2024 Gift Guide: Garden Lover

Enjoy our curation of unique and beautiful gifts that every gardener is sure to cherish

1. Melamine cabbage plates

   These functional plates are perfect for al fresco dining in the garden and are inspired by one of our favorite plants

2. Rattan planter

   How darling would this indoor planter look when filled with bulbs, orchids, or herbs?

3. Greenhouse gift set

   Beautifully packaged skincare set containing luxurious lotion, body wash, and bubble bath, complete with a pack of seeds

4. Copper indoor watering can

   The chicest watering can in a hammered copper style

5. Personalized mug

   Nothing brings us joy like a personalized item… and coffee :)

6. 2025 desk calendar

   The most beautiful watercolor calendar that deserves a spot on your desk

7. Garden inspired ornaments

   Classic, old-world-style baubles that bring cheer year after year

8. Taper candles

   Fun candles to illuminate your next dinner party

9. Bamboo bud vase

   Eye-catching display for seasonal blooms

10. Gardening tea towel

    A charming tea towel, illustrated with our favorite things

11. Mini shovel spoons

    Dig in! These playful, miniature spoons are a fun way to serve appetizers

12. Garden mint candle

    Delicious and fresh - Sydney Hale candles are the best!

Gardens to Go: Herb Planters Now Available

Herb planters with seven different herbs are back by popular demand! It's so handy to have fresh herbs available all summer long. $50 for pick up in OKC only, or we will deliver for an additional fee. Contact us to order!

Our Favorite Flowers for Shady Spots

HI, IT'S JULIE! I LIVE IN KANSAS CITY (ZONE 5B) WHERE OUR SUMMERS ARE HOT AND HUMID. CHECK OUT MY 3 FAVES FOR SHADY SPOTS BELOW.

Thriller - Macho Fern
I generally love a Kimberly queen fern for as a thriller in the shade.  The past few summers, I have really loved a macho fern as my go-to shade loving thriller. (Cue the song "Macho Man" by Village People). It comes by its name honestly. I love a macho fern's BIG and BOLD leaves! I also love how this fern's fronds can grow 3 to 4 feet long. 

Filler - Caladium
Ahhh...the lovely caladium. I love the shape of the leaf and the variety of colors. It's a gorgeous filler under a majesty palm and can also be a great thriller in a small planter. The caladium checks a lot of boxes for me in regards to container garden design. I like to use at least 2 leaf colors together in a planter and I consider a variegated leaf to be it's own "color" so the caladium's variegated leaf is perfect. I also like to mix at least 2 different leaf textures in a planter. I love how this large leaf size looks against the skinny palm fronds as you can see in the picture above. One of my favorite caladiums is the white christmas caladium which is pictured. Aesthetically, this plant seems to look cool even on a hot day. You can never go wrong with white and green color theme. White and green is the little black dress of the container gardening world.

Spiller - Dragon Wing Begonia
In Kansas City, my favorite shade loving spiller for a container is dragon wing begonia! I love the small bell like blooms in red or pink. I love the glossy, wing shaped leaves. Dragon wing begonias add amazing texture to the planter. At the end of summer, when it is time to switch out the plants to fall, I am sad to pull out the dragon wing begonias because they always look so full and beautiful. This plant works well in morning sun also.

HI! IT'S ELIZABETH AND I LIVE IN OKLAHOMA CITY (ZONE 7A) WHERE WE HAVE VERY HOT, HUMID AND BREEZY SUMMERS WITH NOT MUCH RAIN. I'VE LISTED MY 3 FAVORITES FOR SHADY CONTAINERS BELOW.

Thriller - Majesty Palm
If you need a large thriller for big impact in a shady spot, look no further than the majesty palm. Talk about drama! I love the tropical feel it gives to outdoor spaces. The majesty palm is also a great option if you only get morning sun. The afternoon sun is too intense causing the palm fronds to get brown and crispy on the ends. You can find these beauties in the greenhouse section of big box stores. Once summer is over, just dig it out and bring it inside to enjoy all winter.

Filler - Impatiens
I have to agree with Julie on her favorite filler for shade...mine has been the caladium, specifically White Christmas caladium, for the past few years. I'm looking back on pictures and trying to figure out my second favorite. I would have to say it is the impatiens flower. I really love the light pink ones since the colors show up well against the green background. My goal this summer is to try a larger variety of shade plants as fillers. A few that I'm going to use are dracaena (gold star and limelight) and shade coleus.

