Like most gardeners I have the standard mix of shovels and trowels and clippers (okay, so I actually have a shed full of stuff). But there are a few tools and accessories that I find very useful. Thought you might be interested to see what items I keep coming back to. Anyone have other recommendations?

Ethel's Houndtooth Garden Gloves: $20 at Terrain

1. Good Gardening Gloves:

I have been on the search for the perfect pair of Gardening Gloves for a couple of years. I find that the thin ones tend to rip at the fingertips and become useless and the bulkier suede/leather ones don’t give a good feel. They are fine for raking, but when it comes to getting your hands in the dirt they aren’t very helpful. I also have smallish hands so I also needed a pair that came in sizes. I had almost given up when I came across these at Terrain at Styers this Spring. So far I LOVE them. They keep my hands clean, they are nicely fitted and give good hand feel, but they are durable enough that they don’t have any sign of wear (just lots of DIRT). As an added bonus I don’t have big blisters and callouses on my hands and my nails stay nice and clean!

Mini Shovel: $14.50 @ Lee Valley

2. The Mini Shovel:

This is new to my arsenal. It arrived  just as I was dividing some perennials last month. I don’t know how I gardened without it. There are lots of times when I am in a planting bed where my small shovel is not big enough but a full size shovel or spade is too big or awkward to use. This solves the problem. The kids also love using it, since it is just their size! By the way I am now in love with Lee Valley. They have lots of interesting gardening and woodworking products (that you don’t find anywhere else). My neighbors introduced me to them (Thanks Eils!)

Steppin' Edger: $28.75 @ Amazon

3. The Steppin’ Edger

This product totally looks like a gimmick, but when our half moon edger broke (after many years of service) I was interested in other options. My husband and I are both big believers in good edging. Every spring we edge the beds and create a little moat between the grass and the bed. Then you fill part of it with mulch and it provide a place to monitor weeds growing into the garden and most importantly it gives a nice finished appearance to the bed. Anyway, we had also tried electric edgers without much luck. Well once I got this, last year I couldn’t help myself! I edged and edged and edged. It still works better when the ground is damp from a rain but it worked MUCH faster than a traditional edger. It takes a little getting use to but now I would never got back! It is also much easier on the arms, shoulders and back!

Velcro Tape: $2.97 at Home Depot

4. Velcro Tape:

I know it sounds so simple, but this stuff is great. You just cut it to size you need and loop it around the plant that you need to tie. Plus it is easy to adjust and you can take it off and reuse it! The only downside is that you need a pair of scissors to cut it. You use to have to order it online but now Home Depot and everyone else seems to sell it.

Japanese Weeder: $19.50 @ Lee Valley

5. Japanese Weeder:

I don’t have this exact model since I bought mine at the defunct Smith and Hawken but mine looks very similar. These are handy little tools (although they are sharp so I have to keep mine from the kids). They do a really nice job of removing weed seedlings around your perennials without disturbing anything else. One thing to note is that they are “handed” so make sure you order the right (or my case left) one.

I’ve had a request for plant combinations for window boxes. I love window boxes. I have several and I am contemplating more.There are lots of books and articles on window boxes but I thought I would give you some of my preferences and opinions. I have also posted these and some additional images and links on Pinterest (which I am addicted to now).

Getting Started:

Self-Watering from Gardener's Supply, $29+

Self-Watering Insert, Gardener's Supply $16+

Hydromat, Gardener's Supply $9.95+

1. Picking a pot:

For a sunny location you will need either a self-watering box/pot (it has an extra reservoir of water below to help keep the plants roots moist) or a kit to add a reservoir to the bottom. Alternately you could add a hydromat to the bottom of an existing pot.

If you are growing to grow some of the larger veggies or house plants I recommend getting one that it a little deeper.

I have several self-watering ones that I love from Gardener’s Supply.

Potting Soil w/ Water Crystals

Vermont Company Fertilizer

Organic Slow Release Fertilizer

2. The Soil:

You will need sterile potting soil. Potting soil is lighter than regular soil. I also strongly recommend the soil that has crystals to store water. You can also buy soil that has some fertilizer already in it.

3. Fertilize:

I have to admit that I am totally lazy about fertilizing, but for these kind of conditions the plants could really use it. You can use the slow release dry kind or a liquid fertilizer. There are a lot to choose from. If possible look for an organic one such as one from Vermont Compost (which I have used).

4. Picking a Location:

For most vegetables and herbs you will need at sun to part sun. For shadier locations there are a lot of house plants that will do well, but not as many veggies.

Plant Types:

The typical plant recommendation for window boxes and planters are to use 3 types of plants: low vines for the the front, bushier middle plants and tall back ground plants.

Lately I have been looking for alternatives to the traditional annual selections. I am particularly interested in combining perennials with edibles and houseplants. Perennials cut down on the cost of buying annuals every year (plus they typically look good into the winter) and I am always looking for a spot to grow some fruit and vegetables. I also have a number of house plants that I like to get outside in the warm weather. Below are some suggestions. Do you have any recommendations?

Also here is an interesting and helpful article on edible window boxes.

