I can’t stop myself from the cliché: Give Peas a Chance. Silly, yes, but also one of the smartest cold-weather crops to ‘give a chance’ in your veggie garden right now.

Just give them a little structure to climb on – like a length of wooden trellis or a metal teepee – and your pea crop can deliver the following cool weather-loving treats:

• Green peas, also called shell, pod or English peas. (A cook’s hint: pick them right before meal-prep before their natural sugars turn into starches, providing better taste.)
• Snap peas, which give you long, plump pods that you just need to boil or steam for eating as a side dish, as an add-in to a stir-fry or even a veggie addition to a lasagna. No part of the snap pea goes to waste, which is why it was historically one of the top pick for inclusion in ‘victory gardens’ of the late 1940s and also in European kitchen gardens.
• Snow peas also give you pea-stuffed pods for stir-fries and other dishes.

If you plant peas, expect them to go fast. A big pile of pea pods will make enough for one meal for the family, and if there’s any crop to plant generously with multiple plantings, it’s this one. Kids especially love being given the job of harvesting the pea pods, plucking them from the vines and dropping them in their very own pea-picking buckets (check out our kids’ buckets here at The Farm.) Oh, and take a second to smell these pea pods…the fresh aroma is unbelievable, a soul-quenching connection to the natural act of growing from the earth.

What Peas Need:

Light: Sun, Part Sun

Height: 1’ – 7’ tall

Width: 6 – 12” wide

Help Your Fall Plantings Thrive By:

• Following seed packet or plant pot directions carefully
• Making sure your garden or container soil has good drainage
• Making sure your garden or container soil has the right pH level
• Adding Dr. Earth fertilizer with probiotics to your soil
• Protecting them from garden pests with regular organic pest control treatments
• Removing weeds in a timely manner

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

Cabbage adds zest to fall potato salads, cole slaw and sauerkraut for football game tailgate parties, and stuffed cabbage rolls for party appetizers. With fall-friendly cabbage in your garden, you get to choose from late cabbage varieties that can be planted right now and harvested in autumn, saving you in produce fees at the supermarket and adding fresh crunch to your family’s dinners.

Fall-growing cabbages can grow to softball-sized heads in less than 60 days. They’re full and fresh, and they also add a dash of color to your garden, such as red-leaf varieties like ‘Ruby Ball’ introducing red leaves, and purple-red striations in your crops. In addition to being pretty and autumn color-inspired, red cabbages are said to have the sweetest flavors, so look for red-leaf types to mix in with your yellow and green varieties.

Cabbages picked young and fresh have milder flavors, as well, so don’t be afraid to pluck your smaller cabbages when it’s their time.

What Cabbages need:

Light: Sun, Part Sun

Height: 6 – 18” tall

Width: 10 – 30” wide

Help Your Fall Plantings Thrive By:

• Following seed packet or plant pot directions carefully
• Making sure your garden or container soil has good drainage
• Making sure your garden or container soil has the right pH level
• Adding Dr. Earth fertilizer with probiotics to your soil
• Protecting them from garden pests with regular organic pest control treatments
• Removing weeds in a timely manner

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

Garden décor is growing more and more rustic-inspired. All across our Chatham, Morristown, Madison and North Jersey region, we’re seeing more homeowners adding a ‘countrified’ feel to their outdoor living areas and garden landscaping. Several southern celebrities have boosted the trend for rustic outdoor décor through their highly-publicized weddings. Reese Witherspoon and Miranda Lambert’s rustic weddings delivered their relaxed, country-chic looks to the masses, and everyone wanted Reese’s and Miranda’s inspired rustic designs.

Starting with the lanterns. When I saw the metal lanterns hanging at The Farm this week, they took my mind right to a beautiful scene of an outdoor party with the night stars above, outdoor seating, music and dancing, delectable foods, and lanterns on S-hooks and hung from secure wires between trees. For an evening outdoor celebration, lanterns make the ambiance, adding a soft glow to your open-air party area.

You might have solar LED lights in your gardens already, and those are nice for low-level lighting. But to bring the eye upward and make the entire yard look professionally-designed, like a gardening magazine spread or an HGTV ‘After’ shot, place lanterns in the eyeline between the ground and the stars…at eye level, in trees, on terrace railings. Always safely using lanterns to hold lit candles, never leaving them unattended, and never leaving them lit in dried-branch trees (not that we have that problem this year, but you’ll surely wish to re-use your metal lanterns again and again, year after year.)

