This season's must-have? Absolutely anything from the new Winter Garden Collection from Fernlea. This line of cold-loving heather and conifers is the best way to satisfy your gardening urges, and answer your décor dilemmas. Ideal for containers, this mix and match collection of plants stems from a popular trend in Europe, and is now here for you to enjoy! Select your favorite weather-hardy containers, and start planting. We chose this copper urn that we lined with Spanish moss first. We planted white-blooming heather in the center, then complemented it with a kelly green miniature cedar, a blue-toned juniper and a yellow highlighted false cypress. A decorative bow and pinecones at the rim finish the look and create a beautiful welcome feel to the front door. This stunning container will look great the entire winter – especially with a light snow cover. See the detailed planting recipe for this container, along with many others at the Winter Garden Collection website. Heather [culluna vulgaris] grows like a shrub, flowering in late summer or fall. Used in containers, heather should continue to look good through most of the winter season. Planted in the ground, it should survive the winter into Zone 4. It prefers well-drained, and slightly acidic soil. Blooms range from white to vibrant pink and cool lavender. Foliage varies from a deep green to a yellow green, and even burgundy. Icicle Pansies are a perfect complement to this hardy collection. In this ornate iron window box, we filled the front with Clear Blue Icicle Pansies, while the Elwoodii false cypress, and several varieties of heather added new background interest and texture to the lush container. Fernlea's Winter Garden Collection test gardeners had so much fun last winter, that they added candles, twinkle lights, curly willow and sparkly holiday ornaments in and around their containers. They changed the accessories as the season progressed, or on special occasions. In the early spring, new pansies from Fernlea's Pansymonium collection were exchanged for the heather plants, and the containers had a whole new fresh look for spring. Therein lies the real beauty of the Collection. It's the way to give gardening that true fourth season, and it's a base from which to unleash all your creativity for entrances, walkways and patios. Be sure to sign up to be notified when the Winter Garden Collection arrives at your local garden center.

Now's the time to start planning your fall plantings and in just a few weeks, Icicle Pansies will be shipping out to garden centers. Be sure to check out this year's colors, including Autumn Sunset, and Sapphire Splash - new this year. Last fall, I planted Clear Purple Icicle pansies in a tight grouping at one end of my garden. By late April they had grown exceptionally full, yet remained compact. It looked more like a purple velvet pansy hedge - one that had admiring pedestrian traffic stopping to have a closer look. Do you have an Icicle Pansy story or photo? We invite you to send them to us through our website. If you're interested in reading stories sent to us, we post them on this page. Have you considered Icicle Pansies for your cottage, your school or church gardens? Low maintenance, and easy-to-grow, Icicle Pansies are ideal for mass plantings even when they don't get a lot of attention. As long as they don't dry out and are somewhat sheltered from heavy wind, they should provide blooms until covered by snow, and again in early spring. They provide great value for the money by providing two seasons of easy-care blooms, and unlike bulbs, Icicle Pansies provide instant fall color as well as spring beauty. Also, take note; no plants take kindly to road salt!

Not only does ornamental kale like the cold, it often intensifies in color after frost becoming even more beautiful. Varieties like Chidori Red, Coral Queen and Pigeon Red develop deep magenta coloring with colder temps. Ruffled leaves add interest to garden beds and containers. Plant kale when the weather turns cooler in fall, in a sunny spot. The plants should get significantly bigger, so you'll want to plant them at least 12 inches apart in a well-drained bed. Fertilize at time of planting and keep evenly moist. Kale is also a pretty container addition. We converted our traditional iron urn from summer annuals, to a bevy of fall beauty. At front center is Pigeon Red kale, which works well with the pink heather and miniature cedar from the Winter Garden Collection. Adding height and complementary pink tones is the purple fountain grass in the center.

Harvest decorating has become a tradition for many of us. From cornhusks to scarecrows, to pumpkins and gourds, don't forget fabulous fall planters. Select frost tolerant plants to provide pretty fall show - purple fountain grass, yellow blotch Icicle pansies, kale and autumn colored rudbeckia. Your local garden center likely carries both pre-made fall planters like these, as well as a selection of frost-hardy plants for you to make your own creations. Other cool choices? Asters, calendula, mums, felicia, and many ornamental grasses. In this inexpensive copper can, we centered red bunny tails grass, and added two garden mums, a few yellow blotch Icicle Pansies, and a heather plant. The result is a bountiful harvest theme. See the detailed recipe here. We like combining autumn hues such as reds and yellows for contrast. Another rich pairing is orange and purple. If you're changing over a summer container to a fall theme, you'll find that many trailing accents like English ivy, vinca, and plectranthus can all stand up to light frosts. So keep those pretty vines and simply replace the color. You'll want to make sure that the container you use is suitable for cold weather if you're creating your own planter. And if you're not used to having fall planters, remember to water them.

If it seems that all hope is lost this fall and the rabbits seem to rule your garden - think again! While there's no guarantee to their effectiveness, here's a rabbit deterrent from my neighbor that she says works for her! (the grass is always greener…!) How to make Bunny Juice: Let 4 cloves of garlic and 1 oz of mineral oil soak for 24 hours. In a separate container, mix 16 ounces of water, 1 tsp. fish emulsion & 1 tbsp. of vegetable-based soap. Combine all ingredients, straining the garlic out and store in a glass container with a good seal. The mixture should last a few months. Use by mixing 2 tbsp of Bunny Juice with 1 pint of water and spray on areas where bunnies tend to nibble. NOTE: This recipe is not for human consumption.

Have gardening questions? Drop us an email at webmaster@fernlea.com. Click below to read other issues of the Fernlea Garden Club Newsletter. Select a Newsletter Fall 2008 Issue Spring 2007 Issue Winter 2006 Issue Fall 2006 Issue Spring 2006 Issue Winter 2005 Issue Fall 2005 Issue Special Edition 2005 Spring 2005 Issue Winter 2004 Issue Fall 2004 Issue Summer 2004 Issue Spring 2004 Issue Winter 2003 Issue Fall 2003 Issue Spring 2003 Issue Winter 2002 Issue Fall 2002 Issue Spring 2002 Issue

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