How Our Garden Grew!

After a rocky start, our garden became lush and lovely.

With the arrival of our first snow and temps low enough to require winter attire, it seems that Minnesota gardening ended months ago already, but it's only been a couple weeks since we bid our beautiful boulevard bounty adieu.

Later in the season, the coleus and dusty miller found homes in some of our arrangements.

As you may recall, our boulevard garden was visited by a thief in May—and it wasn't the first time we experienced such selfish behavior. But we pressed on, determined to cultivate our little patch of urban green.

A bit of yellow and some variegated leaves added color variation.

Our talented Nancy was devoted and determined. She replaced items as needed and tended the plants to maturity.

Sarah added her own touch with a little free library. It was a great addition to the garden. We love to glance out the shop window and see people checking out our selection of titles. It's satisfying to see a book go home with someone.

Books for your reading pleasure.

By August, the hibiscus was in bloom. There was no mistaking its giant blossoms in bright pink.

Well, hello, hibiscus!

We look forward to spring, of course, but our long stretch of wintery months has only just begun. To help see us through, we'll have to recall the bounty of this year's boulevard and how fabulously our garden grew.

Happy, Happy Birthday

A few weeks ago, we celebrated a birthday. July 31 marked 12 years of Lyn owning our beloved Brown & Greene. We couldn't let the day go by without a celebration of some sort. So, we had a party. Perhaps I should say par-TAY!

In fine festive fashion, we had tasty offerings salty and sweet, as well as a selection of beverages.

Lisa and Sarah prepped for the party.

Guests supped on scrumptious fresh-from-the-oven slices by Red Wagon Pizza, which set up shop right outside our door. Melt-in-your-mouth macarons and rochers—with and without chocolate—by Patisserie 46 provided that bit of sugar that finishes a meal so well.

Sweets await partygoers.

High-top tables at the ready for guests.

Well-wishers crowded our space in and outside the store—and then some. Friends, family, and business associates past and present stopped by to congratulate Lyn. We were so glad to have you all there and hope to post photos soon to share that love. Thanks, everyone!

I heart Brown & Green buttons.

Boulevard Gardens

Gardening is a passion for many Minnesotans. And with such a short growing season, they can't wait to get started. Finally—finally!—planting season is here. None too soon, either. It seemed to take almost until the official start of summer for spring warmth to arrive. And we're so glad it did—better late than never, right?

It was wonderful to watch color return and then see it change as early growers were replaced by summer staples. The lilacs lasted much later into the season than usual.

And have you noticed the boulevards? Many have come to life with all sorts of vegetation. People don't plant only pots, flower boxes, and yards. Some extend their love of gardening to their boulevards.

At Brown & Greene, we take full advantage of our boulevard plot. This year, Nancy lovingly filled it with bleeding heart, coleus, dusty miller, hosta, hydrangea, and more. 

Unfortunately, an as-yet-to-be-identified woman plucked some of our little lovelies within days of planting, hitting several neighbors as well. Her behavior is maddening and discouraging, but it is not enough to keep us from tending our patch. Nancy got right back out there and filled in the spaces where her first plantings had been.

While our boulevard garden beautifies our outdoors, it also pretties up our indoors. Small coleus cuttings go in vases of water, where they quickly root and can be planted. Other times, coleus ends up in arrangements, as do hosta leaves.

The fiery hues of some coleus make the plant a wonderful addition to bouquets.

We enjoy our boulevard garden. And we're pleased to share it with you, whether you're simply passing by or get a sampling of its bounty in one of our arrangements.

Sweet, delicate bleeding heart—a harbinger of spring.

Ah, the pretty contrast of green and red

We look forward to watching the dirt disappear beneath the ever-expanding leaves of our plants. Such experiences make waiting so long for spring worth it.

So many shapes and sizes

Dusty miller snuggles up to a few rocks.

Styled Classes: Learning and Laughter by Design

If you’ve ever wanted to make an interesting arrangement of only greens, craft a bulb garden, or dabble in some other sort of floral adventure, Brown & Greene is the place for you. That’s because we offer classes. Not just any classes, mind you—they include more than flowers.

Pints & Posies
In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we offered Pints & Posies, in which we paired arranging an assortment of greens with beer tasting. Our dear Lyn taught design, Jerrod Sumner of Brandtabulous covered beer, and Katie Fears of Brio Art caught the event masterfully with her camera.

The supplies and room were ready for students to arrive.

Meet our greens: aspidistra, Cleopatra fern, dusty miller, flat fern, foxtail, scented geranium, sword fern, and trick carnation.

The selection of beers included Finnegan's Irish Amber, O'Hara's Irish Stout, and War & Peace's Imperial Coffee Stout.

Lyn demonstrated how to design with the foliage.

Cheers!

Our workspace makes for a cozy classroom. Participants listened while Jerrod discussed the beers being sampled.

Jerrod sliced the yummy cake provided by Buttercream.

We added to the traditional beer-and-nuts pairing with pretzels, crackers, cheese, and more.

Bulbs & Bubbly

In April, participants partook in Bulbs & Bubbly, sampling prosecco in different forms—Jell-O shots, anyone?—and crafting a beautiful bulb garden in a glass bowl, using pebbles, curly and pussy willows, soil, moss, and hyacinth. 

There was a lot of laughter as people poured dirt, twisted willow, buried bulbs, and arranged moss and rocks, all while sipping cocktails. We look forward to sharing photos of the class with you soon.

Working with a Theme

The pairings are part of our styled classes, which are based on a theme. The goal is to teach you about flowers and floral design, as well as a related topic that fits the selected theme. Our next class is English Cottage Garden & Tea. We’ll showcase beautiful flowers typical of an English garden and sample tea from Mrs. Kelley's Teas and scones and cucumber sandwiches from Buttercream Bakery and Patisserie 46. Sounds enchanting, doesn’t it?

