apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

More than just an important arrangement - THE important arrangement. And Jill decided to do it herself (along with everything from her wedding!) and have her sister find some simple field flowers for her to arrange. She turned to the greenmarket for inspiration and came away with these daisies and wheat.

Has anyone else out there done their own bouquet for the big day? If so, how did it go?

See more from Jill and a host of others that sent in their flowers to share after the jump!

• Gregory at AT:LA points us in the direction of Berkeley's College of Natural Resources page for attracting bees to the urban garden.


• Shayna at AT:SF passes along a great online ordering experience for her string of pearls plant.


• Elizabeth at The Kitchen is contemplating what not to grow in their herb gardens!


• Jonathan at Re-Nest features some online how-to videos by Ed Bruske via monkeysee that are great gardening tutorials.

This past week we came across the chive's big brother, the ornamental onion after its' prime. Now we like it even more.

Walking through Clinton Hill the other day in the full sun and the glint of metal caught my eye. I took a picture of this balcony (on Washington Avenue?) thinking these might be some cool metal planters someone had on their terrace. It wasn't until I got home and enlarged the picture that I realized what these were - check out the close-up after the jump!

For any backyard gardener, planter owner, or gardener in the shade you are no stranger to this versatile bunch of plants. Hostas are easy to care for, spread like wildfire, and come in an infinite variety of textures, patterns and colors (within the range of green, of course).

But the leaves also get sold for cut flowers as well - the shot above and those after the jump are from the Plant District on 28th street. Who knew your garden was on the cutting edge of floral fashion?

Above you can click through to the nostalgia (and resurgence?)of Victory Gardens, an enviable West Coast food waste recycling program, an endorsement for healthy tomato food for the supremely popular urban vegetable, and Laure's gramma's incredible home garden, a 60 year labor of love.

But the links don't stop there, take a look at what else AT served up after the jump...

The Vermont Compost Company makes healthy food for your plants.

They also aren't shy about showing you how they do it, or sharing knowledge. They have breathtaking farm photos here, and also their comprehensive online'Compostopedia' for those who want to dig a little deeper.

Burpee reports that they are seeing record sales of seeds this year (double over last year!), and with more people in the city concerned with where their food comes from it could be that more people than ever are considering returning to or starting their own first urban garden.

These photos and a very nice story from Raedia came to my inbox this past week...

We're sending a shout-out to all of you who bring home flowers to brighten up your home. Do YOU have some Sat. morning flowers to share? Let me know! You can drop a line with a small description and some pics at matt at apartment therapy dot com

Scarlet Runner Beans are pretty great all around, a good plant to try if you have a warm sunny spot, have never grown anything or want to do a fun activity with kids.

And here are the reasons why...

This past week I had the pleasure of watching some very excellent packers go to work and move our entire apartment's goods. They bundled it up smartly, fitted it like an enormous stacking puzzle into the back of their box truck, and whisked it all safely through two boroughs and up three flights of stairs.

Although not on the same scale, I always have this dilemma with buying Greenmarket flowers and getting them back to my apartment unscathed by the rest of the goods. I wanted to share my solution and possibly see how you all manage to do the same...

Not much else to go on, except the Montague Street BID information, but looks like they will be laying down sod and creating a lawn/piazza in the street as part of Sunday shopping and events in July. We once saw this in Providence for someone's graduate project and it was - refreshing!

You can read the BID's reasons after the jump...

A little while back we posted on a nice lecture at the HSNY by Marni Horwitz, who explained the practical side of having a green roof.

Now here comes an intro on green walls, by the very people who fabricate the innovative structures for green roofs and walls, G-Sky. So if you ever were curious, or are thinking of doing this and had a lot of questions, this is your chance.

And rumor has it that G-Sky will be bringing a 6'x6' wall garden to show, fully planted, which they have been growing for months. Very cool!

All details after the jump...

Sometimes, in the middle of Manhattan, one can lose all sense of the seasons at the flower shops. It was on a recent walk at the New York Botanical Garden that the purple poppy, above, caught my eye and reminded me that this is the time for the poppies to bask in the sun. And although I love these flowers, their pods also make for an impacting (and easy) cut flower.

Beautiful Flickr shots after the jump...

"A horticultural tale of love, lust, and lunacy."

This year I read Orchid Fever, by Eric Hansen, and it was a great way to see orchids in a whole new light as I went through the NYBG's annual orchid show this past spring.

Just as valuable as the books that teach us how to care for plants are the ones that teach us how to be fascinated by them. This is a great selection to bring along to the beach or the park this summer.

More on the book (and a few more cymbidium photos from the 2008 orchid show) after the jump...

This photo has been circling the internet over the past month, showing an aerial view of fields of tulips in The Netherlands. Just a small peek at the bulb production industry, and a shot of color on Monday morning.

***I just realized after posting that this was over on AT:SF a few weeks back. Oh well, it's worth enjoying again!***

The NY Times paper edition had the most beautifully printed image on the front of its science section this past week, and I saw it staring across from me as I sat on the downtown 6, an article about a plant that recognizes its family - and also who isn't - and acts accordingly...

Have yet to get down and check this out in person, but was delighted to find a treasure trove of pictures on the internet for this beautiful flowerbox project, containing 'over 500 plants and 80 different species' by landscape designer Mac Carbonell for the Flowerbox Building on the LES.

Take a look after the jump, images from Mac Carbonell's own Flickr page...

This week's choices:

A list of great succulents, lasagna gardening, easily growing your own sprouts, and hiding the tech to showcase the green.

Four more links from this past week after the jump...

This morning's flowers aren't cut, but rather still on the plants. Boomer, an AT Reader, has jumped head-first into outdoor month here on AT and has been encouraging and sharing his own experiences throughout the outdoor threads. The fuchsia, above, is from his own patio, as are the other blossoms after the jump...

We're sending a shout-out to all of you who bring home flowers to brighten up your home. Do YOU have some Sat. morning flowers to share? Let me know! You can drop a line with a small description and some pics at matt at apartment therapy dot com

Need something substantial, maybe for a small tree on a terrace or something near an entryway? These planters have a lot going for them...

These are some of my favorite flowerboxes to pass by - they are extremely orderly, but the combination looks wild. And the 'flowerboxes' are actually the stone stair rails. Not necessarily anything we all could do, but inspiring nonetheless. The daisies were the perfect choice to bring some height. Take another look after the jump...

Chili Peppers hard at work

I think Regina and I are on the same wavelength. I noticed these three recipes from the June/July 2008 Organic Gardening issue and wanted to pass them along to readers. Great for a small patio or backyard garden - and hot peppers are a big part of them.

Yes, the recipes are stinky - and you will have to put aside some time to prepare and make them. But a little time investment now and you could make a spray that can be used all season, keeps the bugs/pests away and is not harmful to your health...