Clint Horticulture - Blog

VOTE FOR US!!!!

Wed, 16 May 2012 09:18:22 GMT

We've been nominated by the Editors at D Magazine for the 2012 Best of Big D Reader's Choice - BEST LANDSCAPE DESIGN SERVICE in Dallas! Wow what an honor - we are super excited to even be on the list! We are nominated along with 9 other Prominent Landscape Architecture and Design Firms!

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We need your help though - Voting is for a very limited time NOW - May 27th!

you can VOTE DAILY - we are poll #20

and most importantly you must click SUBMIT at end for your votes to count!

and by no means do you have to vote on all polls - but we would love if you would support our friends who are up too!

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Bell 'Invito as Best Stationer in Dallas (they did a fabulous job with our cards and letterhead!) and

Trinity River Audubon Center as Best Family Attraction in Dallas (our friends, avid nature lovers, and educators - and if you haven't been... GO Already! and don't forget to visit Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center too!)

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We are going to make it super easy for you!%26nbsp;

VOTE HERE

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tell your friends...

and thanks so much for your support!

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Carpe Diem -

Emily

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Color your world

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 10:38:30 GMT

Believe it or not... i have been busy as a bee all summer working away on my fall color plant palettes. It may seem a little strange to already be planning the seasonal color that we won't even think about installing until mid-november (December preferably). But, in our industry - the spring and fall always sneak up on us... and at a moments notice a client is ready to 'freshen' things up... and after the summer we are experiencing now, i know the same will hold true this season! I like to think that i'm super organized (though that's not necessarily the case), and always ready for those moments - but let's just say - i work well under pressure.. probably too well! I do however, work extremely hard on getting my seasonal color planned, booked, and ready to go-- AHEAD of schedule. Many of you may think - 'what... plan seasonal color, why don't you just go buy some pansies and stick 'em in the ground' - and if that's the case, then you don't know me! We take a lot of pride in our seasonal color displays here at Clint Horticulture - and i have A LOT of fun working on the palettes! I'm pretty detail oriented - and pretty big on always trying something new and different. I also love unexpected plant combinations... so in the sport of out-doing myself each season, i plan away. As i am getting ready to book the majority of my plants for installation this fall - i wanted to share with you 3 of my favorite palettes! I'll have to say this season - i'm pretty big into the monochromatic color schemes - they are just so darn dramatic... and are really quite showstopping in person! if you keep your eyes peeled this winter and early spring... you may just see a few of these combos brightening up the gardens around town!

Cheers to COLOR!

moss as we know it...

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 11:28:38 GMT

Moss - as you may have noticed - has become quite the trend in the past couple of years... and with good reason! who doesn't like the thought of cool, green, fuzziness underneath our feet. or in a bowl. or hanging on the wall. or well anywhere within view for that matter! unfortunately, here in sunny (a bit of spite in my voice) texas - we don't grow too much moss, not long term anyway. i occasionally have the privilege of stumbling across a cute little stand hiding in a shady stone path... or wandering up the bark of a tree (see photo -yes i took that here in sunny texas) i've used it in terrariums. i use dried moss for indoor arrangements and accents all the time. But i stumbled across some other ideas for moss - that may just get you thinking about moss in a whole new light... i know i am!

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living moss table by Ayodhyatra more info here

living moss bath mat by Nguyen La Chanh more info here

living moss headboard by Lovetann more info%26nbsp;here

living moss on tree (Dallas resident) by E. Cauble

Now thats an idea...

Fri, 05 Aug 2011 02:58:32 GMT

let me just say, Emily and Heat - do not go well together, and well 36+ days of 100 degrees... is just about ridiculous! let me rephrase - IS RIDICULOUS.%26nbsp; i love texas for many reasons - but heat, unrelenting, dry heat, that makes grown men cry - is not one of them! that said, while longing for ways to get my plant fix - sans swelter - i came across this novel idea, and just couldn't keep it to myself!

Tuscany-based designer, Carmel Walsh - takes us for a 'walk on the wild side' with her botanical infused shoes... great for walking, planting, and being the talk of every summer party!! the best part is - you can wear them INSIDE!!

i can envision these with so many different plantings - something for every season... succulents for summer, little baby conifers for winter, full of herbs for spring... and what about moss - oh my goodness... enough to make you forget all about that darned heat-miser!

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see the full write-up on Carmel Walsh and her Living Shoes here.

I'm all Aglow...

Fri, 15 Apr 2011 12:45:23 GMT

Thats right... i'm glowing at probably, my new favorite Echeveria --- Afterglow! i mean really, how cool is this guy... he literally glows in the sunlight. Its the perfect combination of cool blue with that glowing rim of pink and coral that catches light perfectly. Quite frankly this picture just doesn't do it justice! i've been using him wherever i can - in pots, in beds and i just can't get enough! here i combined him with the (cute as a button) sedum 'ogon' that stays nice and yellow to play off his stately blue tones.

I'm dying to mix him in with some more traditional plantings... something unexpected - i think he'd be a nice touch.

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Spring Has Sprung....

Fri, 18 Mar 2011 04:15:00 GMT

...well not according to the calendar - but if you happen to live in North Texas - you may know just what i'm talking about! I'm a little taken aback by just how springy it is.. i mean - the tulips are almost done, and that makes me quite sad... seeing as how i haven't had many chances to get out of the office and take pictures. In fact - i missed some tulips that we planted entirely! But i did get a chance to snag a few pics of just what i see when i think of spring, like all the dormant perennials that start emerging - and they are so darsh gone cute when they are just peeping up out of the ground! You can drive past any garden center and they are already bustling with people who have been bitten by the planting bug... well here's to spring! may it be long and colorful -

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i hope you take the time to stop and smell the roses (or any other plant that tickles those olfactory senses of yours)!

