My garden is my favorite place to be. If I had a choice I would be working in the garden all day and every day. It’s a big reason why I wrote the Magic Garden Mysteries. From decades of gardening I have learned some simple tips to have beautiful plants and flowers all season long.
- Plant from Crocus to Chrysanthemum. Learn when certain flowers bloom in your area and plant accordingly so you have some in bloom all growing season.
- Plant after it rains. The very best time to plant just about anything is right after it rains. It’s when it’s easiest to dig in the ground and in the case of many seeds, you can just toss them on the wet soil and and they will sprout. Same goes for weeding. It’s easiest to weed when the ground is wet.
- Soak hard seeds overnight. Some seeds have very hard shells and its best to soak them overnight before sowing them into the ground. That way they were sprout much sooner. Some examples are nasturtium and morning glories. Read the seed packages to be sure.
- Vegetables need a lot of water. I have heard people complain that they don’t have success with veggie gardens. It could be because you’re not watering enough. When it’s very hot over 85 degrees F, you should really be watering twice a day and it’s best to water during the “cool” hours: early morning and night.
- Know every year is going to be different. One of the wondrous things about gardens is you never know exactly what they will look like until they bloom. What blooms can change from year to year. It depends on weather, when you planted certain plants or seeds, how old the plant is, and where the flower is placed. All of those make a difference in the success of a plant. I can honestly say my garden is different every year, but always beautiful.
A famous fiddler has been kilt. A magic garden’s left to wilt. Does Fiona Knox’s father hold the guilt? Will florist Fiona’s blood be spilt?
World-famous fiddle player Barley McFee arrives in blustery Bellewick, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, for a grand homecoming concert organized by jeweler Bernice Brennan. Fiona Knox, owner of the Climbing Rose Flower Shop, is starting to regret volunteering to help with the concert. Bernice is an exacting taskmaster, and Fiona has enough tension dealing with her parents, who have traveled from Tennessee to visit Fi and her younger sister, Isla, and to reveal a secret about Fi’s birth. But when Barley is found dead in his trailer during the concert’s intermission, and his death is shockingly tied to Fiona’s father, Fiona discovers there are more secrets surrounding her family than she realized.
Much to the chagrin of handsome Neil Craig, Chief Inspector of the County Aberdeen Police, Fiona delves into the case to clear her father’s name. To make matters worse, Fiona learns that Duncreigan, the magical garden that she inherited from her godfather, is dying. At some point during the concert, someone broke into the garden and cut the centuries-old climbing rose–the source of the garden’s magic–from the standing stone.
The stakes are higher than ever and Fiona could lose all that she’s grown unless she’s able to dispel this terrible curse and dig up the truth–fast.
Happy reading! ❤ Amanda
Amanda Flower-Sweet Cozy reads 