Garden2Blog12 - The Garden Home Retreat

This spring I was honored to be invited to attend P. Allen Smith's Garden 2 Blog 2012, when a couple dozen garden bloggers gathered in Little Rock, Arkansas for a rollicking good time that included a day at his Garden Home Retreat.  

It was wonderful being able to visit the farm for a second time, in a different season.  Last fall after being one of three winners of a photo contest sponsored by Garden Safe, the Lawn Man and I were treated to an all-expenses-paid trip to the farm for an event called A Tale of Two Farms.  Like this time, I did a slideshow of the event so I could cram as many pictures as possible into one post.  If you missed it, you can see the slideshow from last fall here.  

This isn't a wordy post, and without further ado, hope you enjoy this photo visit to the Garden Home Retreat at Moss Mountain.

Attendees at Garden2Blog 2012 received transportation, hotel accommodations, and meals at no cost. Event sponsors provided samples and product giveaways with no cost or obligation.  All opinions in this post are mine.

Garden2Blog - The City Garden Home: Container Inspiration

After lunch and an information-packed presentation by Jay Baer, social media guru, day one of Garden2Blog continued with a tour of the gardens at The City Garden Home, P. Allen Smith's original Garden Home.

Some of the cool things about the City Garden Home were its story (bought for $1.00 and moved from its original location,) its modest size, practical inspiration for both simple. and extravagant gardening and hardscape projects, the raised veggie beds, and the container plantings.

Containers at the Little Rock Garden Home, and at the Garden Home Retreat at Moss Mountain Farm, were surprisingly simple - often containing just one or two plant varieties.  Pots were clustered in groups, used as focal points, and placed right into the gardens.

They defied the 'thriller, spiller, filler'  convention to great effect, don't you think?

These simple container designs could easily be duplicated by anyone, including newbie gardeners.

This is a great time of year in the Chicago area and all around the Midwest to be inspired  by container plantings.

Nurseries have their biggest, and best selections right now,

and even someone who's intimidated by the idea of planting an ornamental container garden on a patio, deck, path, porch,  or anywhere,

can take comfort and find inspiration in these simple, beautiful, effective designs.

And while you're at it, consider planting a few herbs, too!  Herbs are fantastic in containers, look pretty, smell wonderful, and will inspire and flavor your meals all season long.

Attendees at Garden2Blog 2012 received transportation, hotel accommodations, and meals at no cost. Event sponsors provided samples and product giveaways with no cost or obligation.  All opinions in this post are mine.