, OR





Cucumbers grown in the GreenStalk system

Below is a bed of Cosmos ready to flower. Cosmos is one of the annuals that I direct sowed this year that is doing well. Zinnia is the other one. Both should put on a fabulous show into late fall if I continue to keep cutting them for bouquets. This year I grew florist quality seeds which means these varieties are for cutting and have longer stalks than seed varieties grown in your garden.

The Cosmos are nearly my height

More mini beds of flowers in salvaged drawers. I love mini beds because they can act sort of like a new plant nursery. This year I used them to grow new varieties of annuals. 

 



Mini beds of annuals

 

I have two kinds of strawberries, the ones that fruit once and the ones that fruit several times. This year I am in a losing battle with birds. Just when a strawberry is ready to harvest, I notice the next day that a bird has consumed it. It is most frustrating. I wonder if it is the family of Bluebirds that make their home in my garden.

Strawberries in the "Greenstalk" container

 This was my first salad of 100% harvested vegetables. The tomatoes have just started to fruit. This is the SunGold variety. They are always sweet.

Salad from the garden

 Here is a photo of my mother with a fresh cut bouquet from the garden.

Flowers included snapdragons, roses and herbs for greenery.

 

Mum gets a bouquet of garden flowers

 

Sprouts Friday Featured Favorite: What Vivi Did Next

Several years ago, Sprouts posted our 20 Favorite YouTube Gardeners. It's consistently our most popular post. Since then, more gardeners have shared their wisdom and gardens on YouTube. Each Friday, we will feature one garden channel we find inspiring.

This week's featured YouTube Gardener is somewhat new to YouTube, but you've seen Vivi on Sean's Allotment Garden. Now she's started her own channel "What Vivi Did Next."

Caroline's July Flower Garden 2017

My flowers are blooming mid-summer, so here is a quick July tour of my perennials.

Daylily

Yellow Roses

Foxglove



Dianthus

Poppy

Foxglove and Mock Orange

Mock Orange

Sprouts Friday Featured Favorites: Desert Plants of Avalon

Several years ago, Sprouts posted our 20 Favorite YouTube Gardeners. It's consistently our most popular post. Since then, more gardeners have shared their wisdom and gardens on YouTube. Each Friday, we will feature one garden channel we find inspiring.

This week's featured YouTube Gardener is "Desert Plants of Avalon." If you like cacti and succulents, you will enjoy this fun channel.

Hiking Mt. Tom in Woodstock Vermont

Some scenes from our hike up Mt. Tom in Woodstock Vermont. It's a lovely hike, much of it on carriage roads with a beautiful view at the top of Woodstock village.

This weeks bouquets from the garden-Portland, OR

This week the summer annuals have begun to put on a spectacular show. This year I have been experimenting with growing a cutting garden. Among the flowers blooming are some old fashion favorites; cosmos, lavender, snapdragons, cleome and cosmos. I have been learning how to do simple hand tied bouquets by viewing videos like the one linked to this post.

More roses, lavender and snapdragons

I call this my country bouquet

This is my first cosmos bloom

Summer Flowers in Salem, Massachusetts 2017

It's been some time since I've posted pictures of flowers from Salem Massachusetts. It's been some time since I last visited, but when I do, I'm always impressed with the container plantings around Salem, Massachusetts. I took some snaps of some of my favorites to show our readers. I hope you get some inspiration for your own containers. I particularly love the many varieties of purple petunias. What's your favorite?

 

Sprouts Friday Featured Favorites: Garden Answer

Several years ago, Sprouts posted our 20 Favorite YouTube Gardeners. It's consistently our most popular post. Since then, more gardeners have shared their wisdom and gardens on YouTube. Each Friday, we will feature one garden channel we find inspiring.

This week's featured YouTube Gardener is "Garden Answer" with videos about a variety of garden projects and products. We love the Do It Yourself Tips and creative how-to videos.

New summer flowers-Portland, OR

This is a lime green Zinnia. I love lime green flowers

Pretty Pink Zinnia

Tropical looking Calla Lilli is easy to grow

I made a mini hand tied bouquet with a Rose, Zinnia and red Snapdragons