Browse Tag: gardening inspiration

Inspiration from 7 Glorious Gardens on the 2018 JoCo Master Gardeners Tour

***WARNING: The photos contained in this post may cause garden envy.  Use extreme caution if viewing within driving distance of an open garden center.***

Master Gardener \ ˈmas-tər ˈgärd-nər \: 1) A title worthy of respect and admiration 2) One of my life goals 3) Owner of an amazing private garden

Perhaps amazing is an understatement — it certainly would be if all of their gardens look like the ones I toured on the 2018 Johnson County Master Gardeners Tour.  The 7 gardens on display were like something straight out of a magazine.  If you were in need of garden inspiration, this was the place to get it.  (And I certainly did!) Continue Reading

Lessons at (and from) the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens

Botanical gardens are amazing classrooms; kids can learn to appreciate the natural world, adults can learn to look up from our smartphones and appreciate the present, and gardeners can learn that it’s easy to have a beautiful garden when you have an army of staff and volunteers!

Beyond the lesson that we should give ourselves a break and not compare our own gardens with those that have full-time caretakers, we can pick up a few other ideas that are easier to implement than finding money in the budget for a full-time gardener. Continue Reading

Enjoying Tulip Time in Topeka

Happy Earth Day, friends!

It’s been a late spring, and I thought you deserved to see some beautiful spring flowers, so it was out of complete selflessness that I drove to Ted Ensley Gardens in Topeka, KS this week to take pictures of tulips in bloom.  It definitely had nothing to do with the fact that tulips are my favorite flower and that the 9.5 acre garden has more than 50,000 tulips on display.  Nope, my motivation was completely altruistic.  I enjoyed Tulip Time in Topeka for you.

Last year was the first fall I tried planting bulbs, and the ‘Spring Beauty’ crocus were a delightful promise of spring throughout March.  There has been a definite gap between the crocus fading and the rest of the garden awakening, though, so next year I have a plan: Continue Reading

When I Dream Daylily in bloom July

Easter (eye) candy for garden lovers

I don’t know where you are, but here in KC, Mother Nature is playing a cruel April fools’ day joke on us. It may be April,  but you wouldn’t know it from the weather outside.  As I write this, it’s 28° with sleet and snow falling from the sky.  What the heck?!? I got a glimpse of the Easter Bunny this morning and he was wearing a winter coat, hat, and gloves.  Sure hope those eggs didn’t freeze.

Luckily, the Easter Bunny brought me tulips and wine this year (my Easter Bunny is better than your Easter Bunny!) so I didn’t have to worry about frozen eggs.  What I do have to worry about is frozen plants: the low Tuesday night is supposed to hit 22°!  Remember all of those early-emerging plants I told you about last week?  I spent yesterday afternoon covering them with leaf mulch in hopes that they stay cozy until we get through this cold streak.

I think the best thing to do while we wait for this very un-springish weather to move on is distract ourselves with pictures of pretty plants and gardens, don’t you? Continue Reading

Woodland garden bench - GardenTails blog

You never know where you’ll find gardening inspiration–or who YOU will inspire

I’ll never forget the moment I walked into Rick and Stephanie’s backyard.

My mom and I were on the annual KC Water Garden Tour, and their garden was one of the last stops on the itinerary for the day.  We were greeted out front by one of their young daughters, who guided us to the back gate.

Their house was in the middle of the suburbs, where you’ll generally find a patio, tidy landscaping, and/or a small flower bed.  On the water garden tour, you’ll generally see a pond and waterfall added to the standard mix.  As we walked around back, I expected to see just that — but instead we walked into the woodland garden that would inspire my gardening journey.

This was no ordinary suburban backyard. Continue Reading