A dead tree branch painted blue is decorated with a painted bird.

6 transforming garden ideas from elegant to eccentric

Whenever I’m in a garden having a major Wow! moment it’s usually because I’ve stumbled onto a garden design or decor idea that’s both breathtakingly simple and wildly transformative. Here are five why-didn’t-I-think-of-that DIY garden ideas progressing from the simply elegant to the seriously eccentric (in a good way). Ideas 1 and 2: Maximizing a…

5 best garden ideas from Canada Blooms

Going fabulously fake. Super-sizing. Turning the practical into art. There are plenty of I-can-do-that garden ideas designed for maximum wow at Toronto’s Canada Blooms, the annual festival of all things horticultural in full swing all this week. Here are my top five ‘likes’. Click on any photo to start each slideshow for more details. 1. Try un-natural:…

Life after dead potted plants

Now that the temperatures are finally dipping below zero celsius here in Southern Ontario, my container plantings are beginning to bite the dust. And so the big fall clean-up begins. But this time around, I’m going to be smarter about it. Having spent this year studying organic horticulture techniques, I’ve found that there are easy ways to…

Laundry basket used as a plant container

Container idea: Upcycle office supplies, tanks, pipes

Spring may be dragging its heels in our garden but it’s arrived in stores. Pots and planters are practically spilling off the shelves. I bring this up because last year at about this time I was too late to score a dark brown faux-wicker, moulded-plastic planter I had my eye on. I thought it tres…