Papercrete Plus.......

Thanks to the Pinterest Community for the free flow of information in picture form. We have all heard it said, "a picture is worth a thousand words" and it still holds true if you can stretch a simple idea that far. Having seen certain materials used in such fashion I thought of a pile of driftwood sticks I gathered earlier in the Summer. They were originally collected for another project but a spur of the moment idea caused me to stop and put a tripod together to display a papercrete bowl.

Now that it is built I have let it sit by the door of the greenhouse so that each time I walk by I can study the form and nature of the creation. I'm waiting for some tidbit of inspiration to hit which will allow the utilization of a yet unknown item as a feature to create a miniature landscape around in the papercrete bowl.

Busy Summer.....

We have had a busy and very productive Summer. Following our trip to Natchez, Mississippi we moved on to

Monticello, Arkansas to vend at the Arkansas Master Gardeners State Conference. We found that folks in that area were ready to start creating small gardens. From there we moved on to

Wichita, Kansas to vend at the first annual "Hostapalooza", an event created and presented by the Wichita Hosta Society. We found that folks in south central Kansas like both Japanese maples and small gardens. From Wichita we made a mad dash home on Saturday evening to reload the truck and trailer for a Sunday trip to set up in St. Louis, Missouri.

Memorial Day found us vending at the 40th Annual "Gypsy Caravan" a fundraiser for the St. Louis Symphony. This was also a one day event catering to twenty thousand customers flea market style. We had a unique product and although the day was hot sales were exceptional. Since Memorial Day we have taught papercrete classes, held a miniature gardening workshop, traveled to Oregon to shop for new varieties of Japanese Maples and fairy Garden plants, and made preparations to travel to 

Pella, Iowa for the Federated Garden Clubs of Iowa's State Convention. Pella is a gardening community and was a great location for us to serve some long time miniature garden lovers and try to infect everyone else with the "Fairy Gardening Virus" 

We have finally settled in at home to build a new supply of papercrete containers and fairy/miniature landscapes for our customers delight. We have a two week break before our next event. It's time to get busy!!

More Mini Gardens.....

I usually try to build my miniature landscapes or fairy gardens in papercrete pots but a shortage of time and demand for little gardens has forced me to build a few gardens in other style containers.You can see lots of other small gardens at the Magic Onions Blog

Miniature gardens are always fun to build and thanks to both customers demands and the suppliers willingness to develop the products we have the unique supplies to create these miniature masterpieces.

Vending in Natchez, Mississippi.......

First let me say, "Natchez is great when it comes to Southern Hospitality, Barbeque, and Po-boy sandwiches" and thanks to everyone that made my time there such a joy. It's always nice to be surrounded by gardeners especially when you have a product in demand. The gardeners at the 2012 Southern Region Master Gardeners Conference have been a joy to vend to and share my experience with. The conference has opened a lot of doors to vending and speaking at future venues. Finally  I think I have done well to infect as many as possible to both the Japanese Maple and Miniature/fairy gardening virus.

Most of these pots found new homes somewhere in the South....

Speaking and Vending in Iowa....

April 14th found Peggy and I vending at the Garden Gala in Knoxville, Iowa. The annual event is organized and offered to area gardeners by the local Federated Garden Club. The registration is limited to two hundred and sells out early each year with little or no advertising. This year was our first invitation to the gathering and did we have fun.

I along with Mike Gooder, of the Plant Peddler and Marcia Leeper, Corporate Gardener for August Home Publishing Company were the featured speakers for the event. It was a real treat to hear both Mike and Marcia share their years of gardening knowledge with the group. If you grow any kind of bedding plants it is likely that at least a few of them were trialed at Mike's operation in Cresco, IA. If you have read a copy of the Garden Gate Magazine you have seen examples of Marcia's gardening ability. I was able to share a little bit about growing Japanese Maples in an Iowa environment.

I must have been well received as I was invited back to vend at the Federated Garden Clubs of Iowa State Conference in June. I relish the opportunity!

Miniature Landscapes.......

 First you build some papercrete containers.....then you fill them up..........

These are the first of many that I will make for sale at the events I attend this year. You can see our vending schedule here.

2012 Vending Agenda....

Each year in March the Great Lakes Region Hosta Society hosts a gathering of approximately five hundred enthusiastic gardeners from across the United States, Canada, and Europe called the "Hosta College". The Gathering happens at the Upper Valley Joint Vocational School in Piqua Ohio.

Friday night finds participants touring through the vending room, enjoying a rare and specialty plant auction, and socializing. Saturday is full of classes taught by volunteers on a wide variety of gardening subjects. You can find more information here.

April 14, 2012 you will find me vending and speaking to a great group of avid gardeners from Knoxville, Iowa and beyond. This event is organized by the Knoxville Federated Garden Club and is filled to capacity every year. The day will be filled with good food, good speakers, and plenty of vendors offering the different and unusual. You can find more information about the Garden Gala here.

 The 2012 Southern Region Master Gardener Conference is hosted as a partnership between the Mississippi Master Gardener Association and the Mississippi State University Extension Service. This Conference will be held in Natchez, Mississippi on May 1-4, 2012.  Join along with Master Gardeners from several states, vendors, horticultural experts, and garden writers to enjoy this experience. This will be our first opportunity to vend in this region and we are excited. Conference information is available here.

We will again be vending at the Arkansas State Master Gardener Conference. This year's conference will be held in Monticello, Arkansas on the campus of the University of Arkansas/Monticello.  We were invited to speak and vend at the 2011 conference held in Harrison, Arkansas. Peggy and I had such a wonderful time comparing notes with some of the best gardeners in the State of Arkansas so we are very pleased to have the opportunity to revisit their organization. Details about the conference are being finalized and I will provide a link to more information as it becomes available. Vending will be open to the public. Mark these dates May 17th-19th, 2012.

Hostapalooza!!!

On May 26th I will be vending and speaking at an event being organized by the Wichita Hosta Society at the Sedgwick County Extension Building.   7001 w 21st N   Wichita, Kansas. It will be an all day event and will feature both speakers and vendors.  Download pdf. flyer here

The 40th anniversary of Gypsy Caravan, the annual Memorial Day shopping fair, is presented by the St. Louis Symphony Volunteer Association! One of the Midwest’s largest antique, craft, and flea markets, the Gypsy Caravan will take over the campus of the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Peggy and I along with vendors from more than 20 states will set up shop at the North County campus. The Gypsy Caravan is a fundraiser for the St. Louis Symphony and we are proud to support their efforts. Come see us on Memorial Day, May 28, 2012. You can find more information about the event here

I speak and vend at many events throughout the country every year. I will be adding to this list as invitations and event information finalizes. I sell Japanese maples, dwarf & miniature conifers, miniature plant material, along with my papercrete containers and fairy garden/miniature landscaping supplies.