Nasturtium (Jewel of Africa), Parks Seed

Strawberry (Tristan), Strawberry Seed Store

Sweet Potato Vine (non-edible)

1. Front of Window Box/ Planter: Low Vines & Trailers

Traditional Annuals include: sweet potato vine (available in lime green, red, and purple), variegated ivy, variegated vinca, petunias (trailing kind), Cotoneaster, Solanum laxu, Golden Moneywort, Silver Falls Dichondra

House Plant Alternates:Ivy, hen and checks (not trailers but pretty)

Edible Alternates: Nasturtium, strawberries, peas (pea tendrils are tasty in salads)

Perennials: Ivy, vinca, lamium (I grow this in my part shade flower boxes)

Lettuce, Parks Seed

Mustard (Red Giant), Parks Seed

Mizuna, Parks Seed

2. Middle of the Planter: Bushier medium height plants

Annual examples include: coleus (my favorite) petunias, pansies (in fall and spring), Geraniums

House Plant Alternates: Jade Tree

Edible Alternates: Red and Green Leaf Lettuces, Frisee, Basil, Oregano, Mint, Rosemary, Spinach, Redux (part shade), Curly Parsley

Perennials: Hosta (shade), sedge (shade), heuchera (part shade)

Chives, Parks Seed

Swiss Chard, Park Seed

Bromeliad

3.Back of the Planter: Tall background plants

Annual examples include: cordylines, Colocasia

House Plant Alternates: aloe plants, spider plants, snake plant (Sansevieria), Bromeliads

Edible Alternates: Chives, Scallions, Swiss Chard, Small Pepper Plant (i.e. habaneros)

The Arbor installed (and yes there are little fireman boots sticking out from the bottom)

Well it took well over a year to actually order an arbor, assemble it, stain it and install it but it is finally done (except for painting the brackets)! We put it up yesterday and managed to get it anchored into the ground shortly before dark. I apologize that the pictures aren’t better, but I it is rainy this morning so I am using the pics from last night from the small camera. For those who might not have seen the previous posts on this topic.  This post shows the arbors I was considering and this post shows the staining in progress.

Rough placement before the install.

Simpson E-Z Mender, Home Depot $10 2-pack

Simpson E-Z Spike, Home Depot $17

Aussie Auger Arbor Support, Sam's Club $65

Mayne Mailbox Anchor, Amazon $29.99

Anchor/Footing Options

After I decided on an arbor, I had to figure out how to install it so it wouldn’t fall over in the wind and would be nice and stable for my 2 rambunctious children. I thought there would be supports readily available, but I was totally wrong! I didn’t want to put in concrete footing, partially out of pure laziness but also because there are a lot of tree roots in the area and I didn’t want to disturb them more than I had to. Also more digging meant more digging out of my perennials. So  I searched the internet for anchoring options. I found a couple of options if you had a 4×4 post (i.e. for a mailbox or fence post) or were installing a plastic arbor but nothing that would work for my arbor that was made out of 1×4 cedar. I finally decided to go over to Home Depot and see what they had. After almost giving up, I finally found something that seemed doable (and not really expensive)! I found the E-Z Mender by Simpson Strong-Tie a fence post mender which came in a 2 pack (typically one for each side of a 4×4 post). At $10 a pack it was quite a bit cheaper than the other options I had looked at. It also would fit the side of my 1×4 cedar perfectly. It also had 4 screw holes for the connection. So I picked up 2 2-packs (1 for each corner of the arbor).These should sit near the frost line (which should minimize frost heave).

Marked the corners w/ sticks

First Support Installed

Clamping the arbor to the support

Finishing screwing in one of the supports

Support Completed

Arbor immediately being used by kids!

The Install

1. Locate the Arbor
2. Put sticks just to the outside of the 4 corners to mark the placement.
3. Move the arbor
4. The ground wasn’t flat so I dug out a little bit on the higher side.
5. Pick a corner to start and using a mallet hammer the top into the ground. Check after a few swings for plumb and level. I needed Mr. S’s strong arms to get the support all the way in the ground. I was fine for the first half but I think I would have been there all day pounding on it to get it in the rest of the way.
6. We decided to set these so that the 4 screw holes were visible and above grade. We also decided to have the arbor sit above the grade by about an inch (to minimize rot).
7. After we finished putting in the first one we checked to see how it fit. Everything seemed fine. We then located the second support and moved the arbor back out of the way.
8. We hammered in the second support while checking with a straight piece of wood on the flat side to make sure that the 2 supports were in alignment. To level we placed the straight piece of wood on top with a level.
9. We put the arbor back into place to locate the 2 front supports. Because the supports are designed to be hammered from a hunch on the side I hammered them into the ground a few inches to get a rough placement.
10. We carefully lifted the arbor straight up and moved it out of the way.
11. We finished hammering the 2 remaining supports. Used the piece of wood to check for level on 4 sides.
12. We carefully lifted the arbor back in. The first time it didn’t fit (it was too tight). This is where a couple of whacks of the mallet comes in handy! We hammered the sides of the supports a few times and tried again. This time they fit but a couple of them were a little too far out.
13. We carefully used clamps to get the support tight to the post. It is important not to over tighten because this could hurt the arbor. This required some pushing and pulling on the arbor while the other person tightened the clamp. We also used bricks below the arbor feet to help get it roughly level before clamping.
14. Level the 4 sides and add clamps. Alternately, if you don’t have 4 clamps screw the first corner in, then level the next corner and clamp and screw until you get all the way around. We used stainless steel screws and washers.
15. Remove clamps. I am considering permanently installing the bricks under the 4 corners for extra support.
16. Things left to do: Reinstall some perennials around the base and adjust the stone path to align with the arbor. Paint the brackets.