BfloGirlGarden: Plantasia in Paradise 2019

I’m not sure why this year felt different than others (perhaps it was the 19 straight days I worked in late January thanks to the weather…), but I am sooooo ready for spring…like, right now!

This weekend I took a stroll through this year’s edition of Plantasia – “Plantasia in Paradise” – at the Hamburg Fairgrounds, and it gave me just enough of the good feels to make it through to “real spring!”

“Paradise” included putting greens, outdoor kitchens, water features, lighting ideas and, of course, plenty of plants. There were also plenty of vendors (maybe a few too many for my taste) and lots of people (who were probably just like me – looking for spring inspo!).

A few things I noticed:

• Garden art is still a thing (here in WNY at least!): like this guy, who would look great in Khaleesi’s Garden… 
  
  
    
• “Funky geraniums” were everywhere: whether because they were available or because they’re cool (I vote for the last!), the fancy-leaf geraniums that I’ve adored for the last few years were all over the place. The multi-colored foliage looked great against the dark mulch backgrounds, but I’ve always enjoyed them in containers (because they overwinter well in my basement! #bonusplantsforthewin).

• I need an elderberry shrub: I first saw elderberry outside of the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, and fell in love with it because it looks like a Japanese maple. I found out later that it’s less expensive and more durable than Japanese maples – that sounds like a winner to me!

• There were many different versions of “paradise” on display: for golfers, the putting green; for cooks and entertainers, the outdoor kitchen and specialty lighting. Unfortunately, I didn’t think there was enough on display for garden DIYers like me – containers, raised beds, garden art, garden-to-table growing. Hopefully soon, I’ll get to play in my own version of “paradise!”

all photos: PaulaThompsonFreelance

March 2015 in review

After the excitement of the Garth Brooks show early in the month, and the lack of snow throughout the rest of it, March settled in to be quite a non-eventful month – and that’s a good thing! Believe me, Garth was enough excitement for the month :)

I did make it out to Plantasia, because I needed that little bit of springtime in my life…

And I watched the snow melt away to nothing…there was a time I didn’t think that was going to happen… (those raised beds with the fencing around them on the left? At one point, I only saw the upper 6” of the 3-foot fencing!)

And now, happily, it’s spring – I’d much rather have rain than snow!

all photos: paulathompsonfreelance.com

Better Late Than Never: A Springtime Visit to the Japanese Garden and Buffalo History Museum

Sometimes, things don’t go as planned – kind of like my writing about this at the end of summer instead of in the spring when I went. My trip to the Japanese Garden at Delaware Park was another one of those things – I had originally wanted to go during the Cherry Blossom Festival in late April, but thanks to weather and life in general, I didn’t go until about a week after the festival ended.

That turned out to be a good thing.

It seemed like the festival was a little early thanks to the wacky Buffalo weather in winter and spring. When I went, it looked like the optimal time.

My trip to the Garden also included a trip to the Buffalo History Museum, which is located in front of the Garden. The Museum was hosting a Buffalo Sabres exhibit entitled “Forging a Connection,” a look at the early years of the Sabres, including the rise of the French Connection and the fall of Tim Horton. One of the coolest parts of the exhibit was the collection of tickets from Sabres games of that era – each one on a stand in a small box with its own light, filling an entire wall.

The Buffalo History Museum is also home to numerous other exhibits concerning – of course – Buffalo’s history. It will soon be the home of the Tim Russert exhibit that was on display at the NEWSeum in Washington, D.C.

Find out more about the Buffalo History Museum at www.buffalohistory.org, and the Japanese Garden at japanesegardenofbuffalo.blogspot.com and www.buffalocherryblossomfestival.com. 

all photos: paulathompsonfreelance.com

2014 Buffalo Bucket List

It’s the first day of spring – YIPPEE!!!!! That means my on-call time for snow is almost over (come on, April 1^st!) and soon I’ll be able to use all that comp time I racked up. I’ve got plenty of trips and races on my schedule this spring, summer and fall, but I’m also looking forward to exploring this wonderful place I live. Here are 10 places and things I’m looking forward to checking out over the next few months – at least until the snow flies again :(

• Plantasia – Plantasia opens today – perfect timing! I’ll be hitting the show this weekend, getting all kinds of ideas for my garden and backyard.
• Route 20 Ice Cream – located in Orchard Park, Route 20 features – in addition to great Perry’s Ice Cream – a cool “retro” museum with items from “eras gone by,” including a fully-operational 1955 GE TV!
• Canalside – I have yet to check out the new downtown venue for EVERYTHING – concerts, fitness classes, special events and much more.
• Erie BasinMarina Trial Garden – visited this on a Garden Festival bus trip a couple of years ago – hopefully this will still be on Garden Walk Buffalo’s drop-off route.
• Buffalo Cherry Blossom Festival – the inaugural festival at the Japanese Garden, part of Delaware Park and located behind the Buffalo History Museum.
• Seneca Niagara Casino – I haven’t been to the casino in over two years – therefore I haven’t seen the updates!
• Garden Walk Buffalo – celebrating its 20^th anniversary this year, it’s the largest garden walk in the COUNTRY, with more than 350 open gardens.
• Buffalo Bisons game – I haven’t been to a Bisons game in years either – affordable fun!
• Buffalo Bites food tour – I saw a television piece on Ch. 2 about these tours last year – I immediately said, “I need to go on one of these!”
• Buffalo Central Terminal – the Central Terminal is being renovated to its former glory – my uncle is one of the retired volunteer sheet metal workers who have already reconstructed some of the pieces.