If you have no place to hang lanterns, bring them to the center of your outdoor dinner or outdoor party by making them your fall table centerpiece décor. A lantern in tin, bronze, or any other kind or color of metal makes the perfect, affordable rustic centerpiece, especially when lit with a candle within, and also surrounded by little votives in your party’s theme color. Most hosts do keep their lanterns for their outdoor parties season after season, but if yours is an event at which you plan to allow guests to take home the centerpiece (such as an at-home fall wedding,) your guests will really want to win that whose-birthday-is-closest game!

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

Big blocks of hay have long been a staple of autumn garden décor, but the trend has never been bigger than it is now. Celebrity event planners who get paid millions to create season-appropriate settings for splashy events say that the rustic look is IN right now. Hay bales set the stage for a comforting, country-style vibe to your fall garden décor.

The blocks give you a chance to build upward, adding some height to your fall garden style, and potted mums and other fall flowers can be placed on the lower ‘steps’ of your hay architecture.

I talked with The Farm’s resident décor expert, Tim, about some smart steps to take before you start dropping those heavy hay bales all over your front yard. Tim says that you should try to avoid burning out your lawn beneath those hay bales. “If you can lay them on a bed of mulch, that will help protect the lawn beneath,” says Tim. “And if you have a wide sidewalk, you can place hay bales on that.” Of course, when the fall season is over, it’s easy enough just to pick up and remove any hay bales that do sit on your lawn or beneath your shade trees, sprinkle some grass seed, and watch your lawn recover from the very brief time it supported your fall-fantastic hay bale décor.

Other ways to display hay bales:

• Drape them with colorful autumn leaf garlands (also found here at The Farm)
• Set up a friendly scarecrow either sitting on them or standing behind or beside them
• Use them to hold silver tin buckets holding piles of pinecones that you’ve gathered from your property and put to good use
• Decorate them with potted mums and other fall flowers, with containers placed in front of the hay bale pile, as well as one or two containers placed on the lower levels of it.
• Never display lit candles on hay bales, not even ones in what you deem safe candle containers. Keep lit flames far from hay, wet or dried out.
• Insert inexpensive solar light stakes around the hay bale arrangements.
• Come in to The Farm to get inspired on how to display your hay bales and other fall décor items. Tim’s a master at setting a scene, so come see his newest, expert trends in fall garden décor.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

I’ve spent many of my Bonus Bucks on Hostas from The Farm over the years – and right now I’m watching over them, since they’re having a little bit of trouble. The deer can eat them like candy if I’m not careful, and if I miss a scheduled spray of Deer Off or Scram, my hostas can get eaten to the ground. So I actually have a reminder alarm on my computer to get out there and give them a spritz of deer and pest repellant.

We’ve had a few groupings munched down to the stalks, and I’ve just learned that rabbits like to eat younger sprouts of hostas, so sometimes those nibbles are bunnies, not bucks.

If you have lots of different kinds of hostas like we do, you may notice that the deer prefer some cultivars of the plants more than others. Plant breeders have come out with hundreds of different types of hostas, from green and blue-tinged varieties to large, metallic-tinged plants.

Hostas are the most popular shade perennials, because they get better with age. Over the course of our four years in our Morristown home, we’ve divided our hostas a few times, getting great container and ground plant color and texture in our gardens. They love the low light, the shade, and we have some container hostas doing great in partial sun. When they’re in too-bright sun, their color seems to bleach out a bit.

But we’ve noticed a little something that you should look out for in your own hosta plantings, and mention to anyone you give a hosta plant to as a gift:

Slugs love hostas, too. You may see a slug or snail trail of silvery slime running through your hosta plantings, evidence that these nocturnal pests are munching small holes in your leaves. Slugs can turn your garden into their own buffet, so look at organic pest treatments specially formulated to eliminate your slug or snail issues. Some gardeners still use their grandparents’ favorite slug solution: beer traps. You just fill these little saucer-shaped traps with a bit of beer, the slugs get attracted to the beer, fall in and meet their brewed-up end. [Of course, this solution isn’t smart if you have pets or children in your yard…the organic pest treatment may be preferable.]

