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A Few Beauties from Renee’s Garden

September 13th, 2011

Last year I was lucky enough to win a gift certificate from Renee’s Garden in their photo contest. It was really great to leaf through the catalog this spring and choose a few lovely things to grow in the garden. I chose mostly seeds for ornamental plants since I had already ordered my vegetable seeds. After planting them early this summer we had a big hailstorm and many washed away, but a few managed to survive. I was so happy to find some of them blooming when we got home from vacation.

Cardinal Climber Vine turned out to be quite a lovely vine. It’s vigorous and it’s tiny reddish pink blooms are like miniature morning glories. I wish they had started blooming earlier because the hummingbirds are supposed to love them, but they will all be migrating very shortly. I must start these indoors next spring to they bloom earlier. I planted them at the base of the gutters on my garage and on the side porch by the kitchen door. I’m hoping they set seed so I can save some to plant next year.

The Double Rose Bon Bon Cosmos are so fabulous, much more showy than the standard ones that spring up in my garden each year. They were a beautiful surprise in the lower new garden are when we returned home from vacation. I’ll be ordering more of these for sure. I won’t bother saving seed because they’ll probably revert back to standard zinnias if I try.

Sadly, I also planted seeds for Gulfwinds, Summer Peaches and Summer Romance Alyssum along with Shirley and Falling in Love Poppies and a few different kinds of larkspur of which all the seeds got washed away. I was really disappointed because I really love alyssum. I did get some marigolds that survived.

The Signet Starfire Marigolds did beautifully in both my new front garden and in one of the raised beds in the back. I must admit I usually am not a fan of marigolds but surprisingly I really love these little marigolds.

When I was getting the link for Renee’s I noticed they’re having a 40% off sale on their “packed for 2011” seeds. I think I’ll have to take a look at the list and choose a few more beauties for my garden next year, probably a few things I’ve never grown before. One of the things I really like about Renee’s Garden is that the packets don’t come with thousands of seeds in them. I like getting just enough for a home gardener like myself. The varieties they sell are tested for small home gardens. No doubt I’ll be sitting down here in the next few days with my seed box and figuring out what beauties I want to order for my garden next summer.

Did you plant any new beauties that you were especially fond of in your garden this year?

11 Comments to “A Few Beauties from Renee’s Garden”
  1. alison@thisbloominglife on September 13, 2011 at 5:21 am

    Ooooh, lucky you. I’ve never won anything. Nothing, ever! Can’t do without cosmos. Fills all the bare spots every year.

    Reply to alison@thisbloominglife's comment

  2. goatpod2 on September 13, 2011 at 8:14 am

    Nope, no new beauties in our flower garden this year.

    Amy

    Reply to goatpod2's comment

  3. Misti on September 13, 2011 at 9:24 am

    Since we are just restarting our garden now everything is looking wonderful and becoming my favorite! I’ve missed blooms for far too long!

    Reply to Misti's comment

    • Susy on September 13, 2011 at 9:34 am

      How exciting, are you done with your long hikes for a while? Gardening is one thing I’d have a hard time doing without. It’ll be tough when we go to Alaska, although I’m already planning cover crops to improve the soil that summer.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  4. MAYBELLINE on September 13, 2011 at 12:41 pm

    Moon Flowers were a nice surprise.
    Giant Violet Queen Zinnia are another great find that works well in my garden.

    Reply to MAYBELLINE's comment

  5. daisy on September 13, 2011 at 1:19 pm

    Congrats on winning a photo contest! I enter them when I get the chance too.

    Those marigolds are lovely! They look less compact than the ones I grew this year, I really like the airy feel!

    I’m concentrating on adding more natives to our garden.
    Thanks for the seed resource!

    Reply to daisy's comment

  6. Donna B. on September 13, 2011 at 1:57 pm

    I think I need to stop trying to grow the Cypress Vine and just go with that Cardinal Climber! Those leaves are GORGEOUS!
    And those Cosmos! /swoon!
    Every year I try to add a new ornamental or two. Sadly I suffered from wash-away seeds as well; my California Poppies that I hoped would line the side of my drive way [just starting to poke through!] washed away in late spring, same with some Forget-Me-Nots, and some Chamomile [inspired by you!] – but successes too! A Delphinium I started from seed too late is now flowering! I’m simply shocked.
    Do you have experience growing “Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate“, Amaranth? it looks amazing!

    Reply to Donna B.'s comment

    • Susy on September 13, 2011 at 2:14 pm

      I have the seeds for Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate, but didn’t have a chance to start them this year. I love Amaranth.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  7. KimH on September 13, 2011 at 8:50 pm

    Those pics are gorgeous. I love the Cardinal Climber. Im with Donna, I love the leaves. I love the Marigolds especially too, but I’ve always been partial to them though I dont grow them unless I have a large garden and then I scatter them throughout.

    This year I bought a hanging basket of Black Eyed Susan Vine http://home.howstuffworks.com/thunbergia-black-eyed-susan-vine-clock-vine.htm and I love them!! It grows like a weed, is forgiving when you treat it like one, and pops back in a day once you remember it. ;) That is MY kinda flower.. and its a happy yellow too! Love it!!

    I also got a seed packet from http://www.dinnergarden.org/ (which got deluged with requests from couponers this year) that contained several different type seeds including 5 Scarlet Runner Bean seeds in it.. I planted them right on my front porch railing and I just grew to really love them. Im hoping to get quite a few seed to send back and have enough to plant a bigger section too. I’d love to engulf my entire front porch railing in them. They’re quite nice!!

    I got a couple giant ferns from New York this summer to that are real beauties.. They dont flower, but they’re still beautiful! ♥

    Reply to KimH's comment

    • Susy on September 13, 2011 at 9:05 pm

      The leaves are great aren’t they, like small hurricane plants. Scarlet Runner beans are really pretty, my mom grows them and the hummingbirds love them too. This year I planed Hyacinth Beans on my front porch railings – but they have yet to bloom.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  8. Jayme on September 14, 2011 at 6:15 pm

    I also planted some beautiful Starfire Marigolds! They are such a great addition to the yard because of their constant color.

    Reply to Jayme's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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