Simple Tips to Bring Autumn to your Front Door this Season

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Wreaths or Swag

Wreaths or swags are possibly the most common elements that are used to décor the front door during autumn. What you have to take care is if the front door wreath is complementing to the design and color of your porch and entryway. Traditional harvest, autumn foliages, artificial or natural fruits and flowers, peacock feathers, acorns, pinecones, etc. are common materials used for making such wreaths. You can either buy or custom-make such a wreath and hang on your front door.

Instead of wreaths, you can go for buckets full of fall flowers too. Attach a hook to your door and hang one or two rustic-style bucket filled with fall blooms like small sized flowers and red-colored berries. Swag wreaths offer a gorgeous way to display rustic elements like this Autumn Wreath Swag are nice additions to welcome guests. Visit our fall wreaths on How to Make a Burlap Wreath!

Use Fall Harvest & Plants

Gourds and pumpkins are common fall harvest and are essential part of fall décor. Line the front steps of your home with metallic or wooden gourds and pumpkins and pots of fall flowers like asters, mums, heuchera, verbena, oxalis, etc. Hang a door-framing garland made of black feathers. This garland and pumpkins will bring an early Halloween feel into your porch.

Weekend Gardening: Edibles to Grow This Spring

How to Grow Container Herbs

Herbs are ideal for container gardens. They are easy to plant and thrive and they are low-maintenance. Having your fresh, favorite herbs ready to be used is the ultimate key to creating delightful dishes. Some of the herbs like mint are better to be grown in containers since they can grow easily and take up a lot of space if planted in a garden. Some ideas for herbs to be planted are oregano, parsley, thyme, and cilantro, all of which can be harvested and dried if needed. Other ideas are to plant basil, lemongrass, and rosemary. Those herbs require larger containers if not planted in a garden. Here are some herbs we love to grow.

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Weekend Gardening: Learn to Grow Strawberries in a Container

Strawberries are great to be grown in containers or a garden. They can be harvested and turned into delicious marmalades, desserts, sauces or ice cream and even be frozen to be used at a later time. Containers are ideal for growing strawberries because they will grow over the edges and not get in touch with the soil, making them easy to thrive and eat. Hanging containers can also add to any balcony’s appeal. Just make sure to plant a lot of strawberry plants, since you will want to have many of those aromatic fruits to enjoy.

How about a yummy Citrus Plant for your Weekend Gardening?

Although many think citrus trees grow only in warm climates, you can succeed in growing your own lemon, lime or orange tree even in colder areas. Just plant the tree in a large pot and move it into a warmer place – even inside – in the cold months. They may not produce very big citrus fruits, but they will be for sure filled with taste, juice, and fragrance.

These are just some ideas of many edibles you could plant that are easy to grow and to maintain without much effort. The effect, though, of having your own oranges or basil to use is so much greater than the effort it takes. Just go ahead and plant your favorite edible to enjoy them throughout spring, summer and even fall!

For more gardening ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Container Gardening: How to Start a Vegetable Garden

Image via: Agnieszka Bladzik

Choose bigger pots for container gardens

The greatest challenge of growing vegetables in containers is watering as soil tends to dry out faster in pots than in the ground. But as larger volume of soil won’t dry out that fast, it is advised to choose the biggest pot possible. You can mix compatible plants in a single container if you may desire. Also, make it certain that any pot you choose has holes so that excess water can easily drain away from the soil.

We like these helpful container gardening resources to get you started:

Container garden kit

Container gardening tips book

Pots for container gardens

How to grow vegetables in pots

Container garden ideas

Begin with harvesting vegetables that are easy to harvest and takes up little space such as lettuce and other salad greens. The best part? They can grow in containers even when accompanied by flowers or in partly shady areas. Alternatively, you can consider growing tomatoes in hanging baskets or other pots at a spot where they will get lots of sun. But remember they take some work. We recommend beginning with smaller varieties of tomatoes like cherry tomatoes.

We love these 121 container gardening ideas from Southern Living.

Creative ideas for vegetable garden design

No matter which spot you choose to start your vegetable garden, you can boost the style quotient of that area by using colorful, bright pots. Containers in shades like orange, blue, and yellow will help to instantly add interest to your space. You can also get creative by using recycled containers such as wine crates especially for small varieties like lettuce and carrots. To add more visual interest, select containers in different sizes and create a grouping.