Spiller - Vinca Major
Elizabeth's favorite spiller for shade is vinca major. Gotta love a plant with a variegated leaf, it just adds so much interest! Vinca major works great in the sun too. I love a plant that will work in outdoor pots for consecutive seasons. Often I will keep the vinca major from the summer planting in the pots and use it in the fall design because it still looked so good. In OKC, our winters are somewhat mild and vinca major will come back in the spring. Great bang for your buck.

IF YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THESE PLANTS, THEY ARE JUST A GOOGLE SEARCH AWAY. HOPEFULLY YOU CAN FIND THEM AT YOUR LOCAL GARDEN CENTER THIS SUMMER. YOU WON'T BE SORRY!

Our Favorite Flowers for Sunny Spots

Hi! It's Elizabeth and I live in Oklahoma City (zone 7a) where we have very hot, humid and breezy summers with not much rain. I've listed my 3 favorites for sunny containers below.

Thriller - Chinese Fan Palm
I am slightly obsessed with the Chinese fan palm as a perfect thriller for a sunny spot. These bad boys can take all the sun and heat you can give them. Chinese fan palms are my go-to for spaces that require a larger impact plant because of their substantial size. Another reason to adore this plant is the fact that its leaves are tough and won't tear in our Oklahoma winds. Love the tropical vibe - we use it a lot in our clients' poolside planters. The large plant in the picture above is an example of a Chinese fan palm.

Filler - Sunpatiens
My favorite filler for sunny spots is the stunning sunpatiens plant! They come in many colors; white, rose, salmon, orange, blush pink, lavender, and red to name a few and each plant has an incredible number of blooms. The leaves on the plant are a pretty dark green and some varieties have a nice variegated leaf. These low maintenance plants don't need deadheading. They thrive in sun, heat and humidity, which is 100% perfect for our Oklahoma summers! They do require plenty of water however; I give mine a drink every morning. In both Oklahoma City and Kansas City, I recommend using these in places that get morning sun only. You can see an example of gorgeous blush pink sunpatiens in the picture above. How fabulous are those blooms!

Spiller - Dichondra Silver Falls
Dichondra silver falls is my favorite for sunny spots because of its silver color. I use at least 2 different leaf colors in each container garden design so this beauty takes care of the silver color. It really stands out against a dark planter. This plant thrives in heat and sun. Love, love, love the cascading habit.

Hi, it's Julie! I live in Kansas City (zone 5b) where our summers are hot and humid. Check out my 3 faves for sunny spots below.

Thriller - Mandevilla / Dipladenia
I love planting mandevilla or a dipladenia as a thriller. Dipladenia is actually a member of the mandevilla family. They are very similar except the dipladenia leaves are smaller and the plant is more shrub like. These tropical, vining plants have dark green leaves and trumpet shaped blooms. I love training the vines up a trellis. They continue to bloom and thrive in the summer heat. My favorite color blooms are red, white and hot pink! They are such fun plants to use around a pool or on a deck in the summer. Talk about bringing the tropics to your backyard!

Filler - Diamond Frost Euphorbia
This beauty is my favorite SUN loving go to filler. This wispy heat loving annual has dainty white flowers. It is drought tolerant and does amazingly well in full sun to part sun. Another reason to love this annual is there is no need to deadhead the flowers, the spent flowers fall off naturally and look amazing all summer long in a planter.

Spiller - Mezoo
I love everything about this sun loving spiller; the light green color of the variegated leaves and the sweet hot pink or red flowers. I love how it is drought tolerant, thrives in full sun and is a trailing succulent. Super hardy and strong! It thrives in Kansas City's hot and humid summer.

If you are not familiar with these plants, they are just a google search away. Hopefully you can find them at your local garden center this summer. You won't be sorry!

Why We Love Container Gardens

So what's the big deal about container gardening anyway and why do we love it? Three words: INSTANT CURB APPEAL. Container gardening is an easy, inexpensive way to create an attractive, welcoming first impression for your home or business. Custom container gardens that match your style and personality will wow your friends and customers, offer beauty and add a pop of color. We all know the old saying: you don't get a second chance to make a first impression.

