Bricks 'n Blooms Weekly 216

Hi there!

I hope you had an amazing week!

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Random Things Happening Behind the Scenes at Bricks ‘n Blooms

Cut Flower Gardening Seed Starting: Phase 2

With winter sowing well underway, now it’s time to get my indoor seeds started! I could have started foxgloves outdoors but they seem to do better for me under grow lights. This weekend, Chris and I set up my DIY seed-starting system in the plant room. I started my foxgloves, gomphrena, and the rest of my snapdragons.

And then in a few weeks, I’ll be starting several varieties of zinnias, strawflowers, and celosia. I’ll tell you…doing this in phases between winter sowing, indoor seed starting and direct sowing makes the process much more manageable given how many different varieties of blooms that I grow.

A vibrant garden scene featuring tall stalks of foxgloves with tubular flowers. The flowers range in color from bright purple to cream, standing in front of lush green foliage and a green fence in the backdrop. The ground is covered with dark mulch. Growing foxgloves in a flower garden. Growing digitalis in a beautiful flower garden

Seed Starting Supplies You’ll Need

If you are planning to start seeds indoors this year, here is a list of supplies you’ll need to get it going!

More Amaryllis Blooms

Another week, another amaryllis flower started blooming. This one is so pretty and PERFECT for Valentine’s Day! It’s called Pinkolo and added some much-needed color to my living room this week. Note to self: Order even more amaryllis varieties next year.

Close-up of vibrant pink amaryllis flowers with contrasting white stripes, blooming on a single stem. The background is softly blurred, showing a cozy indoor setting with warm, ambient light.

Second Week With Our New Puppy, Gus!

My girl, Koda, has totally come around and is totally smitten with our little guy. He is so incredibly sweet and totally potty-trained now! Yay! After a few days of really working with him, he started scratching at the dining room door, so I bought those hanging bells and now he makes a real raucus every time he needs to go outside. LOL.

One of the key things I’ve done to bring my dogs together as friends was to walk them A LOT together around the property. This action helped train them both to feel more like a pack and it shows in how they are interacting with one another now.

Two black Labrador dogs in a cozy living room. One is lying on a brown corduroy couch, while the other sits on a patterned rug in front. The room has large windows and is decorated with indoor plants.

Two black dogs are lying close together on a textured dark green sofa. One dog wears a bright green collar. Nearby, a woven basket and thriving green plants add to the cozy atmosphere. A window and wooden door are in the background.

Chappaqua Garden Club Presentation

This week, I had the pleasure of sharing a presentation about cut flower gardening to the Chappaqua Garden Club and Chappaqua Library. We had a great time and I think attendees got a lot out of the presentation. My goal was to inspire them to start a cutting garden from seed and hopefully share something new they didn’t know before. It was a great chat and I appreciate the invitation to speak!

Preorder My Second Book Here!

My next book publishes with Harvest House Publishers on March 11, 2025! Did you preorder yet? The Bricks ‘n Blooms Beautiful and Easy Flower Garden Planner is available now for preorder and is a great accompaniment to my first book.

A wooden cabinet sits by a staircase, topped with a framed floral painting, white flowers in a vase, a small glass terrarium, and a potted plant. The setting includes a woven basket and green plant in the foreground.

What I’m Shopping For This Week

It’s been a random week of stuff! Here’s what I’m shopping for this week!

I bought these seedling trays in preparation for more seed starting. First wave started this weekend and will continue throughout the next several weeks.
I bought more seed starting soil so I’m ready to go too!
This is my new dog leash for Gus. I love it because I can let him walk further from me but keep a reign on him when he tries to mouth plants outdoors. We’ve got some poisonous plants around so I’ve got to keep on him to train him to leave them alone.
Level up your flower gardens and planters this spring with these garden cages and obelisks. I have a few different ones I plan to showcase this year throughout my outdoor spaces.
I’m also ordering a backpack sprayer this year for my deer-repellent applications. Because I spray so much here, I need something a bit more commercial so I can cover more ground in less time. And I may buy a second one to use JUST for watering potted plants.

Vibrant orange tulips and white daffodils blooming beside a pond with a wooden bridge in the background, surrounded by lush greenery on a sunny day - When to cut back spring bulbs

Spring Gardening on a Budget – My Top Picks!

Can you believe spring is almost here? 🌱 I’m so excited to get back in the garden, and I know you are too! To help you get a head start on the growing season, I’ve put together a list of my favorite budget-friendly garden tools and supplies. These are the items that I use and love, and I know they’ll help you get the most out of your garden this year.