Get Your Vote ON!!!!

Wed, 16 Mar 2011 04:33:14 GMT

The Center for Growing People (Our Saviour Community Gardens) needs your votes! They are one of 15 community gardens across America in line to receive a shared sum of $20,000 from DeLoach. The 5 gardens who receive the most votes win! You can vote ONCE PER DAY from now until August 1, 2011 - and the winners will be announced in the October/November issue of Organic Gardening!

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The Center for Growing People hopes to build fully accessible pathways and beds for gardeners with disabilities - who can say no to that!

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Watch their video here (its the second to last one) and cast your vote!

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'The Center for Growing People is a community gardening training project of the Dallas Urban Gardening Initiative (DUG IN) in partnership with Heifer International

This center, located on the grounds of Our Saviour Episcopal Church encompasses indoor classroom space, an outdoor teaching pavilion/water catchment structure, fruit orchards and vineyard, composting center, individual plots for families (Plot Against Hunger), and a community operated farm for food pantry production (Just Greens).%26nbsp; %26nbsp;

This project began in 2003 with an initial group of 20 plots for families and a small pantry plot.%26nbsp; Two years later, from 2005, the major support for this training center came through a multi-year partnership with Heifer International.%26nbsp; With Heifer%26#8217;s support the fruit orchard and vineyard were established, regular workshops and trainings have benefited hundreds of people, animals including earthworms (vermiculture), bees, and chickens were added to compliment gardening activities, and donations of fresh produce to the needy have exceeded 7,000 pounds per year. %26nbsp;

The Center for Growing People is the only facility of its kind in North Texas, and currently GICD (Gardners In Community Development) is able to provide training through hands-on and volunteer opportunities to other neighborhoods, churches, organizations and individuals that need a model to follow, want organizational training, and are in the process of starting and learning to maintain sustainable community food projects.

Most of GICD%26#8217;s work is done by volunteers.%26nbsp; These wonderful people help tend the grounds, they plant, weed and harvest the pantry plots, they help teach those who come to the center, and many serve by going out and helping when other neighborhoods begin projects.%26nbsp; This is a labor of love for gardening, for the earth, and for each other.'%26nbsp; - GICD website %26nbsp;

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A SPECIAL THANKS!!

Wed, 02 Mar 2011 03:45:22 GMT

We are sooo excited about the launch of our new and improved website!! we have been working away on this project for about 2 years now... so to have it all ready, well 'excited' is an understatement! With that said, we could not have done it alone. We'd like to take a moment to send out a special thanks to everyone who has helped us make this vision a reality:

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TO OUR CLIENTS - we would have nothing to fill our pages and portfolio, if it weren't for you. We love watching your gardens transform and are extremely grateful to call you friends! Thank You for allowing us to be a part of your gardens... it is truly an honor!! And thanks for allowing us to showcase your gardens.

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To The Old State - you have been so diligent in making this site represent who Clint Horticulture is. From the bottom of our hearts we want to Thank You! Gabe - it has been a pleasure working with you - thanks so much for your dedication to this project - it's been fun being on the receiving end of the design process for a change! We also have to give a little shout out to Gabe - who is an amazing artist - you can see some of his work here.

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To Melissa Zihlman - Thanks so much for the amazing head shots... they are truly beautiful. Your vision exudes the Clint Horticulture aesthetic! To stay current with Melissa's photography handiwork - check out her blog

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To bell'INVITO - it all started with a calling card - the amazing letterpress cards that catch everyone's attention! The clean and earthy design that embodies Clint Horticulture, was the starting point for this transformation!

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And Finally, To the Clint Horticulture Team - Thank You for your positive attitudes, diligent work ethic, and constant innovative ideas! We have much to look forward to in the future!

Steal my Heart

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 10:46:49 GMT

Succulents do just that.... steal my heart. i love to use them mixed with other unexpected plants, like these snapdragons for instance! And even though Texas in general conjures up images of cacti and tumbleweeds, many succulents are not hardy for us.. so containers are great ways to give those cute little kalanchoes a chance.

Pictured here is Agave 'Jaws', Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea', and Antirrihnum majus 'Montego Purple'

Its Hip to Be Square...

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 10:11:23 GMT

when you're a vegetable that is. %26nbsp;who wouldn't die to call this french kitchen garden home? cabbage never looked so good as it does here, in this hip monoculture. now if only we all had hundreds of acres to for our veggies to call home!

Kitchen gardens are common place for the Estates in Europe - and believe it or not.. the urban vegetable garden has become quite a trend in the states as well- even if our spaces are not as expansive!!

Photos taken at Chateau Villandry by ACM PHOTOGRAPHY - click here to see more of this incredible garden!

The Cool way to Compost

Tue, 30 Nov 2010 11:04:32 GMT

Composting is becoming quite the trend for urban gardeners... and although this practice has been going on for centuries - never has it looked so cool as it does now! check out these custom compost bins - designed and built by the cool cats at Clint Horticulture!

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These really are Cool Compost Bins - no really. There are two kinds of composting - Hot and Cool. Cool Composting (also known as Slow Composting) is a much lower maintenance route, generally taking 6 months to 2 years to decompose, before you incorporate it back into the garden. There is no turning involved - you just pile up your grass clippings, leaves, twigs, food remains, etc., and let nature take it's course. It is important to keep weeds and diseased plant materials out of cool compost piles because the temperatures do not get high enough to kill them. However cool composting has been shown to better suppress soil-borne disease than hot composting.

For more information on Cool Composting and backyard composting in general - check out the NRCS website.

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