2023 rose & health & garden & what we treasure
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Finding the Junk & Treasures we use in our Gardens
Comments (0)Image by: GJ Forum Members The junk we find Posted by Mush (Ontario) -- One of our neighbors was putting an old push lawnmower out to the curb, hoping that someone would take it. I did them that favour. I planted pansies in a bright blue cookie tin and now both have a new home! Posted by Seamommy (Texas) -- Last week my mom and I went put on trash day and in less than an hour, we found (in peoples trash) a bike (had two flat tires and the chain was off), a wooden ladder (perfect), an iron bed (not old, but perfect), and a pine porch glider (he said the seat is warped, we got a new one!) and he even helped us load it in the truck!!! Posted by Tannatonk (Montana) -- The junkin we get to do here usually consists of farmers junk piles, but I did find some old iron thingies (I think they might be some kind of old tool bar shovels) and made a nice windchime with them. For the top I used the lid off an old rusted out cream can and turned it upside down (it reminds me of an old hat - I may put some sunflowers on it). Then I drilled holes in that to hang copper tubing pieces that are between 12" & 18" long. For the middle clanger I used an old piece of fancy iron that my friend gave me. I think it was off an old stove. It's really ornate. The whole thing is so heavy but looks really cool. And, I think I'll use the bottom of the cream can as a pedastal for a penny bowling ball that my friend is making for me. It's about 2 feet tall. Posted by lorraine (New Jersey) -- Went to one rummage sale and broke the cardinal rule of rummaging - never put down something you're unsure of until you're ready to leave cause someone else will surely pick it up - and they did. It was only a book with some bird prints in it that I thought I could decoupage on a tray - what was I thinking! Then we headed out to a town-wide garage sale, but like I said it was cold and drizzly and I didn't feel much like getting in and out of the car in that, but we turned around in a church parking lot and they had a sale inside. Found a huge metal colander - 16" across - told the ladies I was going to make a lampshade out of it - it kept me dry walking back to the car at least! In a nutshell: Do Not Wait Any Longer - Grab the stuff when you see it. Chances are great that it won't be there if you procrastinate and wait to go back to get it. What's the worst that could happen--you end up throwing it out yourself if you decide you don't want it after all. Posted by klynnnn (South Carolina) -- I always grab first and sort later and when I'm at a rummage sale or something similar, I always watch for someone else who is "sorting" their items before checking out to see what they're leaving behind, and I alwaystake that 2nd and 3rd trip around just to make sure I didn't miss that "perfect something"... Posted by Monarae (Iowa) -- I went to town tonight. Its 2 days until clean up day for our town. I live by a small town (500 people if we are lucky) and I went around town to see what is around and about. I found a double galvanized wash tub on legs! But its full of the folk's stuff that they want to get rid of too! Now I have to convince hubby that we should take a large cardboard box in and put the stuff into it and get the wash tub. Any suggestions on how to sweet talk him into this one? hehe! Posted by hopeful_in_Brevard (Florida) -- Went to an estate sale this morning. Found an old icecream chair. (White). Got it for a dollar. Wasn't sure what I was going to do with it. Took the seat out, found a pot just the right size to fit in it. Planted a miniture pink rose and a cascading Bacopa "Giant Snowflake". I know this isn't an original idea, but it all fit so perfect and it really makes me feel good. Posted by littleredhen (Zone 6) -- My husand and I were recently at his parent's home. They are getting their driveway paved and had a ton of stuff in and around the driveway that needed to be moved. My father-in-law is a junk man beyond belief. He has stuff everywhere, from alongside the driveway, to the backyard, to the garage, to the front porch! Like even stupid junk like a washer or a screw is laying alongside the driveway. Then there is rusted stuff, an old teapot, a ton of garage doors, metal porch railings and more. My husband is straddling stuff in the garage, as we hand him things. He notices a giant box of mixer blades....... maybe fifty or more blades. I brought home a few of the blades, thinking that they should be made into a windchime or something. Was I nuts for bringing these home?? (The answer to this question, of course, was "No, you're not - that's perfectly good junk!) Posted by Bonnyleigh (North Carolina) -- Today was the rirst time I've ever truly junked. I'm a compulsive yard saler, but today I was really too broke even to yard sale. I was going to all these yard sales in these good neighborhoods and started to notice the trash at the curbs. Monday is bulk pickup time. I was a little embarrassed at first.. people looking at me like i'm crazy.. but ended up with about 20 or so pots, two plastic chairs.. wanted to paint them with Kyrlon... And a wooden chair that i've planted... and a few other things. Nothing profound.. but all those pots will come in handy when I have to pot up my flat of shastas in a couple of months..... But, now