newhostalady..we had 1 Japanese maple when we moved in..the biggest one closest to the house in back..the neighbor behind me saw this house go up..she said the builder planted it..we planted ALL of the others..I'm so happy that I was a planting maniac in my early years here..we have beauty and more privacy..my hard work has paid off..not just the trees but the other plants too..my hostas are big and I love them..even if I never bought another plant (won't happen lol) the difference between the day we moved in and now is amazing in my opinion..some hydrangea pics from this morning..

they don't thrive here (too cold) but they were cute today..I would love to get my hands on one of those orange Japanese maples..that would be my excuse to buy it.."I don't have an orange one.." lol

I agree that you did an awesome job landscaping your property. The fact that you began earlier made all the difference. People, I think, tend to leave landscaping for after house renovations. But we all know, plants need time to grow and establish themselves to their full potential.

I am going to try growing Japanese Maples in containers and see if I will be successful. I am going to be on the hunt for them next year. Unfortunately, I just heard at my horticultural society that my largest garden centre will be closing in 2020. I have another long time garden centre set to shut down in 2020 also. Not sure where I am going to go to get my plant fix!

newhostalady..what a compliment!..thank you so much..I haven't tried Japanese maples in a container..there's a maple forum isn't there?..I would check it for information..that's sad to hear about the garden centers closing..at least they gave you some notice..you have time to make plans..when I feel frustrated that the garden needs work it helps to look at pics..you can see the plant growth and the progress and it's rewarding..

Currently I only have two JM. One is in rough shape so I'll be asking the Maple forum for advice. The other is very small and I just got it this fall. It was cheap and I will use it to experiment on. I'll be keeping it in a container, and I'll have to learn how to prune it.

I usually do my picture sorting in the winter. It's so easy to take pictures with your phone, but then you end of with so many!

Sorry to hear that your plant centers are closing...maybe a good opportunity for getting a few plants cheaper...but what will you do afterwards? I order nearly all my plants online because the garden centers around here do not have what I want. Where I live you have no chance to get interesting plants...

I always raise my trees from seedlings which I find on my bike tours or can collect in friends gardens as tiny babies. It works well in pots as long as you water them enough. I make sure that I do it by often combining them with hosta/ pot-in-pot-method.

On the left a small maple with Lemon Lime and right jsut a normal maple which I cut to keep it small together with Praying Hands.

I took out Praying Hands in late summer because it needed a bigger pot.

Another one in an old wooden potato box and my lovely red one, a few cold hardy succulents and a red grass which I added only a few weeks ago. I hope it will look nice next year.

A baby which is giving shade to three of my mini hosta...

A robinia in a plant bag...

Karin, after those two nurseries close, I will have one more left. It happens to be the closest one to me---a large chain that has been around for decades. But it is about one-quarter the size of the largest one that is going to be closing. Where will I get my hostas? My horticultural society does a bus tour once a year and they usually stop in at a garden nursery (usually a hosta nursery). So that will be an opportunity to get some hosta. I suppose mail order will be a choice or a long car ride!

It is nice that you are able to find some interesting seedlings to grow. It sounds like a lot of fun to look for seedlings and to see them grow. I love your seedling arrangements! The young ones are so cute and full of potential!

last night our overnight low was 19° ..equal to -7.222 C...today I stepped out just once..I went to my mailbox by the curb..the hostas and shrubs are shriveling now :-( the maples are still beautiful but maybe not for long..no snow but it feels like winter..

Yeah, 19 would feel like winter! We've gotten down to 24F (-4C), but what I'm dreading is when that's the daytime high temp. Even my Halcyon is down for the winter. That's always the one that snaps me out of my denial.

Same kind of temperatures here. I don't like seeing my hostas disappear. I thought that June had some interesting color yesterday.

The hosta are all gone now and the last bit of colour comes from one of my small maples...

newhostalady..your June is beautiful!..mine were frozen before the fall color was here..I just now took these pics..they're probably my final fall pics..the colorful leaves are falling and the green leaves are shriveling..pics from now on won't be too pretty..

#1 the backyard has color..Kousa dogwood is pretty..#2 the maple color has faded a bit..#3 Kousa dogwood in front..(I have 4 Kousas..3 have color..the biggest is green!)..#4 this pic is a joke..ONE stem of fall color on this viburnum lol..#5 the margins on First Frost lost their light color..they're soft and dark..this leaf was folded and I flipped it open..see the crease?..#6 Fragrant Blue..flat and limp..#7 Junes going down but still green..#8 a June on the right..this is a path!..we have sooo many leaves..#9 these hydrangeas say it all..fall is finished..winter is here in my opinion..

