Planning

Autumn and Halloween Decorating

Halloween is only 12 days away. If you haven’t started your outdoor decorating now would be a good time. In my eBook “How To Have A Fun, Safe, And Decluttered Halloween” I talked about extending the season. This is where you layer your decorations for Autumn, Halloween, and then Thanksgiving.

Many seasonal materials, such as colorful leaves, gourds, pumpkins, etc. can help create an Autumn feeling outside or inside your home. Halloween decorations can be added for a couple of weeks then taken down. Then you can add Thanksgiving decorations to the Autumn ones. …

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Fall Bulb Planting

I was talking to a friend today and she mentioned about all the tulip and daffodil bulbs she was planting. I haven’t even thought that far ahead. Now is the time to plan, buy, and plant the spring flowering bulbs. It’s not too late to plant yet, because they say you can plant the bulbs up until the ground freezes. But who wants to be out digging in the soil when it gets cold out?

IMGP1528_edited-1 Looking at the pictures I took at a local park this past spring help motivate me to go out and buy some bulbs. I will put it on my shopping list. First I have to decide where and what I want to plant. Then it is important to know when I will be able to plant the bulbs.

Without a plan it is easy to buy or order lots of bulbs because the pictures on the package or in the catalog look so wonderful. Buying 100 plus bulbs will give the look above but do you have the time to plant them?

IMGP1543 Shutterstock-06_edited-1

It’s probably best to buy a few and get them planted. Then if you have time you can dig up another area of the garden, buy some more bulbs, and plant them. If you start now by doing it in stages you should be able to plant lots of bulbs before the ground freezes.

If you buy too many bulbs at one time and feel overwhelmed because you can’t find a whole weekend to plant them, you could end up with unplanted bulbs that rot over the winter. Been there, done that.

Let me know about some of your bulb planting stories.

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Houseplants in the Fall

In the Midwest, Autumn is definitely showing it’s face. Some of the trees are losing their leaves. The evenings are beginning to cool down. And the sun is setting a lot earlier than just a few weeks ago.

I have mixed feelings about this time of year. I don’t like the shorter days but the cooler weather is nice. It’s sad to see the vegetable garden looking tired and worn down.

But my houseplants, especially the flowering ones, are looking great with the cooler weather. IMGP1737They will soon have to come inside. That’s where the problem is.
As much as I love the houseplants I don’t have a lot of room to over-winter them inside. When I squeeze them in front of the windows the rooms start to look cluttered. I do have some lights on a timer in my basement for the smaller plants but the big ones are heavy to carry downstairs.

Each year I go through the same debate. Do I let the frost take them or do I bring them inside and have the room look cluttered? I’ve had many of these plants for years so it is hard to let go of them.

Maybe I will get more lights downstairs and put most of the plants there. Then if I can remember to water them on a regular basis they should survive until next spring.

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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