I'm addicted.. all day I've been like why don't I go back out and see what else I find.. It's such a rush.. Still no bowling ball though.. I want one so bad... Posted by JeanInWa (Washington) -- I went yard sailing with a friend who has a BIG pick up truck....boy did we make out! She bought a nice dresser for her sister for $3, and an old beat up one for her to plant for $1. I got a headboard for $1 for the back of a bench. I did my first REAL junking. We passed the place where the bentwood rocker was on the burn pile last week end, and it was still there. So, I had her drive up to the house, and I asked if I could have it. LoL The guy looked at me kinda funny, and said it didn't have a seat, and it was falling apart, and I said, great! That's just what I want! Posted by Chatty_Bloomer (North Carolina) -- I had to work at an estate sale Saturday. I love it.......they never miss my bids and I get paid to shop....LOL!! I bought an oak washstand ($5.00) and a walnut turned leg waredrobe ($10.00) that I will be stripping and refinishing for my house. I got an old iron pedal car (with only 1 wheel) that someone had tried to restore but they did a very poor job. I painted it fire engine red and it will go in my son's secret garden with a plant in the seat. I got 3 boxes of clear glass insulators, which we are going to use as hose guides in the flower beds. I got a headboard and footboard to make my mom a bench for her birthday. DH got it put together yesterday and I began painting it. I will post pic when complete. I also got a large footed colbalt blue bowl......I got paid, bought some stuff and still came home with more money than I left with.....LOL!! I would say that's a great junkin' day. Posted by papadon (Tennessee) -- I sit here this morning at the computer and am also looking out the window at my backyard. The sun is gently shining, the wetness from yesterday's rains is sparkling, the birds are singing, the feeders are full, flowers are blooming, the yard is alive. From my window I can see a candle lantern in the maple tree, along with a pvc pipe spinner and several small hanging pots. Then I look and see the swing, with the planted wheelbarrow next to it. A shepherd's hook with another bird feeder. My bed with the courting bench and all of it's developing color is also in view. These things were junk to someone else. Trash even. But in them I find beauty. I find a joy in making them come to life as a piece of art and not just someone else's trash or discards. All this just serves to remind me that there is beauty and value in everything and everyone. We just have to look for it and then find ways to help it show............. May you always have pretty blooms, bountiful junk, just enough rain and sunshine, along with time to care and a joy to share. Blessings and peace to you! (Pictures, from top to bottom, belong to members: janetgia, FlowerGirlDeb2 and FishFan)...See MoreApril 6, 2016 - Tips for: roses, garden, health, happiness, recipes
Comments (19)Safety tips for the garden: NEVER USE GAS nearby a flame source, like a pilot light in a water-heater, or furnace, or a tiny ember. One neighbor used gasoline to kill a big & thorny rose grafted on Dr. Huey: she poured on the rose, then put a trash-can-lid over it so it could not get rain. That surely destroyed the soil. During my volunteer days in rehab (decades ago), I still remember a man, burnt badly from head to toe ... he was in utter misery. He told me how he did it: through using gasoline to kill a patch of poison ivy. Another man did the same and became a human fireball, except he attempted to light some wood in a wrought iron outdoor fireplace, the $99 type at HomeDepot. He could not get fire started, so he grabbed the red-can of gasoline container (for mowing the lawn).. it has just a little of gas inside. He thought he could splash just a tiny bit of gas onto the barely alive flicker on the log .. but that tiny flame ignited the fumes and shoot the flame into the gas can and caused a HUGE EXPLOSION .. and he became a fireball. Luckily there's a pond 12 yards away, and he jumped into it .. alive, but in the hospital for months with 17 very painful skin-grafts. He wrote his near-death-experience and time in hell (after death) in the below Amazon book-on-line. Just click on the book and Amazon shows the first few pages of the book, where he landed in hell after death. He's an assistant principal at an elementary school. http://www.amazon.com/Hell-Real-Too-Death-Experience-ebook/dp/B018UYNQCG/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1460265353&sr=1-9&keywords=hell#reader_B018UYNQCG There's another sad & true story of a teenager boy was chopping wood with a chain-saw, he ran out of gas, and it's freezing cold outside, so he brought the gas can down the basement to re-fill his chain-saw, except there's a furnace down the basement (with flame inside) .. the entire basement exploded, killing the boy. Another near-death experience involved a man came back to his old house on sale .. the water was turned off, so he could not wash his hands after spraying a wasp-nest with wasp-spray. He got some wasp-spray on his hands, was hungry so he ate his sandwich, noticed a strange taste .. he got ill, and was in a coma & had a near-death-experience (went to heaven) then hospitalized for 6 months before he could walk again....See MoreSpring 2023 - What Roses Are You Planting In Your Garden?