Karin..your maple is gorgeous..

I love the color of your small maple Karin!

Thanks for the lovely mini tour of your garden nicholsworth! There's a lot of life still there. Many are fighting the urge to go down for the winter! Poor hydrangeas! Will all your leaves get composted?

newhostalady..thanks!..the unchipped side of the bin is full again (third time)..we will be chipping tomorrow (so that we can refill it lol)..supposed to be warmer than today..we never throw away leaves..believe me it would be easier..but I love having compost..I feel good about what we do with our little spot of earth :-)

Sometimes what is the easiest, is not the best! I believe that getting rid of the leaves would be easier, but your compost must be heavenly and much loved by your garden! And you should certainly feel good about what you are doing!

what you said is so true!!..not just in gardening but everything..it wouldn't work for me to do what's easy..I'd hate the way it was and would redo it..taking even MORE time lol...

I would love to have my own compost, but the landlord insists to empty the compost every few months and it is never enough time to get good compost. He says he is afraid that mice and rats would gather and on top the neighbour is throwing the used rabbit straw on it and I'm not really sure if that much manure and pee would be good for the plants. So I buy worm compost every year to give my plants a good start in spring...

we're lucky..no rats ever and very few mice..we've caught a few outside..I've never had a mouse in the house..our compost bin has chipped yard debris, coffee grounds, brown coffee filters (I tear them up) and fruit and vegetable scraps..that's it..our compost looks and smells great..

I think the mice come with the rabbit. His house is side by side with the compost and I sometimes see that mice are feeding on his food...they seem to live together and we catch them from time to time. But there are always more...

I also keep my coffee ground, let it dry and mix it with soil in spring :-)

Got another 'no' hosta yesterday, it's too cute not to show you...

Baby Agave...

it makes sense that the mice are attracted to the rabbit's food..rats probably like the rabbit's food too..your new agave is cute!..we chipped just half of our debris before it was dark..and tonight the forecast says "a wintry mix of snow and sleet"..it happens every year..our debris gets wet :-( ..well tomorrow we'll get a day off!!..

We have mice outside too. I believe it is primarily because I feed the birds. (That brings a lot of critters into our garden.) Most years I see evidence that there has been a mouse or two overwintering my our small shed---there will be a shredded garden glove or rag neated nestled into a corner. Generally it is not that much of a problem except I worry when I store hosta pots in there. I think they might eat the hosta crowns. That reminds me---I had better ask my hubby if we have any mouse bait! Yes, baby agave is cute Karin!

my poor trees are weighed down with ice..it's just 1° above freezing so I doubt if it melts today..everything is drooping :-(

update..temp is 7° higher and the maple is much better..

Ice is the worst! It can look pretty, but it easily does a lot of damage to plant life. Glad you had warmer temperatures to melt it away.

I'm so glad the ice disappeared!..I hope that your snow's gone too..now we can finish our winter preparation chores..

Good that the ice melted!

We had a week with frosty nights and the last leaves have fallen. So I cleaned the rest of the hosta pots and the area areoun the ginko and now I'm done outside.

I miss the big tree which has been in front of the house on the left side...

But at least it is green inside :-)

Karin..I'm jealous!..I wish I was finished with my fall clean up..we raked yesterday and today but not all of our leaves have dropped..there's definitely more to do..all of my pots are now inside or stored in the shed..I bought some plastic children's plates to use as saucers for my inside pots..I removed the ash seeds from a couple of pots today..my black colocasia leaves have continued to yellow one by one..your alocasia looks good :-)

Nice setup indoors Karin! Lots of green inside to keep you busy!

I'm still getting ready for winter too Nicholsworth. I raked some leaves today and put away some hosta pots. I still have more pots to put away. It's supposed to get real cold on Wednesday so I hope I can accomplish a lot tomorrow.

newhostalady..I worked on the pots in my entryway..I cleaned debris off the tops..I emptied 3 of them..I saved the caladiums to use in different pots next year..bit by bit both of us are making progress :-)

We had the first snow yesterday, just a little bit, but awful cold winds are coming from the east...

My new plant/sport room keeps me busy...tending my babies or doing a round on my crosstrainer while thinking about new additions :-) I made a plan that I'm only allowed to order a new plant per 5 km/day on my trainer :-) I will be well trained at the end of the winter...

your plant room/gym is so useful!..what a great room!..

Karin, I like your plan of only ordering a new plant per 5 km/day on your trainer. How is it working so far?