If you see irregular notches of chewed-up portions on your hosta leaves, the pest may be black vine weevil, whose larvae feed on the roots of hosta plants, causing yellow, wilted leaves. Organic pest solutions can remove this threat to your hostas.

And if you see evidence of nematodes (microscopic roundworms) on your hostas, which would be brown stripes on the leaves, those plants may need to be pulled up and destroyed (not composted.) To prevent this issue, don’t plant hostas too closely, since wet foliage encourages nematode presence. Several other infestation types are caused by too-close plantings and too-wet foliage and stalks, so spread out your plants well to give them airy room to grow without attracting pest infestations.

Some other hosta tips:

• When planting, don’t place individual clumps too close together
• Give them time. It can take three years for some hosta types to reach their largest, fullest size
• Pull mulch away from the crowns of your hosta plantings, to keep the moisture levels controlled and deter pests as well as root rot and other plant-destroying conditions.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

I’ve just returned from San Diego and L.A., and one of the things I noticed is that Southern Californians love their outdoor fire pits…just like we do here in Morris County…and that many of the tall, arching organic flowers I admired out there are the very same ones gracing the grounds of The Farm. When you read home décor magazine features about ‘California living,’ it’s inspiring to know that’s the very same thing we’re all doing here.

We sat by chimineas and fire pits during the cool evenings, at cocktail parties and while visiting with friends, and the outdoor entertaining vibe was upscale and elegant, while at the same time chic and cozy. And we pulled out our Star Finder app to ID the many constellations above, even on a cloudy night – something I highly recommend for the whole family, especially during the later, wind-down hours of your backyard parties. Warmed by the fire, you can stay out there for hours, listening to the nighttime quiet and spotting planets and stars with guests young and old.

I was amazed by the variety of fire features during our week in California… portable metal ones, built-in concrete ones, southwestern rectangular ones, and Spanish-style chimineas in rustic reds and oranges, again the same as the ones we love here at home.

What’s your style of chimney or fire pit? If you have one already, tell us about it. If a fire pit is on your dream wishlist, which kind would you get? Not sure? Come to The Farm to check out our fire features, and talk to our staff about the best placement and securing, plus safety advice for ‘lighting up’ your summertime and fall evenings.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

Wreaths aren’t just for Christmastime, and they’re not always made of evergreen. As I was walking through The Farm’s greenhouse, venturing into the décor section, I fell in love with a pretty, pastel, Victorian-style dried flower wreath. And then I saw a summery wreath made of lemons. The first would be perfect for our second bedroom, the second ideal for a kitchen or for a door hanging.

If you think you don’t have the wallspace, take a page from the new interior design trend of switching out your wall décor for new, summery touches. Perhaps that hanging on your dining room wall that you walk past every day and don’t really notice can come down for a season, replaced by a floral wreath? In the summer months, artwork with heavy, dark frames can get a break from their hanging and head to a cool closet so that a eucalyptus wreath can fill the room with a new look and a fresh scent?

I know plenty of crafters who take cuttings from their trees to make their own Christmas wreaths. It can be an easy task to create your own wreaths with your own cuttings, a wreath frame and some craft wire. And then accessorize with your choice of accents – a bow, some stick-in items like seashells or starfish. It’s like scrapbooking with a wreath, a summertime craft that perhaps the kids can join in to create. And a great gift for the grandparents.

I’m not sure I’m going to cut branches from my flowering trees this summer, but I am going to make room on my second bedroom wall for that Victorian pink wreath. If you have questions about how a wreath can be placed in a room, talk with The Farm’s design expert Tim. Bring a photo of your room, and together you can select the perfect wreath to give your room or screened-in porch a whole new look. A friend who is showing her home for sale right now says that she placed a floral wreath out in her stark screened-in porch area, and it brought the space to life. Open house visitors commented on it. So if you’re on the market, this might be one buy to add to your staging list.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

Our organic vegetable garden was gorgeous with its rich, deep, organic soil and bright green plants, but it needed a little something. That’s when it hit me: I can place some garden stones that are just like the ones we showcase in our landscaping. We have some gorgeous boulders placed by our Andromeda trees and by our Japanese maple, and we’re planning to create a rock garden in slate gray and bluestone tones to look like water. So we’re going to take some of those same egg-shaped stones and add them to the back corner of our vegetable garden. It’s a coordination of our home’s stone effect.