Comments (1412)Kimberly - do you want to start a new Summer thread...it's a bit long to be running the Spring Seasonal thread. :) :) Kitty - Oh, that naughty Houzz. That can be so frustrating. Yeah, that'll be fun to grow them at the same time. :) :) Thank you about my yard and the wedding. I'm really hoping that my passifloras can start growing (seriously...they've done nothing all summer)...wouldn't they be beautiful along an arbor for Kedra/Chloe to get married? I'm going to grow them next year...and if they still don't do anything, I'll toss them. Rats. Plus, with their big leaves they get really torn apart by all the hail we get. That's a good idea about getting the soil ready for poppies in 2024. What kind of flowers did you get at Lowes? GardenNut - excellent about the lemon tree! You'll be selling glasses of lemonade in front of your house in no time. LOL :) Yeah, I don't think it's asking too much for our roses/plants to get it together and WOW us. :) :) Kitty - uh oh. I didn't see that coming. Your peony poppies got knocked to the ground by the rain. With our hail and downpours, I'm thinking that these poppies may not be a good idea. I was really excited about having them in the wedding bouquet. I guess I'll just try and see how it goes. :) Oh my gosh, your Gladiolas are sooo beautiful!!! I'm wondering about the flowers you've planted in the circle...will they be too short to be seen once the roses grow? I love your Mandevilla!!! Wonderful!! Your Rosemantic Fuchsia looks great! I'm starting to love my Rosemantic Cream...the blooms look like peony poppies...all stuffed with petals. Everything looks wonderful in your yard. :)...See MoreAccessible gardening 2023 - what does yours look like?
Comments (3)I really like trellis gardening. I do have about 7 70 gallon raised food-grade stock tanks, so I don't have to lean over all the way to the ground for tomatoes, beans, peppers, herbs, etc. The only down sound is they require watering quite often. The 2 kinds of trellises I have are: My grown children's big old swing set. I took all the swings/slide off and lined most of one side with something like concrete reinforcing mesh. I grow Waltham butternut squash up that. Then I also lined the 2 ends with that wire/mesh and I can grow pole beans up those. Then I bought a cattle panel and shaped it into an arch and put in some metal stakes by the sides to keep it in place. I grow cucumbers up both sides of that. These systems work great! I do help the vines grow upward by using some bungee cords to train them to go upwards. I just love trellis gardening!...See Morejim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6strawchicago z5
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agoingrid_vc zone 10 San Diego County
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked ingrid_vc zone 10 San Diego Countystrawchicago z5
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agojim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6strawchicago z5
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agojim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6ingrid_vc zone 10 San Diego County
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked ingrid_vc zone 10 San Diego Countyjim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6strawchicago z5
6 months agojim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6strawchicago z5
6 months agostrawchicago z5
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agojim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
6 months agolast modified: 6 months agostrawchicago z5 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6strawchicago z5
6 months agolast modified: 6 months ago
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