I was impressed with how well the Cheesecake Factory restaurant seems to be looking after their plants:

Actually I'm already doing 6km/day. I started 6 weeks ago with 3km/day and I'm a little proud that I came this far...I want to reach 10 per day until spring comes again but I'm not sure if I can make it. one km takes a bit more than 6 minutes and I need breaks because I have problems with my right food.

Cheesecake factory sounds good, I wish we had something like this over here! I love New York cheesecake :-) Which kind of plants do they protect this way?

This is what I earned last week...9 plants for the costs of two hosta...

Karin your doing great on your trainer! You are definitely setting a good example for all of us here on the forum.

I don't know what plants are under the burlap at the Cheesecake Factory. I meet with a friend at a shopping mall where this restaurant is located. In summer season they set out tables situated behind the planters. This is a popular restaurant in the U.S., but we only have one in our area. I am curious about the plants too. I'll definitely be on the lookout next summer.

newhostalady..that IS surprising that the Cheesecake Factory is protecting those plants!..I've never seen any business do that here..well Karin you're outdoing me in plant care AND exercising!!..oh well I'll keep trying to catch up :-)

After a few weeks of hard work in my plant room I'm back with a few pictures :-) I hope you have meanwhile cleaned your gardens? We had the first real rain since May this weekend, it was pouring down for 3 days and more to come...

I fixed lifesaver plankets to all walls and shelves in my plantroom and that gives an amazing amount of additional light for my babies.

The Elephant Ears are nearly all cut and dormant, only Alocasia and Xanthosoma are still green and happy on the kitchen table. Now the long waiting begins...

nice to hear from you Karin!..fun to see pics..the EEs look great..I've been following another of newhostalady's posts so we've had some conversation..my dishwasher (14 yrs old) leaked just a tiny bit..time to replace..a few days of shopping (stressful,tedious) and I bought one..was installed on Mon..kitchen's still not back together..stuff on my dining table..plant cart's in the dining room..

the hibiscus looks good..2 black EEs look weak but have new leaves..I've removed several brittle dry leaves before they disintegrate and make a mess..left the fleshy stems to dry naturally..storing pots (caladiums,alocasia,curcuma) in this planter box..my alocasia is temporarily in a small pot..has a tiny tip on one stem..see it?..I can't wait for the outside layers to fall off the stems..they're ugly..
the shoe boxes have EEs..I would like to remove this planter..I would never want to put soil in it..removing it scares me..lots of trouble and how would it look?..I would rather have the floor space and hang a nice large mirror on the wood..I would reuse the wood..patch it in to the floor..any suggestions anyone?..we want to replace the entry and kitchen floors..they need to match!..I HATE the current floors..the work on a house just never ends right?..this canna is slow to die back..I still have plants in the laundry room and master bath that are dying back (cannas,caladiums)..the tuberous begonias may not come back but I kept them..the view from the kit sink this morning..now we need a post titled winter is here..the Junes still had firmly attached leaves the last time I looked a few days ago..we worked hard and chipped all of our raked leaves but of course more have fallen since..it's impossible to get every leaf..but we're finished and it truly is just fine as it is :-)

update..I moved the cart back into the kitchen..we went shopping so the house is still messy..my cart (love it)..

I'm enjoying this alternanthera..I cut it back before I brought it in..it's grown quite a bit..too much flash in this pic..it's so dark out the house is dark too!..

Lol, Ann, on first sight I thought your indoor planter was an ice box:-) I would put a few plants in it which do not need much water, succulents maybe Euphorbia. But it is really deep and I wouldn't like such a big amount of soil inside. Who knows what might life there...maybe you can raise the bottom to a normal level with a wooden construction and then I could immagine a little garden with ferns or something. I'm not good in making plans, it's more that suddenly I have a picture in my head and it has to be done :-)

I had a problem with my washing machine and the fridge this year, needed new ones...would have liked to spend that money otherwise...

I like the look of your kitchen with the steep roof but I do not like the colour of the wood. It would be much brighter inside painted white. You already have the problem with not enough light from outside and that would weigh me down. I'm a fan of white walls :-)

I love wooden floors! But I also saw a few pictures of resin floors which were amazing. Or cork...

I'm glad about the shelves I bought. They are so transparent and the plants have a lot of light and they come in a lot of different sizes. And they can be fixed with no tools at all.

