Balloon Dogs for the garden

Buy them here

via

Mason bee house

Boost your garden's productivity by providing a happy home for peaceful, non-stinging Mason bees. Slightly smaller than honeybees, Mason bees are incredible pollinators. Each one visits as many as 1000 blooms per day — 20 times as many as a honeybee! Hang this natural bamboo house against a tree or wall where it will get morning sun and attract bees. Female bees fill the bamboo tubes with their eggs, and nectar and pollen for the young to eat. $14.95 at Gardener's Supply via: the Green Head

Topiary Art Designs

Artist Steve Manning of topiary art designs makes custom and bespoke feature topiaries and stainless steel topiary frames for gardens designers, landscapers, theme parks, civic amenities, exhibitions, garden shows and event promotions. (via)

Hummingbird Feast

"monarda" originally uploaded by corsiphoto

I thank my Bee Balm for attracting hummingbirds to my garden. They are such a delight to watch and such a surprise for many visitors who have never seen a hummingbird before, or even believe that we have them in the Chicago area. Then, when I tell them that these beautiful little creatures fly to Mexico for the winter, they're really amazed. Supposedly, hummingbirds will return to the same flower beds year after year. Well, ours seem to be pretty comfortable with having us around. The birds will fly within a foot of us and especially enjoy flying through the water spray when we're sprinkling the flowers. The Bee Balm, or Monarda, are an easy to grow perennial. They grow about three feet tall, and from a distance, look like clouds of red in the garden. Close up, you notice their nice, spicy scent. Even closer, and you see massive, fat, bumblebees harvesting nectar, and of course, the hummingbirds. In this article, Nancy Newfield describes the bee balm and twelve other plants that attract hummingbirds.