Container gardens not only add charm and improve curb appeal, they can also serve the purpose of adding privacy, creating a focal point or covering up an eyesore. Restaurants with outdoor patios could use container gardens to create a lush and inviting environment and buffer their guests from sidewalk traffic or the view of a parking lot. An outdoor planter can make a stunning focal point if you have the right place in your garden or yard to place it. The picture in this post shows a huge urn perfectly placed as the centerpiece for the front entrance of this lovely home. Our parents have a concrete birdbath filled with plants in the middle of their kitchen garden and it is a perfect focal point for the space. Do you have pool equipment you need to hide? Add a grouping of large planters in front of it - what lovely camouflage! Beautiful and practical…yes please!

Summer Maintenance for Outdoor Pots

We hope everyone is having a wonderful summer! With the warmer weather, we imagine the plants and flowers in your outdoor pots have started to grow like crazy. Here are a few tips for you to use so you can keep your plants looking great all summer long.

Water - make sure to water regularly! If possible, water in the morning so your plants don't bake all day.

Fertilize - we use a slow-release fertilizer which lasts 3-4 months when we plant summer pots but it's a good idea to start using another fertilizer that encourages blooms about half-way through summer. We recommend Jack's Blossom Booster. You can mix it in water and use it to water your flowers once every 7-14 days. Within a few weeks of first use, you will really start to notice an increase in flowers.

Deadhead - it's important to "deadhead" (remove the spent flowers) regularly. Deadheading will cause the plant to produce more blooms. 

Trim - don't be afraid to give your plants a haircut if you have a plant or flower that has gotten a little long or if one plant seems to be taking over the pot. Do be careful not to trim off too much at once however. A good rule of thumb is to trim less than 1/3 of the plant. 

Pest control - one good thing about watering once a day is that you can notice immediately if a plant starts to fail. If something looks amiss, check for bugs on the underside of the leaves. If you do see bugs you will want to treat the plant asap. We use an insecticide called Eight which kills over 100 types of bugs so it will usually get rid of whatever is attacking your plant. You will want to use it several times over the course of a few weeks to get rid of the pests. Neem Oil and insecticidal soap are wonderful pest control options that are safe for organic gardening. 

We all love pretty pots but not necessarily the upkeep, right? Especially in the heat of the summer! Let us know if you'd like to outsource the summer maintenance of your outdoor planters. Once a month in July and/or August we will pay your container gardens a visit to fertilize, deadhead, trim and treat for garden pests as needed. Our residential and commercial clients REALLY enjoy this monthly service! Let us know if we can help you maintain gorgeous planters all summer long.

The BEST Plants and Products to Repel Mosquitos

We love most everything about summertime, but not those annoying mosquitos. Don't let them ruin your time spent outdoors! Here are a few plants you can add to containers or flower beds to help keep those pesky bugs at bay.

Mint - Many people like to flavor their iced water or tea with mint, but this plant also contains aromatic properties that mosquitoes dislike. We suggest planting mint in a container, as it is invasive and will spread like wildfire if planted in a flower bed.

Marigolds - Most people who grow vegetables tend to plant marigolds amongst the veggies, and for good reason. These magical flowers help banish many types of insects including mosquitoes. In the picture above, you can see that we've planted marigolds in our herb planters. They help deter pests and bring a pop of color to the herb gardens. Win win!

Lantana - This annual flower is another great choice, since mosquitoes dislike bright and vibrant colors. The scent of the flowers helps to ward off the little buggers. Lantana is extremely heat and drought tolerant and is an excellent filler/spiller in containers.

Lemon balm - This perennial has a great lemon scent that wards off mosquitoes effectively. Lemon balm grows quickly in moist and well-drained soil and likes to be watered at least once a day. Rub the leaves with your fingers - this will be your new favorite if you love the smell of lemon! Make sure to plant this in a container because this is a fast spreader.

Other plants that ward off mosquitos are citronella, scented leaf geranium, lavender, rosemary and basil. Hopefully using a few of these plants in your yard will do the trick in keeping mosquitos at bay. 

In addition to plants, we have discovered a few mosquito repellent products that work well to keep your backyards bite free.

Adorn's® NEW Favorite Summer Plants

In our April e-newsletter, we listed our favorite tried and true summer plants for sun and shade container gardens. This season, we have used some new (to us) plants in our container garden installations and have been so pleased with the results that we wanted to spread the word.

Elizabeth and Julie separately discovered swedish ivy for the first time this year and it is fast becoming the Soil Sisters's new favorite spiller for partial sun. It really fills out and trails gracefully over the sides of the planter. We both have different varieties that we love however. Elizabeth's favorite is variegated swedish ivy, (pictured above) because she can't get enough of a white and green combo. Julie's loves purple swedish ivy for it's dramatic dark purple stems with deep purple flowers and dark green leaves. Both varieties are winners in our books!

