Spring is on the Way!
Signs of Spring and a seed starting guide
Friends,
I hope you are well! We are buttoning up here for a big snowstorm, and I must remind myself that March and April are our snowiest months, but those storms bring great moisture. So all is well!
I have been busy in the greenhouse getting all kinds of seeds started. It's such fun to see those little baby plants emerge, and every day I check to see who is the newest arrival!
And even outside there are distinct signs of spring including my first blooms! Iris reticulata wins the race — and look at that gorgeous purple!
Iris reticulata in early March
If you are looking to start some seeds, I have a new seed starting video to give you my favorite mix recipe as well as some tips, too. So I hope you’ll check that out!
And don’t forget the March Checklist, too:
If you are gardening, don’t forget: peat-free is best! Here’s my guide to Peat-free gardening — and a reminder of why destroying peat bogs isn’t a necessary part of gardening.
Wishing you all the best as spring arrives! Be sure to let me know if you are doing the Spring Grow Along — and it’s not too late to join, too!
Cheers!
Angela
OMG! Big News!
More content in new places!
So I wrote that I had some big news coming in the last update. Here it is: I’m partnering with Botanical Interests and Epic Gardening — creating new content together! I’ll be teaching gardening basics from starting seeds to planning whole gardens. I’m so excited about this new venture, and I hope you’ll stop by to check it out.
Be sure to like and subscribe, so you will never miss an update.
Speaking of updates, the One Room Challenge begins next week, too, so it is busy around here. More to come!
Happy Gardening!
Angela
Hello, September!
Finally harvesting veggies!
Happy September! I was taking a dip in our stock tank pool today over lunch and marveling at how quickly the summer passed. We were so busy, and time simply flew by! I hope you are well and are enjoying some beautiful days. I am already starting to see signs of the changing seasons — migrating birds, browning grass heads — even as we are finally reaching a harvest in the vegetable garden.
Our unseasonably mild and wet summer, while absolutely delightful for gardening, has meant a later harvest of tomatoes and cucumbers and nearly NO dahlias so far. It has been a strange summer here to be sure.
But I am so thankful for all of the moisture, and the new Wildlife Garden is THRIVING because of the rain. Planning a big project like this feels a bit like playing the lottery. We could have had a dry, ghastly summer like Texas has had which would have made keeping these little plants alive and thriving much more labor intensive: more watering, providing artificial shade, and worrying. Instead, the rain has allowed all of those little plants from High Country Gardens to reach into the soil, put down their roots, and even BLOOM!
Echinacea Cheyenne Spirit, Salvia sylvestris Caradonna, and Rudbeckia fulgida Goldsturm blooming in the Wildlife Garden.
Scrophularia macrantha and Coreopsis verticillata Moonbeam are blooming together, too.
To learn more about this exciting new project, check out the new Wildlife Garden section of the website!
There is also still room in my new class: The Art of the Word! Sign up before it is filled up, though! I’m so excited to be teaching this again, and I hope you’ll join us for this live Zoom class in October. More info here:
Did you see the Blue Moon the other night? Here it is shining over the Shade House — magnificent!
Blue moon over the Shade House
The Shade House is one of our favorite places to be these days — cool and shady and so comfortable all day long.
I will have some BIG news to share with you next week, so stay tuned for that. I’m really, really excited about this! I mean: really excited! That’s why this is in BOLD! OMG! You’ll see it first on Instagram, so be sure you are following me there.
Until then, I have some other exciting news to share! HoseLink, one of my partners, is having a month-long sale: 10% off all watering and gardening 😊 Retractable Hose Reels, Weed Puller, Secateurs, Sprinklers, you get the idea – all 10% off! I genuinely LOVE my HoseLink hose reels, and I highly recommend them. And their sprinklers are fab, too!
Here’s my affiliate link in case you are going to do some shopping:
Go get those discounts!
OK. Stay tuned for the BIG news next week — it’s exciting! And until then, happy gardening and happy September!
Cheers!
Angela
New Gardening Project: The Wildlife Garden
Not only is the first of August gone, but I’ve missed the 15th, too! It’s been a busy month — and a good one, though.
It’s my birthday month, and I started off with some celebrating and travel to Las Vegas. A highlight? The Neon Museum after dark with sooo many great examples of signage from Vegas history on display. I highly recommend it! Vegas isn’t really my scene, but I went with a dear friend to see Adele in concert — which is very much my thing!
But it hasn’t all been fun and games around here! While I was playing, the garden was doing it’s thing, and I came home to weeds and overgrown beds and all the rest. So, I’ve been working feverishly to get things back into shape. That’s the problem with vacation: the gardening fairies never show up to take care of things while I’m gone!
But the Amaranth and sunflowers that I planted this year are stealing my heart! Both are native North American plants. Amaranth is actually a grain, but the flowers and seedheads are so sculptural and glorious, that they make huge, beautiful bouquets. Add some sunflowers — well, it is spectactular!
My new favorite combination: sunflowers and amaranth!
The Wildlife Garden is coming along beautifully! While I am doing a LOT of weeding, the plants are absolutely thriving. I have started a whole section about the Wildlife Garden here on MidModernMama. Not only will there be information here, but also on HighCountryGardens.com. And, of course, I’ll be doing updates on Instagram as well.
I am so proud of this particular project. I hope you will hop over and read all about it. I often feel pretty gloomy about the state of the world and the enviromental damage we continue to do. But wildlife gardening is so empowering! I am actually doing something that will have a profound impact on the flora and fauna in my neighborhood. And while my one yard isn’t going to change the world, imagine the impact of a hundred yards — or a thousand — or a million… That’s the thing about gardening. It is a tangible, real way to advocate for change without waiting around for other people to take action.
