What can I put around the lip of this vase? I want these fake berries to stop screaming, "Fake!"

Go to Big Lots and get some wide holiday ribbon and make a big bow

Lisa--
A layer of Sphagnum Moss Will look nice as a top-dressing. It hides the soil.
Florists use it for every flower arrangement they make. It is available at Florists---
or in small bags at HD. For the small amt. you get--it is a bit pricey. $$$

G.

Silk holly leaves or eucalyptus maybe?

Magnolia leaves!

A couple last blooms not wanting to give up.

I've got one that's still going strong, too.

Last week, last minute black eyed susans

Osmanthus Fragrans 'Fudingzhu' still going strong and even producing new flower buds in this extreme cold!! (And the flowers smell like apricot) I'm SO impressed with this plant! The information online says it can bloom 9 months a year, only slowing for a month or so at the height of summer and the depth of winter. I've only had it since spring, so I'm not sure how it will do through the rest of winter... but so far the only time I haven't seen flowers on it was in the dry heat of August. It's marginally hardy in 6b-7a, but if you have a sheltered spot and don't mind babying it, give this guy a try!

yum!

I 'went' for suet and birdseed. I'came'with that plus five hyacinth bulbs at half price. Force in soil or put a couple in water? Don't they sell those kits with the bulb in the top of a classic vase shaped glass with water umder?

I'm officially sick to my stomach. Home Depot had amaryllis in glass vases this year. It was a red amaryllis in a clear glass vase with white pebbles. The reduced them earlier in the week and I've been keeping an eye on them. I stopped by HD today to make an offer on what was left. They threw them into the dumpster earlier today. There must have been close to 200 of them. What a huge waste! Not only the bulbs, but all of those wonderful glass vases. It's sickening.

Mike - I adore the sweet olives although I have say I think I prefer the scent of the regular over a fruity smelling one. Those lil blooms of yours those are precious!!

Rick - that would infuriate me! Have you tried to make friends with the workers back there?

Lowes throws plants like that away also. Huge waste, when I worked there we threw away tons of spring bulbs. Even I as a worker couldn't take them home. What happens is that when they don't sell Lowes goes back to the supplier and Lowes gets credit for them. Therefore they now belong to the supplier again. The supplier tells them to destroy the material. At that point they really can't give them away or sell them. Plants like the annuals/perennials belong to Lowes and those they will sell even at .10 if they can.
I am sure that HD has a similar arrangement, @Gita would know for sure how they work.

Holly--You are right. One learns a lot working for Big Box stores...
I am sure the Suppliers dictate all things in the long run.

HD's plants (Houseplants, Annuals, Perennials, Holiday plants, etc) are supplied by Bell Nursery (HERE)
THEY own everything--we just take care of the plants. Thinkof it as all the plants being on consignment
This excludes house plants in the GH. It is Bell's job to take care of them--cull them--and decide
what gets tossed. I know the Bell people--we are on good terms --doesn't mean anything.
I cannot take anything home either.
It is up to the garden Folks to physically throw the cart-fulls of plants (that bell has culled) as they have to move on to do their thing-to another store. It is quite exhausting for them all.
Now and then--I sneak a cutting or some empty pots---but I feel like a thief doing this.

ALL evergreens, trees and shrubs , as well as all the X-mas wreaths and swags, we had all over tables,
are owned by "Hopewell". BUT--as always--WE (HD) has to water them and take care of the,
The Hopewell people have to go from store to store to do their part in care-taking and what goes down the chute--NOT us.
All the garden-taking-care-of plants is a myriad of responsibilities among those in charge.
They really do not have time to do the watering or care-taking. WE do that...
Hopewell should! It is hard for us to water all the big shrubs and evergreens jammed on carts and tables. Hopewell jams them on there--so insanely crowded and tight---but what do they care! they should water them !!! Now and then someone comes and does it--takes a manager to complain---then they send someone..

When I am working/watering tables full of plants--I will cull the obvious dead ones--but I do not throw them out. I remove the ones "not well" and I put them aside for them to decide. Hey! I KNOW a struggling plant from a healthy one! In the summer--when I water tables-full of annuals--I will cull poor ones into a cart and leave it to Bell to mark them down i THEIR system.

My HD has a spacious GH. Lucky us being one of the older HD's here. (second oldest in Baltimore--2502).
Glen Burnie (2501) is the first....Catonsville (2503) is 3rd.
The stores that do not have GH's have to keep all their plants inside the store. UGH!
I cannot imagine watering 100's of plants INSIDE the store!

As far as seeing Bell Nursery people throw out perfectly good plants--there are many reasons.
1--It came with bugs on it from Florida which are now showing up in the warm GH.
2--There are dates on the tags on the pots and if a plant has been around too long (Bell decides)--it is tossed.
3-Flowering plants that go out of bloom are tossed. The other day--I threw out all their CC's
because they were not in bloom any more. THAT really hurt me!!! They were healthy in all other ways.

AHHHH--the ways of BIG BOX logistics..... One just has to learn to live with it. Gita

It all comes down to tax write-offs, I'm sure. If only there was a successful way to lobby to have it changed in such a way as to make them more responsible growers and merchants.

What about clothing and food? I bet the same rules mean a lot of new clothing goes 'away'.

Yes, same rules apply.

I shudder to think how much new and useable merchandise ends up in a landfill every day.

Wellll--I support the used clothing industry very well...
Almost all my clothes come from a certain Thrift Shop. "SAVERS!!!
I buy mostly tops. All kinds of name brands...$3 99 to $5.99.
Jeans and pants are hard to buy. I have to go and try them on. Hate that...

If you have a "Savers" near you--consider shopping there. I heard they only accept NEW clothes.
I believe it. I buy tops and wear them the next day. I can tell they are not used...

Then again--I DO NOT have any hang-ups about gently used clothing. Some people think they will
get leprosy or something if they buy and wear used clothing...

G.

My leather jacket was 10$ from a thrift store smelled kind of funny in a weird perfumey way but that's wearing off