Wasabi coleus is a great filler or thriller that has gorgeous chartreuse green foliage that thrives in the heat and sun. Coleus needs to be pinched back often so it doesn't get "leggy". Simply snip off the unwanted growth just above a set of leaves to encourage branching and a more dense foliage cover. Pinching off the flower heads of coleus should be done throughout the growing season as they emerge, which will redirect the plant's energy away from seed production and back toward making more colorful leaves.

Santa Cruz begonias are a fabulous spiller that love sun to part-shade conditions. This is one of Julie's new favorite discoveries and she particularly loves its dainty flowers.

Rex begonia is another begonia favorite that Julie has discovered this season. She uses it as a filler in the shade and loves the shape of the leaves and texture it adds to a planter.

Julie and I are testing additional plants and flowers in our own yards this summer and look forward to incorporating them in our container garden designs next year. We'll keep you posted on our faves!

How to Add Color in Your Outdoor Planters

Let's talk color! Filling an empty container is like an artist beginning with a blank palette. Lots of opportunity for creativity and making it fit your space and personality. We absolutely love using lots of different colors in the container gardens we create, and we don’t mean just the colors on the flowers. We're talking about the leaves on the plants themselves. Plants fall into these color categories: chartreuse, purple/red, silver/blue and kelly green. We also consider a variegated leaf it's own "color". It is sometimes a challenge, but we try to mix at least two of these colors into one container. It adds so much interest to the entire arrangement! Take a look at the picture above and you will see the kelly green color of the boxwood and scaevola leaves, chartreuse color in the sweet potato vine, and purple color in the purple heart. 

Do give some thought to the color of your container when you are selecting the colors of your plants. If you have a light colored container, you may consider a dark spiller (like purple sweet potato vine or purple heart) and if you have a dark colored container, you may want to go with a spiller color that will pop (like chartreuse sweet potato vine or moneywort). Same goes for the background to the container, which is typically the color of your home or business. If it is a dark background, I would suggest using a bright thriller plant that will show up against the dark and vice versa, if you have a light colored background, you may want to use a dark thriller plant so you can see it from the street and it doesn't blend into the wall behind it.

Deer-Resistant Plants for Your Container Garden

Elizabeth and I have been asked by several clients to design a container garden that is deer resistant.  We thought you might be interested in hearing about some summer sun and shade spillers, fillers and thrillers that are NOT appetizing to deer.

SUN LOVERS
There are many annual and perennial plant, grass, bulbs, and flower options for deer-resistant, sunny container gardens. The thrillers include: purple fountain grass, echinacea, allium, boxwood, canna lilies, annual black eyed Susan, sulfur cosmos or nasturtium. For fillers, you could try salvia, marigold, geranium, angelonia, gomphrena, lavender, lantana, sweet alyssum, dusty miller, diamond frost euphorbia, verbena and ageratum. For spillers, plant purple heart, sedum or trailing lantana. 

SHADE LOVERS
If you have a shady area, there are several annual and perennial plants, grass, and flower options that seem to keep the deer away. A good thriller is a caladium, ostrich fern, hollyhock, boxwood and hellebore. Filler plants include begonias, lambs ear and Persian shield.  Great spillers for shade are wishbone, minor periwinkle and ivy. 

As we all know, no plant is totally deer proof. You could spray liquid fence for deer and rabbit on your plants to help. Julie has used Liquid Fence on her own plants to keep the bunnies away and it works like a charm.

Shop some of our favorite deer-resistant items on our Amazon page.

How to Use Texture in Your Container Garden Design

Texture... you think about it with fabric… but have you thought about it with plants? Plant leaves come in a million different sizes and shapes. Grasses, asparagus fern and cacti among others have spiky leaves. There are smooth and shiny leaves on a croton, ruffled leaves of a cabbage or kale and furry leaves on dusty miller. Broad leaves on a sweet potato vine plant and small leaves on moneywort. Truly, the options are endless. In order to have balance with the plants in the container, we always try to have a mixture of at least three different leaf textures. Plant texture is just one of those things most people don’t pay attention to, but when you get it right, wow! 

Check out the textures in the picture above. In the pot on the left, the dracaena spike leaves are long and thin and the moneywort has small round leaves. The middle planter has sedum as a spiller, which is short and spiky. The planter on the right contains hibiscus with large leaves and vinca major with medium oval leaves. The different textures add so much interest to these planters!