When you go to The Farm, you’ll see the pallets of stones for building borders, but there’s also a ton of boulders there, in all sizes. Smooth, majestic stones that can add a natural interest to your veggie garden as well as your flower beds. Or, like we plan to, build a faux riverbed of stones streaming through your garden’s empty corner, or even as a curving line through the middle of it.

When we host summertime parties, our veggie garden will be in full production, and the stones will give that magazine-style finishing touch to impress our guests…and no Zen garden is complete without stones or an eye-catching boulder. I thought they’d be insanely expensive, but no…and there’s no extra cost to grabbing a bunch of river stones from our rock garden supply and placing them in our garden.

If riverstones or borders don’t do it for you, how about a stone statuary? Maybe not the adorable 3’-high golden retriever statue I just saw at The Farm, but one of the cute little turtles or dragonflies or butterflies. Any stone element in a garden provides a terrific visual balance, and feng shui observers say it provides a more calming environment. Plus one less area to weed!

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

In my previous post, I wrote about the meanings of flowers and giving symbolic blooms to graduates, and now I’m suggesting lucky bamboo plants as a perfect gift for any summertime celebration. It might be a wedding or bridal shower, baby shower or baby arrival, new home party or even the welcoming of a new neighbor.

Bamboo is a top eco-friendly plant, since it grows so quickly and is counted as extremely renewable in a variety of industries. And who doesn’t love a super-soft bamboo tee shirt, blanket or spa robe? But for gifting purposes, nothing beats a pretty potted collection of bamboo stalks.

Decide first on the style. Do you wish to give straight stalks, or ‘curly bamboo’ shaped into an attractive spiral? Think next about the number of stalks, which is an important factor in the message you deliver, as well as the ‘good luck benefit’ the recipient enjoys.

• A bamboo plant with 2 stalks will double your luck
• A bamboo plant with 3 stalks will attract happiness, long life and love
• Never give a 4-stalk bamboo plant, since that is seen as a symbol of death
• A bamboo plant with 5 stalks will attract wealth, as well as spiritual, mental, emotional, physical and intuitive enhancement
• A bamboo plant with 6 stalks will attract wealth
• A bamboo plant with 7 stalks ensures good health
• A bamboo plant with 8 stalks is related to fertility
• A bamboo plant with 9 stalks is a symbol of very good luck.
• A bamboo plant with 10 stalks is a symbol of having a perfectly content life, with everything you’ve ever wanted
• A bamboo plant with 21 stalks offers an all-purpose blessing

According to ancient tradition, luck comes in its greatest form when it’s given as a gift. So if there’s no party for me coming up, I’ll just have my husband give me the bamboo plant that I’d like! My bamboo plant that I bought from The Farm last summer is growing and thriving in my kitchen window, bringing us health, wealth and everything we’ve ever wanted.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.

The Language of Flowers reveals the deeper meanings of flowers in type and color. In ancient days, courtship often included hidden messages shared in the color of a flower left upon a lady’s doorstep, or in the type of flowers included in a bouquet. If the lady was interested, she might carry a certain color of flower as she strolled through the gardens. Her suitor would then know, just by looking at the flower in her hand or her hair, if she was smitten…or not.

The bygone era’s symbols are still with us today, and many gardeners choose their plants according to the meanings they hold, opting for positive messages like love, abundance, and loyalty, and avoiding those flowers that connote envy, lost love, hopelessness, and hatred.

As you plan your rose garden, keep in mind the following messages conveyed by different rose colors, so that your home can be surrounded by uplifting symbolism:

Red roses: Romantic love, passion, respect
White roses: Purity, innocence, humility, gentility, young love, ‘I Love You’
Yellow roses: Friendship, joy, caring, gladness, affection – not jealousy anymore, as was the message in the Victorian era.
Pink roses: Femininity, gentility, admiration, happiness, refinement, elegance, gratitude
Orange roses: Enthusiasm, desire, passion
Purple roses: Desire, enchantment, love at first sight

The tea rose carries a symbol of ‘I’ll remember you always,’ and as such, the tea rose has become a popular choice for remembrances and wedding-day tributes to departed relatives and friends.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 books on family celebrations, including weddings, bridal showers, vow renewals, and more. She is beyond thrilled to be the new guest blogger for The Farm, and she will be posting inspirations and tips for your parties, get-togethers and big family moments throughout the year. Visit her website www.sharonnaylor.net for more on her books and articles.