Can we take a break from the chilly weather
(and the snow for some of you)
and talk tropical warm weather and plants?
And spring?
And bursts of color in the garden?
Yes, please.
I think we all know that I have a huge love affair with flowers
and wee little topiaries and blooms in general.
And outdoors I indulge in that love just as much as I do indoors.
I even dug up an entire large corner of the lawn to plant a perennial garden
filled with colorful pretty flowers in bloom
complete with a little bench in the center.
But something happened.
Did you know that perennials stop blooming after awhile?
They do.
But the fun thing is-
then you get to re-plant and re-imagine your garden.
So when Lowe’s invited me to join them in Miami for a visit to Costa Farms
to see the behind the scenes of how those plants you see in Lowe’s get their start- I was excited to learn more.
And the entire process was fascinating.
From the tiny little seeds getting their start
to seeing them just starting to grow
to colorful and beautiful inspirations galore.
We toured the gardens and the greenhouses
and learned how much goes into each plant becoming the best.
And – it is a lot.
Some of the amazing plants we learned about:
Succulents.
Big and small.
Seriously such a cute little planter too.
Pops of color.
These are all hand painted.
To something fascinating about orchids in Florida.
Did you know that you can tie and orchid to a palm tree
and it just might grow right there?
Yes, it is true. And amazing.
Aside from the behind the scenes and the secrets
we saw gorgeous color baskets blooming away
talked about trends in gardens and containers
toured a ‘she shed’
and I fell in love with the flowers and plants over and over again.
That evening,
Monrovia hosted a cocktail reception in the garden
complete with comfy furniture
and pretty ambiance
and then we moved on over to another spot in the garden
for a dinner under the stars.
It was an amazing event and we learned so much about all that goes into breeding
and growing the perfect plant and creating a beautiful garden.
I want to thank Lowe’s, Costa Farms and Monrovia
for a wonderful couple of days in Miami!
And…
I have a super exciting and fun
project coming up that I can hardly wait to share with you.
Stay tuned for details.
Hope your Wednesday is off to a great start!
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Unknown says
Amazing pics.thank your for your post.i am still waiting for summer
rosekraft says
Loved the greenhouse tour, but the painted cacti just make me sad….
What flowers did you plant in your garden that stopped blooming?
Perennials will flourish for years and years, but do need to be divided every so often.
Courtney says
There were a whole bunch – digitalis, scabiosa for a couple of them.I pretty much bought a lot of pretty faces! 😉 It was something I didn't think about at the time- but yeah, they lasted maybe 5 years? or so and then just stopped. Wish I had known at the time about dividing them.
Unknown says
What a wonderful way to spend a few days! I too am looking forward to Spring to be able to start putting out some colorful baskets and seeing my roses blooming.
Courtney says
Me too! 🙂
rosekraft says
Love foxglove – they reseed like crazy here in my San Francisco backyard.
Could I share an image from a few years ago?
http://www.rosekraft.blogspot.com/2011/05/garden-snapshot-volunteers.html
Courtney says
So pretty!! I would have loved if mine would have re-seeded! I will have to plant some new ones this year!
Finding Grace Interiors says
Courtney looks like you had a fabulous time in Miami! It must of being so interesting to learn the whole process of growing beautiful plants! As I am covered in snow, I can only dream of a beautiful and colorful spring and patiently wait for it!! Have a wonderful day!
lynn cockrell says
What a fun trip that must have been! I love the car tire planters with pink paint. I remember the tire planters from three or four decades ago, but they were mostly left black or painted white. I didn't ever have any in my yard or garden back then but I thought they were a pretty smart way of containing plantings. Funny how times change and things once considered tacky are now the new "trends." I love it!
Nikki says
Wow! What a dream trip!
My Cozy Casita says
It was nice to know you was hire in Miami oh yes all my orchid they attach to my tree my are full of flower this year they are in the from of my house people stop there car to look are them with different color not only that you take coconu
She'll and you put much inside and plant the orchids in there
I'm glad you enjoy been in Miami nice picture
Blessing
Isora
Unknown says
Wow that looks like an amazing event!! So cool to see how plants grow on a large scale. Dinner under the stars so perfect and those hanging lights LOVE!
Lauren | Lovely Decor
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