Karin..haha!..I've never liked that planter box..too deep..takes up space..removing it seems like a headache and we've ignored it..the flash washed out the colors in those pics..the wood looks darker (not as orange) in person..someday I want a warmer climate and a single story house..I'm reluctant to put time or money in this house..I considered putting a piece of quartz on top of the box..and just growing potted plants..that would be the simplest solution..I need plants that live in the dark!..but my first choice is to rip it out!..I also like white walls and wood floors..one neighbor painted a lot of the wood in her house..it does feel lighter..her house was lighter than mine anyway..she doesn't have as many trees as I do..here in the woods dark wood trim doesn't bother me..it's easier to maintain than white painted trim..I think this house has a cabin/lodge feel..dark wood trim suits it..we haven't shopped for flooring..would rather go to a nursery lol..something that looks like slate sounds pretty to me..I'm curious..how old is your house?..mine is 38 years old..I noticed that both of us have dark brown and stone exteriors..

these spaces have wood ceilings and gray floors..maybe too dark for you but I like them..our kit ceiling is high with skylights so the wood doesn't bother me..other things here bother me more..like the useless planter box..even with all of it's flaws I will probably never live in a house more special than this one..

We have barn wood walls and cedar ceilings so I understand the “it’s dark inside” problem. I’ve threatened to paint the barnwood walls but DH is vociferously opposed. We do have slate in the kitchen and dining rooms. I LOVE my slate floors. They don’t show dirt and mop up easily. As far as the interior darkness, I just buy more lamps and ceiling lights. Our house is passive solar so it has massive south facing windows with big overhangs to keep the summer sun out. Kinda nice right now as the snow continues to accumulate.

Kathy..our houses are similar!..I see "beachy" spaces with white painted wood, white walls, blue accents etc and they're beautiful..but like your husband I just can't paint our woodwork..our houses are surrounded by trees and I think the dark wood and slate floors (that I hope to get) look beautiful with our natural settings..I'm glad to know that you love your slate floors..I'm sure that I would too..funny to hear you say "I just buy more lamps"..I was taking screenshots of lamps yesterday!..we also have quite a few recessed lights and track lights..your view with snow covered trees looks just like my house and neighborhood when we have snow..I saw the forecast with the high snowfall numbers..it looks like they weren't wrong!..we have next to nothing at the moment..your pic makes me tired lol..relax and enjoy your day..stay cozy inside your house..

Karin, your plant room looks so neat and tidy! The elephant ears look happy. I had never heard of lifesaver plankets. I'll have to investigate that further when I get a plant room.

Last week we experienced a lot of rain. I began worrying about the small pots that I had buried. Would they get water logged and then freeze? Now I just have to wait and see next spring.

I usually like to remove all leaves from the garden. But this year we thought we would try to mulch some of our leaves and cover up certain areas of the garden. I plan to remove the leaf mulch in the spring and incorporate it into the garden soil.

Sorry, but don't know what to suggest for your planter Nicholsworth. That alternanthera is nice! I really need to do a kitchen reno. So I think my floor is worse than yours! I have no idea what kind of floor I would like for the kitchen. Ceramic=too cold and hard on my feet. Wood=will it stand up to spills? Slate=too hard? Cork=don't know anything about it. A don't know!!! Nice cart. I think I need one!

Nice house Nicholsworth! The wood gives it a feeling of warmth for sure. For the first picture, I could visualize the ceiling (except for maybe the large beam) being white. That would make it seem brighter. Sometimes when everything is wood, then it all blends in. Hope you don't mind hearing my nondesigner thoughts!

My husband doesn't want to paint over anything wood, but I want to paint some of my furniture. He's old school and thinks that painting over good wood is a sin! I am thinking of having a wall unit of ours (of which I HATE the color it's become) painted over. It may end up I do more thinking than doing!

Slate floors! That's a good idea for my plant room. Beautiful and easy to care for. I have to write this down because in spring I will have surely forgotten :-)

I've bought the livesaver plankets in spring because I wanted to use them for the hosta in case it would freeze like last year.

It's raining a lot here too and the garden is so ugly. But the little birds coming for food make me laugh. I have the small pots under these boards to protect them and hope it will work.

newhostalady..thanks for the compliment!..I welcome opinions from sincere people!..making decisions is tough for me..the kitchen is in desperate need of paint..our new door needs trim first..I'm hoping a paint job will brighten things up..I'll evaluate as I go..don't want any regrets..that planter is awkward..changing it will take time and skill..but I love the idea of removing it!..for what it's worth walking on my entryway floor is miserable..hard and bumpy..the tiles are too small..the grout lines are big..we have large porcelain tiles in 2 bathrooms..installed on the floors and lower walls in a "brick" pattern..thin grout lines..it's much nicer underfoot..my neighbor has a wood floor in her new kitchen..before she even used it the workmen put scratches all over it..they cut the worst areas out then glued in new pieces..but then her floor wasn't totally installed as tongue and groove..I want a durable non fussy kitchen floor..I could live with attractive vinyl planks..

