While most winter time dishes consist of hearty stews and warm casseroles, take a break away from the norm and fire up the grill. Try grilling lobster tails, Alaskan crab legs or wild salmon and you are guaranteed rave reviews.
Tip:
The number one enemy of winter grilling is freezing wind. It has a profound effect on the internal temperature of your grill. Properly shielding your grill and utilizing your grills venting system is a great way of beating the cold. Cheers
These pictures were sent to me by way of Vancouver Washington this morning. The Hellebore pictured on the left, is an ornamental flower that flourishes in zone 5-8, it is one of several perennial plants that bloom from January through April.
The picture on the right is a Daphne, a beautiful flowering shrub that is well suited for fertile well draining soil in a partially shaded area in your garden’s landscape. As I am starting seeds under grow lights in zone 4, my friends in the Pacific Northwest are enjoying these beautiful delicate blooms. That’s ok, their forecast says it will rain every day for the next week, my forecast says sunshine for the next week. Happy Valentine’s Day!
One of my favorite perennial flowers is our flower of the month, the Shasta Daisy. This Shasta Daisy dazzles with its multiple white petals and lime center. Shasta daisies thrive in well draining soil and are the perfect cut flowers for that special bouquet. Deadheading this full sun favorite will keep blossoms blooming for several months after their spring time arrival. Cheers
Cosmos (bipinnatus) is a free flowering billowy plant that produces bold bicolor blooms that come in numerous varieties. I personally enjoy them when added to a wild flower variety mix.
This drought tolerant full sun plant is a butterfly favorite. I suggest sowing seed in spring for blooms that should peak from August until late September. Cheers
Add a radiant glow to your garden, plant sunflowers! Your garden will be filled with bold vibrant blooms guaranteed to produce a smile. After the plants bud they will began to track the sun which is truly a pleasure to watch. I suggest planting taller varieties of sunflowers at the north side of your garden as they tend to cast shadows on other flowers. I prefer to sow seeds in spring for buds that should emerge in late summer. Cheers
Our featured flower of the month is Tithonia (Sundance). It is a tall bushy sunflower relative that contains 3 inch scarlet-orange daisies that attract butterflies to your garden. It is full sun and drought tolerant making it suitable for the sunny side of gardens landscape. I suggest sowing seeds in spring in well draining soil for blooms that will last until first frost. Cheers
Affinity with Flowers
