An early spring snowstorm smothered flower beds with 3 inches of heavy, wet snow yesterday. I grabbed the camera to capture the beauty of Scilla sibirica snuggled in a bed of oak leaves covered with a blanket of snow. I grow two scilla species: blue or Siberian squill (Scilla sibirica) and white or early squill (Scilla mischtschenkoana).

A wildflower bulb native to Iran and Southern Russia, the early squill flowers first, greeting the bracing winds of early March with white blooms streaked in the palest blue.

The flowers are reported to have a lovely scent, but I haven’t detected ...

Read more...

Spring is in the air! At least today it is… I would’ve said that last week, but we got pummeled with snow. Not just any kind of snow – thundersnow! Now, being in the South, you can imagine the chaos that caused – you couldn’t get a loaf of bread for days. But actually, I was more concerned with our Giant Garden.

This year, the LCI Team in partnership with Metrolina Greenhouses, is growing a massive garden. And you, faithful readers, are going to join us in the journey.  So far, we’ve built a lot of raised ...

Read more...

This month I’ll be preparing my Fort Worth garden for the onslaught of a Texas summer. Time to settle things in with a little extra mulch and make sure the water systems are working.

With temperatures rising my herbs are also preparing for hot weather. As the thermometer goes up, so does the central flower stalk on my cilantro. Leaf production stops as it bolts and sets seed. It’s one of several cool climate plants in the herb garden that won’t survive the coming 100 degree plus weather. Caraway, chervil, and even catnip can show similar behavior.

This ...

Read more...

Now that I have committed to actually growing a garden, I strolled out into my backyard (of which I fondly refer to as my human dog run) and starred blankly at my white vinyl fencing running straight to the garage, walkway running down the middle and two strips of grass on either side.  Not a lot of room to garden, but definitely enough to get in trouble.  I stood paralyzed. 

I guess REAL gardeners probably would tell me that I should measure, plan, draw, read, and organize before I head to the store.  That just takes so much TIME!!  ...

Read more...

Harvesting basil is the sweet summertime payoff after growing it. I love to gather armfuls of this spicy herb for use indoors. If you’ve got basil growing in your plot, here are four quick tips to maximize your harvest.

Wait until the plant has reached at least ten inches high before making your first cut. For the first harvest, clip stems just above the second set of leaves (counting from the bottom). New stems will form at this juncture, giving you a bushier plant.

Basil will benefit from regular clipping about every two weeks. New leaves have the best flavor. ...

Read more...

Introduction

Welcome to The Invisible Thumb— my gardening blog for the non gardener.  Why invisible?  Because my thumb actually does exist you just can’t see it right now.  I hope that after my personal journey into gardening it will turn into a nice shade of mint or lime or perhaps even broccoli green! 

I want to be completely up front with you -- I love the idea of growing my own food, but the actual work and time involved with digging in the dirt, pulling weeds and swatting mosquitoes is not high on my list of extra-curricular enjoyment.  However, ...

Read more...

Wildflowers are now making an appearance: bloodroot, wild ginger, woodland phlox, dutchman’s breeches, and trout lilies. Spring has sprung! Last weekend forecasts predicted a day of rain, so I dedicated a few days to clearing perennial beds. After I clean beds each spring, I scratch organic fertilizer into soil and mulch. I like to do this right before a rain, so the rain waters in the fertilizer. I finished the task just as the clouds opened.

As I cleared planting beds, I removed the heavy layers of autumn leaves lodged among perennials, along with the stems I allowed to remain ...

Read more...

The funny thing is I thought I could do this by myself.  I am an independent woman, not afraid to try new things.  But then, my little peat pot pellet-babies started to peek out from under their warm dirt beds, and I started to panic.  If I didn’t do something soon they might grow too large for their convenient terrarium home and require planting out of doors (that is a good thing…right?) So, I did what any rational person would do… I called in reinforcements. 

My local weather guy said it was going to be a 70 degree Sunday, so ...

Read more...

I’ve become addicted to those 5-pound, 99-cent bags of overripe bananas at the grocery store. I’ve been pureeing bananas in smoothies, baking them in brownies, and slicing them onto cereal. Why am I so infatuated with bananas? Partly, it’s the price. But the real reason I’m sold on these discounted fruits is what they do for my garden. After I munch the fruit, I bury the peels around the base of flowering perennials. Rich in potassium, calcium, magnesium, and phosphorous, banana peels deliver a nutrient-laden punch to plant roots.

I bury the whole peel in a shallow hole (maybe an ...

Read more...

Time had come to dig up my now dead grass rectangle.  My efforts must have looked pathetic from the third floor of my townhome where my son spotted my struggles and felt sorry for me, coming outside to take over.  Not that I couldn’t have done it all myself mind you (I am woman hear me roar) but admittedly I was so grateful when he came down to help I almost cried!

I was also able to once again coerce my fiancé to come over with power tools and help cut and set the timbers.  I need to ...

Read more...