Container Garden Tips and Supplies from Adorn®

Set yourself up for success by starting with the right supplies. The potting soil, fertilizers and mulch you use matters! Read on for our tips to keep your flowers and plants happy and your container gardens looking fabulous all season long.

POTTING SOIL – The first step to healthy plants is to use a quality potting soil from a garden center. Do your plants a favor and replace the potting soil in your outdoor planters once a year (at least the soil from the top half of the planter). Julie and I have made a habit out of replacing our soil with our summer planting, it’s easy to remember if you replace it the same season every year. 

FERTILIZER – We like a granular, slow-release fertilizer. Just mix it in with your potting soil before you add the plants. This type of fertilizer is supposed to last all season long. However, we like to give our flowers a little help mid-summer and use a bloom booster fertilizer every one to two weeks. Any garden center or big box hardware store will sell these types of fertilizer. We also like to use a product called Soil Moist in the summer if the pots do not have an automatic drip system. Soil Moist helps keeps soil moist longer in between watering, just like the name says! 

MULCH – Once we are finished planting the container, we like to top dress the container with mulch. Adding mulch makes the containers look “finished” and helps to keep the soil from drying out in the summer and keeps the plants insulated in the winter. Our favorite type of mulch is a shredded cedar, which you can find at your local garden center. 

So that’s the scoop. As long as you start with good quality potting soil, fertilizers and mulch you are well on your way to a beautiful container full of healthy plants. We’ve included a link to our favorite fertilizers here. Do yourself a favor and try them when you pot up your summer planters. You won't be sorry!

Shady Spots Deserve Some Plant Love, Too!

In both Kansas City and Oklahoma City, sun-loving plants are often the stars of summer gardens. That said, our shade-filled spaces deserve to be beautiful, too. Here are our top picks for both cities.

Julie’s Kansas City Faves:

Thriller - Macho Fern
I generally love a Kimberly queen fern as a thriller in the shade. The past few summers, I have really loved a macho fern as my go-to shade loving thriller. (Cue the song "Macho Man" by Village People). It comes by its name honestly. I love a macho fern's BIG and BOLD leaves! I also love how this fern's fronds can grow 3 to 4 feet long. 

Filler - Caladium
Ahhh...the lovely caladium. I love the shape of the leaf and the variety of colors. It's a gorgeous filler under a majesty palm and can also be a great thriller in a small planter. The caladium checks a lot of boxes for me in regards to container garden design. I like to use at least 2 leaf colors together in a planter and I consider a variegated leaf to be it's own "color" so the caladium's variegated leaf is perfect. I also like to mix at least 2 different leaf textures in a planter. I love how this large leaf size looks against the skinny palm fronds as you can see in the picture above. One of my favorite caladiums is the white Christmas caladium which is pictured. Aesthetically, this plant seems to look cool even on a hot day. You can never go wrong with white and green color theme. White and green is the little black dress of the container gardening world.

Spiller - Dragon Wing Begonia
In Kansas City, my favorite shade loving spiller for a container is dragon wing begonia! I love the small bell like blooms in red or pink. I love the glossy, wing shaped leaves. Dragon wing begonias add amazing texture to the planter. At the end of summer, when it is time to switch out the plants to fall, I am sad to pull out the dragon wing begonias because they always look so full and beautiful. This plant works well in morning sun also.

In OKC, we don't have many tall trees, so finding shade is a rarity unless it is under a porch. Ironically, I love shade plants so much more than sun plants. Here are Elizabeth's 3 favorites for shady spots:

Thriller - Majesty Palm
If you need a large thriller with big impact in a shady spot, look no further than the majesty palm. Talk about drama! I love the tropical feel it gives to outdoor spaces. The majesty palm is also a great option if you only get morning sun. The afternoon sun is too intense causing the palm fronds to get brown and crispy on the ends. You can find these beauties in the greenhouse section of big box stores. Once summer is over, just dig it out and bring it inside to enjoy all winter.

Filler - Impatiens
I have to agree with Julie on her favorite filler for shade...mine has been the caladium, specifically White Christmas caladium, for the past few years. I'm looking back on pictures and trying to figure out my second favorite. I would have to say it is the impatiens flower. I really love light pink or white impatiens since the colors show up well in a shady spot.