🌸 Ready to shop? Click below to explore my top picks!

Level up your watering game with this practical must-have that makes it easier to care for different garden spaces.
Use your pre-gardening season time wisely by learning more about your growing conditions with this handy kit.
This is a gardener’s secret weapon for dividing plants and slicing through roots.
Wake up to beautiful flowers without deer damage and have to replant your garden using this practical must-have.
If more than just deer are a problem (rabbits, groundhogs, and voles I’m looking at you!), you’ll want to keep this garden hack handy too.
I use this cut flower garden must-have in all of my raised beds.
Set-and-forget your flowers with this must-have garden supply.
Be ready to keep bugs and fungal infections at bay with this organic treatment.
Spring clean-up will be a breeze with this easy-to-store garden must-have.

Looking for even more garden deals? Click here to see all of my top garden supplies under $25.

These are the most popular products on my blog this week!

Cozy living room with a lit fireplace, framed floral wall art, and plants decorating the mantel. A cushioned armchair and sofa surround a wooden coffee table with books and a plant. Sunlight filters through a window, creating a warm ambiance.

What’s Happening at Bricks ‘n Blooms

It was a fun week on the blog!

Farmhouse Living Room Makeover: From Dingy to Divine

See how I transformed my dingy farmhouse living room into a bright and airy space with paint, plants, and a new rug! See the farmhouse living room before and after here.

Cozy living room with a lit fireplace, flanked by armchairs. A wooden coffee table holds potted flowers and decor. Greenery adorns the mantel, and a large floral painting hangs above. Natural light streams in through the windows.

The Essential Flower Garden Planner: Track, Learn, and Grow Your Best Garden Yet

Plan your dream garden! This essential flower garden planner and journal helps you track, learn, and grow your best blooms yet.

A person wearing a denim jacket smiles while holding a floral-patterned book titled "The First-Time Gardener: Flower & Garden Planner." They are standing in a room with various plants and a sign that reads "Fresh Herbs.

Steal the Look: Anthropologie-Inspired Boho Bedroom on a Budget

Create a dreamy boho bedroom inspired by Anthropologie without the high price tag. This guide reveals affordable furniture, textiles, and decor for a stylish space.

A collage of four boho bedroom looks: Top left with plants and a woven headboard, top right with patterned wallpaper and a brown throw, bottom left featuring a colorful duvet and round headboard, and bottom right with a neutral palette and modern lighting.

Easy Baked Whole Chicken Wings (with Garlic & Herbs!)

Easy baked whole chicken wings with rosemary, garlic & lemon. Wait until you try this simple recipe, perfect for any occasion!

oven baked chicken wings recipe on a plate with extra rosemary on dish towel

Growing Nepeta (Catmint): The Low-Maintenance, Pest-Repelling Perennial

Learn how to grow nepeta (catmint) for a beautiful, low-maintenance flower garden that attracts pollinators and helps repel mosquitoes!

Tall purple Nepeta 'Walkers Low' flowers in full bloom, set against a softly blurred background of lush green trees in a garden. The vibrant colors and focus on the flowers highlighting their delicate blooms (catmint). It's a great drought-tolerant plant that helps make it extremely low-maintenance — Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low’

My Latest Video

Winter sowing, philodendrons, and houseplant hacks, oh my! This video is a plant lover’s dream come true. I’m sharing all the details on how I’m getting my cut flower garden ready, showing off my most prized philodendrons (prepare for some serious plant envy!), and spilling my best-kept secrets for thriving houseplants. Let’s grow together – watch it here! 🪴

Collage featuring three images: left shows winter sowing containers in snow; center shows a person holding a plant with dark leaves; right shows a large leafy indoor plant by a window. Text reads "Huge Plant Update: Winter Sowing, Hacks & More!.

Amazing Inspiration from Around the Web

I love finding cool inspiration from around the web and wanted to share some of what I’m loving right now.

This 10 minute DIY daffodil basket will level up your spring decor.
Wait until you see this cozy blue living room decor for spring.
Learn how to avoid these decorating mistakes. I’ve made a few of them. Whoops!
This easy DIY melted crayon heart craft.

Thank you so much for following along.

Enjoy a beautiful day! xo

The Bricks ‘n Blooms Guide to a Beautiful and Easy Care Flower Garden

Have you never met a plant you couldn’t kill?
Have you dug around in the dirt with nothing to show for it except a sunburn and a sore back?
Do you currently enjoy growing flowers, but are looking for more tips and ideas to level up your gardening game?

Then the Bricks ‘n Blooms Guide is for YOU

Buy Now