Southern Homes & Gardens Blog

Protect your skin by wearing a daily SPF of 15 or greater – many cosmetic brands now include SPF 15, 20 or even 30 in their products.  Sunglasses are great shields for the sun’s rays too – just make sure that those shades of yours are up to snuff and are as effective in protecting your peepers as they are in making them look stylish!  Donning a hat is the ultimate way to protect your scalp, face and eyes from damaging effects too.

Check out Vera Bradley’s new collection of sunglasses – all of which offer 100%  UVA ( aging) and UVB (burning) protection! 

Check out some other great sun-savers:

NEW! Sunglasses in Kristen by Vera Bradley

Blue embroidered tunics by Mud Pie offer great sun protection too!

Umbrellas aren't just for rain anymore - be chic in the shade with a Vera Bradley Umbrella (shown in Lemon Parfait)

Change is on the horizon at our stores and we couldn’t be happier!  We’ve upped the ante and added several Monrovia “plant fashion’ boutiques throughout both store locations – which means greater visual impact and TONS of new plant varieties being offered! 

Monrovia Nurseries of Azusa, California, a respected grower-provider of high-quality nursery plants for more than 80 years, has chosen Southern Homes & Gardens as one of the few independent garden centers in the nation to feature the Monrovia ‘plant fashion boutiques’.  These ‘fashion boutiques’ show gardeners how to combine plants of similar growing requirements to achieve more interesting and colorful landscape areas.  For example, combining evergreen, dwarf magnolias, hollies and Euonymus with lilacs, forsythia and quince will result in more year-‘round interest and color changes. 

Check out the Monrovia Plant Boutiques’ big debut this weekend during our 5th annual Home & Garden Show (Vaughn Rd. location only)!

Spring is right around the corner for the River Region and that means many good things are on the horizon:  warmer weather, brighter days, gentle breezes and the chance to reclaim the traditional Southern outdoor lifestyle!   Spring is the ideal time to rejuvenate not only ourselves after a long winter, but our landscapes as well.  During winter, garden beds and landscapes often go neglected,  leaving them looking tired and sparse. 

What’s the cure? 

Receiving a healthy dose of inspiration and trusted expert advice!  Visit our stores anytime and you’ll be inspired by the visual ”treats”, or pick the brains of our experts and you’ll feel empowered with new knowledge – but visit us this weekend during our 5th annual Home & Garden Show and you’ll get a great jumpstart to your Spring planning and planting!  

 
Here’s what we’ve got lined up for the show:

• FREE seminars (Click here for seminar schedule)
• FREE consultations with Southern Homes & Gardens Landscape designers
• Introductions to special plant varieties
• Idea & Inspiration Gardens
• Debut of our Monrovia Boutiques
• Store-wide specials & MORE!

Attendees can register to win this 3-piece Bistro Set during the 5th annual Home & Garden Show (color may vary)

Home & Garden Show attendees will be treated to inspiration store-wide at the East Montgomery store located on Vaughn Rd.

Spring refresher: Get fresh ideas for containers, beds & borders during the annual Home & Garden Show

Throw A Curve: Add curves to landscaping for extra visual interest

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Meet Linen & Boxwoods, our newest blog highlighting trends in interior & exterior design.  Learn what’s hot and on the horizon through our in-the-know bloggers at Linen & Boxwoods – don’t forget to follow them on Facebook and Twitter too!

Read Linen & Boxwoods latest blogpost - we hope you LOVE it as much as we do!

Our current blog that you are reading will still remain and be your source for the latest happenings, product debuts, sales, tips and more at Southern Homes & Gardens…we just couldn’t resist the chance to grow!

Who wouldn’t want to feel a little bit spoiled this Valentine’s Day?  By giving a handmade piece from the Beatriz Ball Collection, it’s like serving pure love on a silver platter!  Beatriz Ball pieces never tarnish, so you’ll never have to polish it either.  If you think it just couldn’t get any better - wait for it - each piece can go directly from your freezer, to oven, to table!  The Beatriz Ball Collection is no doubt eye-catching and is capable of winning over just about anyone!  Whether it is used everyday as a fruit bowl in the kitchen, or as a dressy servingpiece for special functions, the Beatriz Ball Collection is a gift of high-class all the way.

