The BIC Plant and Gardening Thread

[sister13]

Hello BIC friends and fellow gardeners! Whether you have a container on your balcony, some indoor plants, a whole garden, or even if you just happen to visit a botanical garden or see a lovely space or plant in your neighborhood you want to share, this is the place! Please share pics, tips, plans and tricks about all things gardening!  

For many years I had a container balcony garden with mostly flowers and herbs (when travel allowed), and I am now embarking on my first backyard landscaping and gardening journey. 

I am often taking inspiration from the natural world around me and have recently had some spring inspiration for the Makeup Challenge of the Week and have loved chatting about gardening in our sun threads, so I thought a new thread would be nice. 

It’s always so interesting to me to see plants and gardens from different regions and countries, so I hope you’ll join the conversation!  

PS: if you create a makeup look based on some plant or garden inspiration, please feel free to post your look or flat-lay here, too! 

Here are a few pics of my spring bulbs to start and I’ll share more soon (kindly ignore the weeds)! 

 

 

My old balcony (from the outside) - I’ll try to find an internal pic too:

[sister13]

My cosmos were such a joy this summer until the early extreme cold zapped them! Also, the iceberg rose and morning glories were lovely! You can see out Dog Tuff grass plugs filled in pretty well. 

[JoSometimes]

@sister13 You grew nasturtiums! They remind me of this vegetarian restaurant back home. There was this one pizza they had on the menu that was topped with nasturtium leaves and petals, which were also part of the decor on the patio. It was delicious and surprisingly filling. 

[sister13]

Ooh, interesting, I'll have to try that next year! @JoSometimes 

[JoSometimes]

@sister13 It has a peppery kick to it. It’s great if you want to spice something up. I imagine it’ll go well on something like a burger or in a salad. 

[Titian06]

The cosmo and other flora look beautiful, @sister13 ! 🥰  Teine seems to be having some gardening fun too! 😄

[sister13]

Thank you! Yes, Teine and Tama got a kick out of chasing the grasshoppers, lol! 

Those nasturtiums really took off, I can only imagine if I’d gotten them sprouted early in the season! @Titian06 

[JoSometimes]

 

We’re nearing the first frost of the year. I caught a quick peak of the blueberry bush planter and saw all the pretty colours (and a few weeds that have decided to try and take hold of the planter before winter comes)

[CorgiMommy]

@JoSometimes stunning 

[JoSometimes]

Thank you @CorgiMommy! 

[sister13]

So pretty! We got a colder than normal cold snap (down to 16 degrees!!) but it’s warmed up again. Sadly, I didn’t get my tomatoes harvested beforehand and they all froze, but I did get some flower pics to share before the cold. I did some yard cleanup and bulb planting yesterday, though I still have a ton of bulbs to get in the ground. 

@JoSometimes 

[JoSometimes]

@sister13 @I hope you’re able to get them into the ground before the temperature really drops. 

[sister13]

I got most of then in pretty late last year (like maybe even December) and they came up beautifully, so we should be okay. Although it is definitely more pleasant to plant when it’s not so cold! And since it’s been so warm, I don’t want to plant too early. I’m seeing some bulb shoots but not sure if it’s the ones I planted in like March in a desperate move since I didn’t plant them in the fall. @JoSometimes 

[JoSometimes]

 

Sunflower update. This thing doesn’t quit! 🌻🌻🌻

[alicoj]

I love sunflowers! I want to try growing sunflower seeds indoors this winter in the hope of having these beautiful flowers at home. If I succeed, I'll transit them outdoors in spring.
I read that the best time to start planting these seeds indoors is about 6-8 weeks before the last expected spring frost, so it is too early now.
Did you plant your sunflowers indoors or outdoors? It would be great to learn from the people with more experience.
Thanks in advance.

[Titian06]

OMGosh, @JoSometimes !  It's so sunshiny and happy and look at those seeds! 🌻🌞💛

[JoSometimes]

@Titian06 I thought it was the type that would be just one massive “flower” but it ended up being more of a tree type with so many flowers everywhere!

If I don’t act quickly after the seeds reach maturity, they will get ransacked by squirrels. I watched a squirrel nibble off the head and drag the entire bunch of seeds away to its nest last year. 🐿️

[JoSometimes]

 

The sunflower bloomed last week! It’s been visited quite a bit by bees like this one here.

And this is yesterday. It’s got multiple flowers incoming. The third flower on the right also started opening this morning and should be fully open later today.

A few blocks away, there’s a house with properly planted sunflowers. They are a LOT taller than this one. Considering where it’s growing (in a crack between the house and the walkway…) I’d say it’s doing pretty well. 

[sister13]

So pretty and cheerful! This looks a lot like our wild sunflowers in Colorado, they pop up in July and august all along the roadways and they are so pretty! @JoSometimes 

[JoSometimes]

Thank you @CorgiMommy @Titian06 ! It’s just about done but keeps trying to put out more flowers. I’ve been trying to grab one of the heads for it’s seeds but the squirrels keep stealing them before I can. 😡🐿️

[CorgiMommy]

@JoSometimes lovely