Will you tip the pots on their sides when they are completely frozen Karin? What is a typical winter like for you?

Making decisions is also tough for me Nicholsworth! My kitchen is in desperate need of everything! A paint job won't freshen my kitchen enough! "I'll evaluate as I go..don't want any regrets." That sounds like me! And I want a "durable non fussy kitchen . . . " too.

newhostalady..an example of my decision skills..yesterday I took screenshots of 7 lamps..today I deleted 6 of the pics..I tried to buy the only lamp left but it's out of stock..lol..but I am able to buy hostas..

My typical winter? Hard to say, it has changed a lot during the last years. Two years ago we had a period of frost with -20°C for over three weeks and around 20cm snow, last winter it rained for three month and was just around zero °C, now it is raining again and mostly too warm. We had 10°C last week.

I do not tip the pots on the side in winter, but I keep an eye on them and if they are frozen I look out for water standing on them. Then I tip them over. I have covered most of the smaller pots with those boards and the air is so wet that I think they get enough humidity for now.

I was worried last year because of the rain but the outcome was not as bad as expected. I had a few losses, but that had been new plants which had come late in the year and were small. My older ones had no problems.

I have a woodlike vinyl floor in my guestroom for around 7 years now, but it is not as user friendly as expected. It also gets scratches and I'm not sure if I would like to have it in my kitchen.

We are having an alphabet in our facebook group and that let to 7 new Frisian hosta for spring... :-)

Those of you eyeing flooring options, should check out Marmoleum products. They have some nice stuff with a slate look and texture, different colors, non-toxic, and warm on your feet. No, I'm not a salesman, it's just something I would be checking out if I was looking for flooring.

Karin, your succulent collection seems to be growing exponentially (as seen on Facebook also), very cool stuff.

Facebook made me realize, there are plant addicts, way, way worse than me out there.

Nicholsworth, I would love your house too. As a guy, and a woodworker, I would also have a "no paint" opinion, like your hubby, on the interior woodwork. I would also agree, that planter has GOT to GO! I know too well though, how hard it is to get motivated to do some of those pesky home improvements, especially if it's not an immediate need, just keeps getting put on the back burner. Let us know if we should relentlessly bug you about it, hehe.

I'm going try keeping myself busy this looong cold season, with lots of little projects, like framing artwork pieces I've collected over the years, making some items for my son and his wife, maybe join a gym to get my back in shape for when gardening season starts...that'll take some severe discipline...I've read good things about sitting in a sauna a few days a week though...

shopping already Karin!!..you aren't alone..others have shared their lists..I had some peel and stick black and white vinyl tile in a bathroom a couple of houses ago..I liked it more than the old floor but it wasn't that great..we moved shortly after..I bet it didn't hold up..we put some vinyl planks in the laundry room here..it's the best vinyl floor we've had in any of our houses..I think vinyl flooring has improved..

Steve..I googled that flooring (too tired to spell it haha)..it's definitely worth a look..I've accepted my dark trim..I love not having to paint it..the house is very comfortable..the wood makes it cozy..it's great if you want to take a nap lol..that planter will go someday but we need to fix other messes first before we make another one lol..getting a new dishwasher has given us a spark..we've been cleaning and getting the kitchen back together..I was surprised to see my husband working on a slide out trash can holder that my sister-in-law bought never used and gave to me..we have a narrow useless cabinet that's perfect for it and I found my husband working on it today!..yay!..it would be great to use the winter for projects inside..I admire the discipline of people that actually exercise..I have a treadmill and used it faithfully at one time..but I don't remember the last time I used it :-(

LOL, Steve, those little plants keep me busy during winter. No waiting for spring this time. They are so cute and I can take pictures, which is my second best hobby. But you are right, it is an addiction! But way better than smoking,drinking or other drugs. Plants are good for body and soul...no excuses, I will buy plants as long as I have the smallest piece of room left :-)

I'm more than willing to share my space with plants :-)

I've been worried to keep my hosta pots outside over the winter. That's why I asked about yours Karin. I think I am going to have to find a good spot outside and just try it. I think the humidity outside is a good thing. The air in the garage is much dryer. Some smaller pots tend to become quite dry. Seven new Frisian hosta sounds delightful!

Marmoleum . . . sounds interesting Steve. Thanks for mentioning it.