How to choose the right area for your vegetable garden

While patios and porches might be the best spots for container gardening, we have some more ideas for you. For instance, you can tuck large containers into your flower or landscaping for an instant mini vegetable garden. Or how about arranging a collection of pot grown herbs by the kitchen door for easy snipping? We even love the idea of planting herbs in glass jars and placing them on sunny windowsill.

Have a look at these tips for creating a small vegetable garden from Country Living.

Apart from the obvious- joy and bounty, one of the biggest advantages of container gardening is that you skip the backbreaking task of weeding and amending soil. So, use the ideas above to set up your own vegetable garden and get off to a good start.

For more gardening tips on Stagetecture, click here.

Image via: Better Homes & Gardens

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3 Beautiful Vertical Garden Ideas

Image via: HGTV

Pocket Planters

If you are a newbie, start with small pocket planters. Pockets are made of breathable, recycled material which looks similar to felt. You can start with one and add a few later to create different shapes. The planters come with all the important hardware except for the plants and soil. They can create lovely mini farms or hanging tropical gardens. Most of them can accommodate annuals, small perennials and edibles.

Tray Planters

Trays look like nursery flats. They are divided into planting cells slanted at 30-degree angles. They have holes at the bottom which promote aeration and drainage. The planters come with brackets for mounting but you may have to add wood frames to get a ‘wall art’ look. Plants you can grow in trays include succulents with shallow root systems, perennials, annuals, and edibles. When planting small perennials, annuals, and edibles, choose a tray with large cells.

Image via: Etsy

Pot Hangers

Pot hangers provide an easy way to create vertical gardens. You can buy ready-made ones or make your own. The pots have clamps on their backs which enable them to be fastened to walls. They are designed to endure different weather conditions and can carry as much as 100 pounds. You can grow different plants in pot hangers including kitchen herbs, pansies, and annuals; basically anything you’d grow in traditional pots.

Image via: Design Buzz

Vertical gardens are a great alternative to traditional gardens. They are fun to create and are perfect for people who don’t have a lot of space or those who want something out of the ordinary. Follow the above vertical garden ideas and you’ll be able to create living walls of annual, perennial, and edible plants that are pleasing to the eye.

If you have vertical gardens in your home, share with us how you display them.

For more gardening ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Image via: Pinterest

Essential Gardening Tips for Summer

Image via: BHG

Water Plants Regularly

The harsh summer heat can take its toll on your garden. If you don’t water your plants adequately, the roots will stay close to the surface and become more prone to heat. Water them deeply to make the roots dig deeper.  Keep the water level at one inch every week to make the plants flourish.

Keep Pests at Bay

Pests can turn your beautiful summer garden into a disaster. To keep them at bay, monitor the garden carefully. If you are growing roses, watch out for aphids and mildew. You can also reapply pepper wax to keep rabbits, deer, and other big pests away.

Stake Tall Plants

Image via: BC Living

If you are growing tall, herbaceous plants, put stakes in place. This prevents them from looking messy or falling lower as they grow tall and heavy. Also use supports for climbers so as to control their growth and prevent an untidy appearance.

Prune Shrubs

While many shrubs don’t need pruning, some that flower in spring and early summer will greatly benefit from it after flowering. Pruning keeps your shrubs looking beautiful season after season. A great time to prune is immediately after things bloom as this prevents you from pruning flower buds.

Choose Plants with a Wide Root System

Image via: The Garden Glove

To start your garden off on the right foot, choose perennials, biennials, or heat resistant crops as opposed to annuals. This is because most annuals have shallow roots that dry out easily in the harsh summer heat.

Fertilize Well

Fertilizer is one of the major things that help plants thrive. Fertilize the soil before you plant to make sure your plants withstand the stress of dry weather and high heat. Use organic compost and sustainable stock-free fertilizers. If you have already planted, use liquid fertilizers to give your plants a boost.

Use these summer gardening tips to create a stunning garden. Afterwards you can sit, relax, and enjoy summer in your garden.

For more gardening tips on Stagetecture, click here.