Spiller - Vinca Major
Elizabeth's favorite spiller for shade is vinca major. Gotta love a plant with a variegated leaf, it just adds so much interest! Vinca major works great in the sun too. I love a plant that will work in outdoor pots for consecutive seasons. Often I will keep the vinca major from the summer planting in the pots and use it in the fall design because it still looked so good. In OKC, our winters are somewhat mild and vinca major will come back in the spring. Great bang for your buck.

What are your favorites?

P.S. - Looking for info about sun loving summer plants? Check this out.

The Best Thrillers, Fillers and Spillers for Sunny Spots

Hi there, Elizabeth and Julie here. Summer is on the horizon and we are excited to share the best plants for sunny spots!

Oklahoma City (zone 7a), where Elizabeth lives, is very hot, humid and breezy in the summer, with not much rain. Here are Elizabeth’s faves:

Thriller - Chinese Fan Palm
I am slightly obsessed with the Chinese fan palm as a perfect thriller for a sunny spot. These bad boys can take all the sun and heat you can give them. Chinese fan palms are my go-to for spaces that require a larger impact plant because of their substantial size. Another reason to adore this plant is the fact that its leaves are tough and won't tear in our Oklahoma winds. Love the tropical vibe - we use it a lot in our clients' poolside planters. The large plant in the picture above is an example of a Chinese fan palm.

Filler - Sunpatiens
My favorite filler for sunny spots is the stunning sunpatiens plant! They come in many colors; white, rose, salmon, orange, blush pink, lavender, and red to name a few and each plant has an incredible number of blooms. The leaves on the plant are a pretty dark green and some varieties have a nice variegated leaf. These low maintenance plants don't need deadheading. They thrive in sun, heat and humidity, which is 100% perfect for our Oklahoma summers! They do require plenty of water however; I give mine a drink every morning. In both Oklahoma City and Kansas City, I recommend using these in places that get morning sun only. You can see an example of gorgeous blush pink sunpatiens in the picture above. How fabulous are those blooms!

Spiller - Dichondra Silver Falls
Dichondra silver falls is my favorite for sunny spots because of its silver color. I use at least 2 different leaf colors in each container garden design so this beauty takes care of the silver color. It really stands out against a dark planter. This plant thrives in heat and sun. Love, love, love the cascading habit.

In Kansas City (zone 5b), where Julie lives, summers are hot and humid. Check out Julie’s faves below:

Thriller - Mandevilla / Dipladenia
I love planting mandevilla or a dipladenia as a thriller. Dipladenia is actually a member of the mandevilla family. They are very similar except the dipladenia leaves are smaller and the plant is more shrub like. These tropical, vining plants have dark green leaves and trumpet shaped blooms. I love training the vines up a trellis. They continue to bloom and thrive in the summer heat. They come in red, white and hot pink. They are such fun plants to use around a pool or on a deck in the summer. Talk about bringing the tropics to your backyard! 

Filler - Diamond Frost Euphorbia
This beauty is my favorite sun loving go-to filler. This wispy heat loving annual has dainty white flowers. It is drought tolerant and does amazingly well in full sun to part sun. Another reason to love this annual is there is no need to deadhead the flowers, the spent flowers fall off naturally and it looks amazing all summer long in a planter.

Spiller - Mezoo
I love everything about this sun loving spiller; the light green color of the variegated leaves and the sweet hot pink or red flowers. I love how it is drought tolerant, thrives in full sun and is a trailing succulent. Super hardy and strong! It thrives in Kansas City's hot and humid summer.

If you are not familiar with these plants, they are just a google search away. Hopefully you can find them at your local garden center this summer. You won't be sorry!

P.S. - Looking for info about shade loving summer plants? Check this out.

Why Container Gardens Are Beautiful AND Practical

So what's the big deal about container gardening anyway and why do we love it? Three words: INSTANT CURB APPEAL.

Container gardening is an easy, inexpensive way to create an attractive, welcoming first impression for your home or business. Custom container gardens that match your style and personality will wow your friends and customers, offer beauty and add a pop of color. We all know the old saying: you don't get a second chance to make a first impression. 

Container gardens not only add charm and improve curb appeal, they can also serve the purpose of adding privacy, creating a focal point or covering up an eyesore. For example, restaurants with outdoor patios could use container gardens to create a lush and inviting environment and buffer their guests from sidewalk traffic or the view of a parking lot.

