I've caught a major case of the gardening bug in the last few weeks. Last weekend I made a trak to IKEA to pick up some of their lovely, inexpensive glazed pottery:
Can you believe the tall pot was only $40? If my car were bigger I'd have come home with a few more! Now I'm on the lookout for interesting plants. I hit the jackpot at the local nursery when I found the half-price perennial table:
I also made my first foray into starting seeds indoors this winter, since you really can't find a more economical option. I started a couple of flats in late February, and one in mid-March, and they are just about ready to head outdoors!
I started with a seed-starting kit given to me at Christmas, which consisted of empty growing cells, a tray, and a clear cover. They didn't turn out well - I had all sorts of trouble getting the soil to stay at a consistent moisture level, and ended up producing more mold than seedlings. After that I tried a tray of Jiffy peat pellets and had much better luck.
Once I had some little sprouts, I rigged up a little indoor grow lamp by putting a compact flourescent indoor reflector flood bulb in a cheapo IKEA work lamp, which seemed to work well for my small collection. I've managed to nurture a few Bluebonnets (must represent the home state!), a red version of the Bluebonnet called Alamo Fire, Asters, and both Red and Blue Sweet Pea vines.
great vase! love the closeup of the fuzzy plant.
I saw a great idea on tv that would work well in that tall blue pot. They put in a water pump and made it into a bubbling fountain.