Container Gardens: Creative Ways to Bring Color to Your Home

Image via: Cool Things

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Hyacinths in a Container

Which is the best thing to beat the summer heat? Obviously, WATER! Creating a water garden is a cool way to keep the heat away. Use water plants like hyacinths for this purpose because they do not need soil to sustain and grow up. All they need for their nutrients are water and sunlight. The great thing is you do not need a lily pond for this unique garden. You just need containers, especially glass containers will look nice, and a space that gets sunlight. So, create your mini water garden right now and enjoy the blooms of the aquatic plants.

Hanging Ferns

Staghorn ferns are a popular choice for wall garden. However, growing them on the walls, especially inside a house, will be difficult and challenging. An easy solution is to use hanging alternatives. Use a terra-cotta pot with a wire basket fittingly pushed down inside it.

Image via: Arqhys

Now, place a layer of potting moss on the wire basket and put the Staghorn ferns with the plastic pot they come on that layer. Conceal the plastic pot and cover the soil by adding more potting moss. Now, hang it from a window or any space where the ceiling is low.

Mood-Changing Small Potted Plants

A small pot filled with lush flower plants can easily fit into your bedside table, working desk, or even a corner of your small reading nook. Blue, red, and orange tropical flowers framed by green plants in a nice pot can instantly change the mood of a room. You can also create a rich and versatile palette in any small corner of your home by mixing different types of plants. The combination of three plants including moneywort, coleus, and fuchsia will be enough to create a tiny oasis in your home office or reading nook.

Image via: Femside

Double the Freshness with Double Potted Plants

Two potted containers on a small bench can easily grace the décor of your kitchen or living room. Two small old buckets or enamel milk pails filled with flower plants or ferns and placed on an old-fashioned or industrial bench will bring a rustic charm along with freshness to your interior. Pothos vine, moon valley pilea, or sword ferns will be excellent choice for this container gardening. Put the plants on a plastic pot and then, place it inside the bucket or pail. Take the plastic pot out to water.

Image via: Homedit

These unique container gardens will make your home a colorful spring garden.

For more gardening ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

The sun is shining and we all love the outdoors more and more. So it’s about time to give the backyard patio a make-over! Here are some great tips on how to give your backyard patio all what it needs for it to become one of the most used areas of your home in the warmer months ahead.

Backyard Patio Ideas for Spring

Plants, plants, plants

The most important things to have for a beautiful backyard patio are plants. A large variety of flowers, herbs, small trees and greenery is essential to give a natural feel to any backyard, especially so in spring. They will provide the area with stunning colors, wonderful smells and a soothing vibe to make the backyard patio a perfect spot to relax.

Image via: BHG

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Use Water Accents

Water is an important aspect for any backyard patio. It is another natural element that adds to the natural look and feel of any area and should be clever integrated to maximize its effect. Try to have running water to take advantage of the soothing effect of the sound it makes.

Image via: Onekindesign

Choose Furniture and Fabric

Choosing the right furniture is essential to make the most out of the available space. Choose comfortable, cozy furniture you will love to sink in after a long day in order to wind down and relax. Keep in mind to look for practicability, too. Outdoor furniture should be easy to maintain and clean, and looking for portability and easy storage should be an aspect, too, if only limited storage space is available.

Clever fabric and color choosing can add immensely to the character of your backyard patio. Think about vibrant color pallets that will remind you of Africa, Asia or Europe to give a more exotic look to the patio and that will make you feel like being on a mini-vacation each time you relax in this area.

Image via: HGTV

It would be a shame to let the extra outdoor space go to a waste when you can get such great use out of it! What Backyard Patio Ideas for Spring will you try this season?

For more outdoor ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Terrariums are a great way to plants inside that can brighten up any corner of your home. It is easy to make your very own mini-terrariums that actually don’t cost much and are a fun DIY craft at any day. Here is how.

Image via: Kristin Eldridge

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DIY Craft: How to make a Mini-Terrarium

Supplies

1 plastic fish bowl or other clear container

Small stones

Potting soil

Plants (e.g. succulents)

For decoration: Small ornaments, stones, moss, figurines etc.

Image via: Pinterest

Procedure

1. Place a one-inch thick layer of small stones at the bottom of the container. The stones will help with the water drainage. You can additionally place a thin layer of activated charcoal to keep the water clean and another thin layer of sphagnum moss, which will keep the soil in place.