An outdoor planter can also make a stunning focal point if you have the right place in your garden or yard to place it. Our parents have a concrete birdbath filled with plants in the middle of their kitchen garden and it is a perfect focal point for the space. Do you have pool equipment you need to hide? Add a grouping of large planters in front of it - what lovely camouflage!

Beautiful and practical…yes, please!

Easter Decor Tips from Adorn®

The Easter holiday is right around the corner. Consider decorating your front porch and planters with fun, colorful Easter décor!

Here are a few of our favorite ideas for you:

1. Easter décor in planters – You can find cute Easter picks at Dollar Tree and Hobby Lobby. Stick them directly into the soil at varying heights. We love adding height in our planters and using branches is a great way to achieve that. The spring branches that we use are pussy willow and yellow twig dogwood. Forsythia branches would be beautiful also but not as long lasting. We use green moss to cover up any soil as a finishing touch. The bright green of the moss really looks like spring!

2. Door wreath – You can buy an Easter wreath or if you have a faux boxwood wreath, just add an Easter themed or pastel colored pretty bow. Elizabeth has a faux boxwood wreath and uses it on her door most of the year and changes it up seasonally with bows. If you don’t have an existing nail in your door use command hooks to hang it temporarily or use an over-the-door wreath hanger.

3. Doormat – This is the easiest way to add seasonal flair to welcome guests to your doorstep. Layering a smaller doormat on top of a larger rug that coordinates but doesn’t match is fun too. 

4. Pillows – Do you have an outdoor bench or chairs? This is the perfect place to add a few seasonal pillows. It will look so inviting whether they are Easter themed, in pastel colors or a mixture of both. So cheery!

5. White lanterns – These are really versatile so get yourself a few! At Easter we fill the inside of our lanterns with Easter eggs. So cute! When Easter is over just remove the eggs and you can continue to use the white lanterns year round. 

We hope this has inspired you to decorate your own home! You can also hop over to our Easter outdoor décor storefront and find some really cute items for your front porch.

Be creative, make it your own and have fun with it!

Life Lessons I Taught My Kids in the Garden

Hey there, it’s Julie here.

People of all ages can enjoy gardening, but kids in particular can have lots of fun! What kid does not love to be outdoors, dig in the dirt, and spend time with an adult they love? We learned to garden at an early age from our parents. We learned about growing perennials, annuals, herbs, and vegetables. Being introduced to gardening as kids “planted the seed” (sorry, could not resist), which led us to a lifetime love affair with digging in the dirt. 

Gardening is educational and develops new skills. For example, kids can learn responsibility by caring for plants, understanding that plants will die if they don’t get water.  They will gain confidence as they achieve their goals and enjoy the food or flowers they have grown. Kids can learn about nutrition and where fresh food comes from. 

When my boys were little, they often helped in the garden. We would typically plant carrot and cucumber seeds along with herbs in pots.  In the summer, it was fun being able to send one of my boys to the backyard to pick a cucumber for our salad. Our first summer in our new home, we planted carrot and cucumber seeds as usual. We watched the carrots grow and waited to harvest them in the fall. We were so surprised when we pulled out the carrots. We discovered that the carrots were round. We laughed so hard and we called them “baseball” carrots. We did not realize the area where we had planted the seeds had a lot of clay, which did not allow the carrots to root deep into the soil. Luckily, I was able to use this as a lesson and taught the boys about amending the soil. The following year, we added compost and broke down the clay soil. Now that the boys are teenagers, we can look back at these fond memories we spent together outdoors. That time together was priceless. 

Gardening is the perfect bonding experience for kids and their parents or grandparents! It is such an amazing way to get the kids off of video games and to instead get physical activity while doing something fun and productive. Take them to the garden center and let them pick out plants, or grab some of these fun products from Amazon. We highly recommend getting your kids interested in gardening!

Hooray for Spring Flowers and Cold Weather Crops

Raise your hand if you are ready for a pop of color! If you're like us and can't wait to dig in the dirt, we've listed below some of our favorite cold hardy flowers and crops you can plant early spring.

The weather in Oklahoma City is almost warm enough to plant early spring flowers - yay! (OKC falls into Zone 7a on the USDA Plant Hardiness Map.) Our favorite cold tolerant flowers are snapdragons, alyssum and petunias. All these flowers are in the picture above - the snapdragons are in the back, the alyssum on the left and the petunias are on the right. These pretties are not as cold hardy as pansies, but they can tolerate a light freeze.