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Nothing can quite compare to the fullness & beauty of a blooming Hydrangea – no matter where it resides.  These gorgeous blooms have a wonderfully delicate & statuesque presence about them…we simply gush over them!   Hydrangeas offer a preliminary escape to spring, even when the weather is still plenty chilly – not to mention that they are easy to care for.  Known to be ‘forgiving’ plants, if they begin to wilt, they’ll forgive you and perk right back up after getting some more water.  We have great colors to choose from (white, pink, lavender/blue) – don’t forget to select a decorative container to put it in too!  Give a hydrangea this Valentine’s Day and rest assured that the recipient will remember you fondly!

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Napa Firelites are an ideal Valentine’s gift – it’s a little something that truly keeps giving with every season!  We have a wide variety of styles, sizes & colors to choose from…and certainly one that suits even the most discerning taste.  Each Firelite contains an 8oz stainless steel reservoir that when filled with gel fuel properly, will offer a burn time of approx. 1hr 30-45mins.  Napa Firelite gel fuel is the only certified ‘green’ gel fuel out there – burning completely clean leaving no soot, smoke or residue behind.  It’s completely safe to burn indoors – just remember to place the Firelite safely out of reach of both children & pets.  Napa Firelite gel fuel is available in both Citronella (outdoor use only) and Regular (indoor/outdoor) – we recommend purchasing 3 bottles of gel fuel per Firelite (Regular or Citronella).

You’re sweet Valentine’s heart will surely be warmed after receiving a Napa Firelite this year!

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Today’s Valentine’s Gift Pick is Orchids – we just received a new shipment of them including limited quantities of Blue Mystique and heart-shaped orchids! 

Orchids get a bad rap too often for being fussy plants or being “too difficult” to care for.  It’s simply not true…read our previous blogpost February is Orchid month to see how we’ve de-bunked the myth.  Orchids are a timeless classic and are a gorgeous alternative to a typical Valentine’s Day bouquet.  Just visit our Greenhouse to see our wide variety of orchids and ask our friendly staff members to help you pick out the perfect one!

Go ahead and pat yourself on the back for giving such a chic surprise this Valentine’s Day…we won’t tell!

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Orchids have a reputation for being difficult to grow when in fact many varieties make excellent house plants. An orchid can be in bloom for months each year and can live indefinitely if given the proper TLC.  When you consider this, they are indeed worth every penny – think of an orchid purchase as a wise investment.

We have a new shipment of orchids in, including Blue Mystique (quantities are limited!), so celebrate February with a beautiful new orchid!

New! Blue Mystique orchids offer any room an intense pop of brilliant blue color

The orchid family has over 880 different types (called genera) and over 22,000 species! These numbers are growing every year making orchids the largest and most diverse of the flowering plant families. Orchids are mostly tropical plants which live as one of the following:

·        epiphytes or “air plants” hanging on to trees for support

·        lithophytes or “rock plants” growing on or among rocks

·        terrestrials which grow in the floor of the jungle

Root for ‘em!

The secret to growing healthy orchids is to grow healthy roots. Ordinary potted plants are judged by their leaf growth. For orchids, the root growth is the best indicator of the health of the plant. For orchids grown in pots we must be extra careful not to rot or smother the roots.

Pot your orchids in the smallest pot that the roots will fit in and stake the plant while it establishes itself. The orchids we’ve seen grow the best are often growing in what appears to be ridiculously small pots so resist the urge to ‘pot up’ any more than is absolutely necessary to hold the roots.

Water, anyone?

Orchids do not like ‘wet feet’ but they love humidity. Orchids like to be on humidity trays which allow water to collect in the base while the plant is suspended above the water. You can create your own from a cake pan filled with stones or inverted pot saucers, anything to allow the orchid pot to be above a pool of water – but they’ll benefit from the evaporation of the water. 

A good rule of thumb is to water orchids thoroughly once or twice per week – more when it’s warmer, less when it’s cooler.  Just be sure to let the water drain out completely – never leave the orchid standing in water.

Establishing a routine can help, for example watering on the weekend and checking the plants midweek. When in doubt, wait.  Too little is better than too much.

Orchids also like the company of other orchids – this helps to raise the humidity among the plants. What is tricky about this?  The fact that orchids like air movement – not too much or they’ll dry out, but too little and they’ll begin to rot. 

Let there be Light!

Give your orchids bright light, but no direct sunlight…think by a window, but light filtered by curtains or blinds. 

Watch your temper(ature)

Some orchids are naturally warm-growing, while others are intermediate to cool-growing but most will do just fine in intermediate growing conditions (not blazing hot nor freezing cold).  Be mindful to not sit them near a ceiling or floor vent as they’ll be in the direct line of heat or a/c drafts.