2. Next, add a 2-inch layer of potting soil on top of the small stones.

3. Add your decorative stones, plants and ornaments in a beautiful arrangement. Make sure to use different heights and textures and also a little color to keep things interesting. Don’t overfill it though, in order to give each plant enough room to grow.

Image via: A Beautiful Mess

Keep the terrarium in moderate to indirect sunlight and water the plants occasionally by spraying some water on them. If you are using plastic containers, consider hanging them from the ceiling using some hooks and chains. They will be an eye-catching piece in your home décor.

For more gardening ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

There’s no question that plants add beauty to any home. The vibrant colors and the soothing ambiance that plants provide to your home are necessary elements for comfortable living. Even with limited home area, a home garden is something that should be present and considered seriously. Besides, there are several home garden ideas such as container garden ideas that are intended for limited home space.

Spring Gardening: Creative Container Garden Ideas

One of the best garden ideas for limited home space is the container gardening. This will provide you with the necessary area for your plants to grow without getting a large portion of your backyard. Container gardening is also great when you want your plants to be movable. You can simply transfer or rearrange the containers from one area to another. Check out these creative container gardening ideas:

Consider a cast-concrete pool

This gardening idea is best for miniature gardens. With cast-concrete pool container, you can simply add plumbing devices for the plants without interfering your landscape. A cast-concrete pool container garden can be a great centerpiece to any area of your home. For best results, a combination of plants like Hostas, Violas and Blue Phlox make a perfect landscape.

Image via: HGTV

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Use uneven containers

Randomly arranged uneven containers will command attention to any of your guests. This gardening idea provides a great view of your landscape in various angles. You can also play with different plant varieties that will fit the size of your containers. A combination of Pansies, Violas, Panolas, Grass and Ivy will give you a beautiful masterpiece.

Image via: Gardenclub Homedepot

Consider terra cotta pots

The classic clay pot can certainly attract your guests in so many ways. It has a timeless appeal to anyone who comes to see your home. With the classic clay pot idea, you can always count on having the neatness and elegance of a garden at home. The mixed succulents garden idea is one of the popular trends these days.

Image via: Pinterest

So, next time that you think of enhancing your home, consider the above-mentioned container gardening ideas. You will definitely appreciate the beauty of nature right before your eyes. What spring gardening ideas will you try this season?

For more gardening ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Terrariums are a great way of bringing some greenery indoors especially during the cooler fall and winter months. Cooler weather gardening is wonderful for your indoor home. Green is the most common color found in nature. It is relaxing to the eyes and soothes erratic nerves. Unlike traditional gardens, terrariums create an ecosystem of their own in the glass jars and therefore they require very little care. The moisture caught in the closed glass jar is recycled and they do not require frequent watering to survive.

Here are five easy steps to create your own indoor garden: 

Image via: West elm blog

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What you need:

• A large glass jar with a tight lid,
• Three or four small plants like ferns and mosses
• Potting soil,
• Activated charcoal,
• Pebbles and
• Few decorative knick knacks

Image via: Driven by decor blog

1. Start with a clean dry glass jar. Layer your glass jar with rocks and pebbles. The pebbles help with the drainage and the layer should be anywhere between 1 – 4 inches deep depending on the depth of your glass jar

2. Next, add a few table spoons of activated charcoal on the top. Charcoal will ensure that excess moisture is absorbed and recycled. This will help the terrarium remain clean and healthy

3. Once the base of pebbles and charcoal is ready, add the soil. Moisten it well

4. You are now ready to place the plants in the soil. Make a hole in the soil with your fingers and place your plant. Remember that the leaves of your plants should not touch the glass. The plants must be placed in the middle of the jar to avoid mold and prevent the plants from rotting. Avoid over stuffing the terrarium with plants. You can cover the soil with moss if you like.

5. Finally, you can have fun decorating your terrarium. Place plastic animals or polymer clay mushrooms. You could also place a little house to create a fairy garden. Use your imagination and add interesting elements to your indoor garden.

Image via: 8oaksterrariums

Place the terrarium in indirect sunlight and water the soil with a few table spoons of water for the first few days. If you notice any condensation, open the lid for a few hours. Most terrariums are hassle free once the ecosystem is on track. Create a few of these and you can proudly show off your cooler weather gardening and this creative terrarium.

For more gardening ideas on Stagetecture, click here.