Kansas City is quite a bit colder than Oklahoma City (USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 5b), so it will be a few weeks until you are able to plant. When it is warm enough, you will be able to plant hellebores, snapdragons, pansies, stock, osteospermum and ornamental cabbage.

As far as cold weather veggie and herb crops go, your options are cilantro, lettuces, dill, spinach, strawberries, kale and broccoli. These can all be easily planted in a container and you could even put several into one pot. It's go-time in OKC to plant these crops but still too early in KC.

If you are ever in doubt as far as selecting plants and when to plant them, we highly recommend chatting up the knowledgeable people who work at your local garden center. They can tell you when it is time to plant without risk of a freeze. Our favorite garden centers in OKC are TLC and Precure. In KC, our faves are Family Tree Nursery and Suburban Lawn & Garden.

Happy (almost) planting!

Give Your Planters Some Valentine's Day Love

We don’t know about you, but in the middle of winter we really miss COLOR in our yard. It’s February so why not add some cute, colorful pink and red Valentine’s decor to your front porch to brighten things up outside?

Take a look at this picture of Julie’s festive front porch. We even spy a few snowflakes - so pretty! The greens are leftover from Christmas but still look good because her porch is shady. There are also a few red sticks in the pots from her holiday look. The red sticks are red twig dogwood and red flax. Julie has used Valentine’s heart picks in different shapes and sizes from Dollar Tree and Hobby Lobby and stuck them directly into the soil in the planters.

On the front of the planters, she attached a wired wooden pick to each large heart and then poked it into the soil. The lanterns add an extra touch and she uses them year round in the planters. Moving on to her darling front door where Julie has layered three wreaths and it totally works! She hung the wreaths from an existing nail but you can also use Command hooks if you want to hang a wreath temporarily. She has layered two rugs to finish the look.Julie uses the black and white check rug year round and changes out the smaller rug on a seasonal basis. If you have a bench or other outdoor seating area, make sure to add festive Valentine’s pillows. So cheery and welcoming!

We hope this has inspired you to decorate your own home! If so, you’ll be glad to know things are on sale right now at Hobby Lobby. You can also hop over to our Valentine’s outdoor décor storefront and find some really cute items.

Be creative, make it your own and have fun with it!

Get the Outdoor Planters of Your Dreams

Who is in the market for new outdoor pots? Now is the perfect time to shop while the garden centers are fully stocked but not too busy with the spring gardening season. Four things to consider when selecting a container are style, size, material and color.

• STYLE – The style of your outdoor planters should complement the style of your home. Planters with clean lines and modern shape would blend well with a contemporary style home. If the outside of your house is traditional, consider an urn or another classic style. If you want something more whimsical, you could find a planter with a unique, geometric shape – that would be a statement piece!

• SIZE - The size of your containers should be in proportion to the size of your house, especially if they are in the front. You can also try groupings of pots to increase the scale. If you’re torn between two sizes, select the larger one because larger containers require less watering and you can fill it with more plants to make an even bigger impact.

• MATERIAL - Boy, lots of choices here: glazed ceramic, wood, steel, fiber cement, fiberglass, cast stone, resin, rattan and terra-cotta to name a few. Resin planters are a nice choice because they are lightweight, inexpensive and are made to look just like cast stone, cast concrete or cast iron. We love the look of terra-cotta but be warned that water evaporates more quickly from porous materials like terra-cotta and it does not withstand cold winters as well as other materials like resin. Which brings up a good point: if you are in a cold climate, you will want to make sure your planters are frost proof if you want to leave them outside all year round. You really can’t go wrong with any of these materials! New planters are an investment but well worth it since they last for years.

• COLOR - We like the color of our planters to contrast to the background. For example, if you have a red brick home or a light colored home, we would recommend black or cobalt blue planters. If the pots will be placed in front of a dark background, we would recommend light grey or white planters. Does the exterior of your home have a consistent color for the accents (outdoor light fixtures, shutters, door or window casings)? Usually it will be black, dark grey or dark brown. If so, it would be ideal to use the same color for your planters to coordinate the color theme. For the past few summers, Julie has used all shapes, styles and material of white planters on her back deck. She likes this neutral color because it allows the color of the plants to pop! We also love glazed ceramic cobalt blue pots. They certainly make a colorful statement and can bring life to a bland exterior.

Of course, always pick a planter with a drain hole or drill one yourself. You don’t want your plants to become waterlogged. This will cause the roots to rot and your beautiful plants to die.

Want to see our faves? We’ve gathered a few here.