Find Ways to Bring the Outside In

I came across this beautiful flower arrangement on a blog called onecharmingparty.com and wanted to share it with you. The flowers are so vivid! You could make this arrangement for your home or for a party. To view this tutorial click here!


If you are like me, I am always trying to find ways to bring the outside elements in. I love to decorate my home with natural organic things (branches, stones, flowers, pine cones, fruit, wood, etc.) I usually like to display fresh fruit in my home. What do you think of my "Limelight" hydrangeas and green apples? I have mostly real plants in my home. I love knowing that I have real, living, breathing plants to enjoy indoors. They certainly require a little more care than fake ones, but I try to choose plants that are low maintenance.

Sunflower and Heuchera (Coral Bells) Centerpiece

Thought you might enjoy creating this beautiful Fall Centerpiece with sunflowers and heuchera. To view click here!

Curing Onions

If you haven't already harvested your onions this year, I want to share with you some information that I found on curing onions properly in a garden magazine called GROW by Fine Gardening. The author of the article, Leslie A. Clapp said that one of the biggest mistakes gardeners make is leaving their onions in the ground too long before harvesting. She said that this invites damage that will result in a shorter shelf life. Harvest the bulbs when they have sized-up and the tops are browning. On a clear, sunny day, pull onions gently from the ground. Do not peel them or rinse them with water because this will also shorten their storage life.

Allow at least a month for post-harvest curing (drying and healing of wounds). She lays her onions out on window screens propped up on sawhorses, out of direct sun, in a well-ventilated spot. The onion bulbs should be spaced fairly wide apart to allow good air circulation; a fan can also be used to help move air around. Turn the onions over periodically, and remove spoiled ones. Once the onion foliage has withered, cut off the tops (leaving an inch of so) and trim the roots. Give the bulbs a gentle brushing and remove some of the outer layers of skin. The onions that look iffy go to the kitchen for immediate use; the others can be hung up in mesh bags for long-term storage.

Hope this information helps. There will be more information about onions in the coming months as you plan next year's vegetable garden. Happy gardening!

Fall in Love with Fabulous Fall Color!

For the record, my faaaavorite season in Utah is Fall! When the nights and mornings have a nip in the air, I know that Fall is right around the corner. 'Mother Nature' has one more time to show her glory in plants. This is why I am sooo passionate about gardening! When I walk outside, I want to absorb all the beauty. It is truly therapy for me. Take time to appreciate God's handiwork all around you this Fall season.

This flower is an Aster. Fortunately it is a fall perennial here so it will return each year.

O.K., you know you are a plant fanatic when you choose to visit a garden nursery for date night! My husband and I visited Engh gardens (in Sandy) one evening and discovered all these beautiful fall containers and fall flowers last year. Maybe they will give you some inspiration to compose a fall container or plant some fall blooming plants this year.

Container Gardening

This is a picture of one of the containers I put together this year. I chose to just use foliage plants instead of flowers for this container because I could not find the right combination I wanted. I was pleased with the outcome and many neighbors have commented on how beautiful and a little unusual it is. I can leave this container as is through the Fall, which is an added bonus!

Can I just say that I "love" the combination of orange and purple! The rust-colored coleus is called Colorblaze 'Sedona' by Proven Winners and the plum-colored plant is called Purple Shamrock 'Oxalis triangularis'. It comes from the clover family.




The green trailing plant is actually grown as an indoor plant and it is called "Creeping Charlie."



The Purple Shamrock grows little lilac flowers that bloom spring to fall.