Anyway, I hope you’ll follow along!
Stay cool, everybody! And happy gardening!
Cheers!
Angela
Summer's Sizzle
I hope you are doing well and are keeping cool. So many of you are already suffering in lingering heat. I am so sorry! Here’s hoping for a respite soon!
I can FINALLY tell you about our huge gardening project — if you don’t already know. Last winter I took a garden-planning class with garden designer Kelly D. Norris. It was a wonderful experience, and I am now putting all of his ideas — and a lot of my own — to work in our front yard. This huge transformation which we are calling the Wildlife Garden will ultimately involve more than 1000 plants, nearly 50 species, trees, borders, and more.
My goal: creating a wildlife-friendly habitat for birds, bees, bugs, microbes, fungi, and more. I’ve been gardening for wildlife for years now, but this is the biggest, most ambitious project I have ever taken on.
Those before photos are pretty bleak. Our yard has been a blank slate — just weeds and more weeds and barren soil — for the last six years (and probably a lot longer). But with the help of my sponsor, High Country Gardens, this yard will, over the next three years, be transformed. This isn’t a quick fix. I’m focused on planting native North American plants, and they will take some time to grow in and mature. But I’ll be sharing the whole journey with you both here and on Instagram. So I hope you will follow along!
Ok. I’ve got some weeding to do! Happy July! Stay cool out there!
Cheers!
Angela
Happy June!
Happy Pride Month! All are welcome in this garden!
June is busting out all over! We have had such a rainy, pleasant spring so far. It’s been perfect for planting, and I haven’t even filled the Stock Tank pool yet — it has been too cool!
I have been soooo busy! First of all: if you missed it, the One Room Challenge is over, and our Guest Bathroom is done — flamingos and all! Be sure to check out the final reveal here:
In addition, we have had some HUGE gardening projects underway. I mean HUGE. I will be revealing all soon, so stay tuned.
In the meantime, thinking about your own Stock Tank Pool this year? DO IT! We love ours, and I have a how-to guide to get you started.
And be sure to check out my guide to peat-free gardening. Keeping peat out of our gardens is a small but important step toward being more eco-friendly gardeners. Questions? Be sure to let me know!
As always, daily updates on my projects can be found on Instagram and in my Instagram stories. I would love to see you there, too!
Happy June!
Cheers!
Angela
The One Room Challenge
If you have been following along, the One Room Challenge is occupying a LOT of our time these days as we scurry to finish one bathroom — possibly two.
If you aren’t already signed up for my weekly updates, be sure to do that!
Not only do we have this bathroom renovation happening, but I’ve also planted a brand new orchard! And we are working on finishing the Shade House, and there’s a HUGE new project coming soon that I can’t wait to share.
If you want all of the day-to-day news and updates, follow along on Instagram where I post more current updates — particularly in my stories.
Ok. Back to it! But Happy May Day!
Cheers!
Angela
Peat-Free Gardening Guide
The April newsletter — all about gardening without peat!
Hello, friends! I hope you are enjoying these first few days and weeks of spring. While we have snow on the ground, I am also seeing the first blooms with daffodils and Chionodoxa forbesii both poking up through the snow. I work really hard not to wish time away, but this year I am ready for spring’s arrival in a way I haven’t been before.
Chionodoxa forbesii
And as our thoughts turn to gardening and plants and the warm sun, I have a passionate plea for you: make this the year to start gardening WITHOUT peat.
You may not even realize that you are using peat in your gardening. It is ubiquitous in soil mixes and gardening supplies here in the US. But harvesting peat does irreparable damage to some of our rarest and most productive ecosystems. Peat is a resource which we can not readily replace — it takes thousands of years. And harvesting peat releases carbon into the atmosphere as well.
I have been gardening peat-free for several years now, and I have found that with a little effort, it’s actually not that hard to do. I have put together a guide for peat-free gardening including some of my favorite peat-free resources as well as some soil recipes and a how-to guide for making leaf mould — a free garden resource that many in the US don’t know about!
I encourage you in this month of Earth Day to check it out! And, as always, if you have questions: just ask!
I have some incredible projects lined up for this spring with a focus on planting native species and supporting biodiversity. I can’t wait to share it all with you!
If you aren’t following me on Instagram, check it out! I will be posting regular updates on all of our projects there including my new orchard which we have been working on for the last few weeks. So exciting!
I’m following the pruning methods put forth in the book Grow a Little Fruit Tree by Ann Ralph. Reaching back more than a thousand years, these methods keep fruit trees small and managable and allow higher-density planting, too. So what you see here are 11 apples, pears, and plums planted in our side yard — less than 30 feet long. And it’s all peat-free! I’ll be pruning some of these trees to be cordons, two will be espalier, and a few others will just be very, very small. It’s a giant science experiment, and our whole family is thrilled to be back in the laboratory.
My next step is the scariest: I have to prune each tree! So that will be coming.
If you are interested in adding some fruit trees to your yard, join my fruit tree group on Retrieve! It’s a fun community of gardeners, and we are working to share our plans and resources with each other. Super cool!
Happy April to you all! Questions about peat-free gardening? Please ask!
Cheers!
Angela
Join our Group!
Thinking about growing fruit trees? Or want to learn more about caring for trees you have? Join our gardening group devoted to fruit trees and their care!