The class will be held Sunday, June 23, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.. The cost is $65 per person.

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We have other classes in the works as well:

• July: Outdoor Entertaining: Make Your Own Succulent Garden Planter
• August: Wildflowers & Honey Tasting
• September: Autumn Blossoms & Warm Cocktails

We'll provide information on our site and via e-mail to subscribers as we have it. Classes are generally for 8–12 students. Because space is limited, it’s better to sign up sooner rather than later. If you’ve been to a class already, come on back. If you haven’t been yet, what are you waiting for? 

Take a class with us to create your own floral lovely to take home.

Amazing Orchids

Orchids are a staple at Brown & Greene. Every time I work at the shop, I find myself drawn to them.

The color of this orchid pops
against the background of the front counter.

What's the appeal? Simply put, orchids are amazing. Their colors. The shape of their blooms. How long they last—we're talking blossoms for weeks and weeks. And with the right pot, they can fit any décor.

Orchids—we've got 'em!

We carry phalaenopsis orchids, which are also known as moth orchids. They're grown locally.

Orchids with flowers at different stages: in full bloom (left) and in almost full bud (right)

Lyn gets our orchids from Len Busch Roses, a grower in Plymouth she frequents regularly for plants and flowers. She selects each one, picking the prettiest for the shop. On still-chilly spring days, awaiting spring to burst forth, they're a welcome sight—yeah for greenhouses!

Orchid headshots

Pretty in pink

Orchids seem to have a reputation as being difficult, finicky. They aren't. Watering, of course, is critical. There are different methods. One of Brown & Greene's favorite ways to water is with ice cubes. Place a couple in the pot once or twice a week. As the cubes melt, the plant is watered. So easy!

The color in this orchid adds to the spring-like
feel at our front display.

A gathering of orchids

I think it's time for me to give in and buy one of our orchids.

Catching Up

Weeks have flown by since my last post. Valentine’s Day was a multi-day event. We were busy with orders and deliveries all week, as well as lots of walk-in requests. We sold salted caramel brownies by Buttercream, too. The four-packs of small, thick chocolaty goodness were big on taste, enrobed in even more yummy chocolate. 

Spring!

Spring has arrived—on the calendar, in the shop, and even a bit in terms of our weather. It's none too soon for many, that’s for sure. I’ve seen a few people in shorts recently, enjoying the 50ish temps. Snow is slated for tonight--several inches, even—but we know it won't last.

We weren’t open on Easter, but we were plenty busy the day before, with flowers, blooming plants, and other items to delight the senses.

Lyn made this gorgeous hand-tied bouquet with lilies, an Easter tradition. The pink snaps popped.

Tulips were popular solo and in mixed bouquets and arrangements—what's not to love?

A colorful bunny stands out against a gorgeous hydrangea on our front table.

Our front display also featured speckled eggs in robin blue, forsythia branches, bulbs nearing bloom, and additional hydrangeas.

Fun fabric bun-buns in an array of colors kept watch at the counter.

A regular feature, these eggs are birdseed through and through. They're just the right shape for Easter and a welcome treat for returning robins.

We hope spring has gotten off to a good start for you. We look forward to warmer days with more and more daylight. Planting season's near—woo-hoo!

Holiday Explosion

Hello, hello! The blog has been quiet for awhile. The lack of online contact is simply because we’ve been busy, busy, busy at the store. Simply put, we had a holiday explosion.

Sarah prettied up our windows for the holidays.

Thanksgiving Abundance
Thanksgiving week was one of abundance. We had lots of floral orders, from those who called or stopped by a week advance with multiple vases to walk-ins wanting a single hand-tied bouquet. We had buckets of flowers and branches everywhere—in the cooler, on the counter, and on the floor. It was beautiful.

We offered lots of fun and interesting
gift options, including some cool trees
made from newspaper.

Open House
The Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 24, we officially ushered in the holiday season with an open house. Advertised to our e-mail subscribers as a holiday explosion, we were pleased by the waves of visitors who stopped by that day, Small Business Saturday, and enjoyed our festive offerings and yummy treats, including peppermint bark and thumbprint cookies made with love by Sarah’s mom and noodle clusters by moi. Many folks enjoyed hot spiced cider, while others took us up on our mimosa offer.



Go, Go, Go
We had other seasonal goings-on as well, including two wreath classes. Attendees learned how to embellish basic, premade wreaths with additional greens of their choosing—options included cedar, oregonia, and magnolia—as well as pine cones and a beautiful bow created by Lyn using ribbons of each participant’s choosing. There was wine, cheese, crackers, sweets, stories, and laughter, not to mention tiny strings of glue stretched here, there, and everywhere.

We enjoyed having Molly and her mom, Gay, in one of our wreath classes.

Lyn also kept busy in and out of the shop. When not arranging, deciding what little lovelies to order (or re-order), and chatting with and helping clients, she did up customers’ outdoor containers for the winter. She was like a holiday elf, bringing her magic to pots large and small, and more.

The Perfect Dessert provided yummy fudge.

A New Year, Another Holiday
Really, things were go, go, go. That's how life seems to be during the holidays. Thanks so much for a great holiday season and a wonderful year. We hope you had a great holiday season and look forward to seeing you soon—maybe even this week.

January flew by and we're in a mad dash for Valentine's Day. I'm posting this quickly before heading to the shop. The cooler is packed with flowers and the overflow buckets of blossoms are in the basement, keeping beautiful in the cool. We're offering some tasty brownies, too. We're ready for the rush! I'll report on this week's holiday experience soon.

Happy, happy!