>> "J Schwanke's Life in Bloom"

is brought to you by

Albertsons Companies

with additional support

from the following companies --

CalFlowers, Design Master

Color Tool, Smithers-Oasis,

Sunshine Bouquet.

♪

>> Today on "Life in Bloom,"

we're going to the dogs

and cats and pets in general.

I'll explore pet communication

with my friend, Ms. Margo,

review how pets relieve stress

and can improve overall health

and then create treats for cats

and dogs and their owners too.

♪

I'm J Schwanke.

Welcome to "Life in Bloom."

"Pets are not our whole life,

but they make our lives whole."

♪

Those of us with pets know

that they enrich our lives

every day.

They're as much a part

of our environment

as the flowers that surround us,

a reminder that all living

things are connected.

Today on "Life in Bloom,"

we're going to explore some fun

ways to marry two of

our favorite topics --

pets and flowers.

♪

So today, I brought in one of my

dearest friends, Ms. Margo,

the bone reader,

and we met at a women's expo,

where you were doing

pet communication,

and I was having some trouble

with my dogs and trying

to figure out what they were

thinking and what was going on,

so tell us, what is a bone

reader, and how did you get

started?

>> Well, actually, I'm known

as a seer for my clan.

There's only four of us out of

100 years that is chosen.

I'm with the Saginaw Chippewa

Tribe of Mount Pleasant,

Michigan, so I'm known

as a high priestess or a oracle.

>> I have to admit that the

first time I was a little

skeptical because I always am.

>> Right.

>> But as soon as I met you,

I was -- There was just like

this instant connection, and I

think about what you tell me

because the things you tell me

involve nature

and involve flowers.

It's so comforting

and so peaceful,

and I can be very troubled

about how things are going.

>> Sure.

How's that working for you?

>> It's awesome now because

you calm me down.

>> Okay.

>> Yeah, you know, and that was

one of the things is I think

in these times,

we need something.

And I think flowers do that for

me.

They calm me down.

They heal me. It's true.

And so I think you offer that.

You're part of that puzzle

for me too.

>> Right, right.

>> You've brought

the Native American story,

the Native American heritage

into my life

and made me appreciate it,

and one of the most profound

things you ever said to me --

Outside the back of my house

are trees, and I said,

"I hear the wind and the trees

at night," and you said,

"But do you listen to them?"

And I listen to them now

because you told me to listen

to what they were saying.

>> If we just listen to nature

a little bit more,

we just kind of relax

into our own setting.

We are able to connect

a little bit more with nature

and animals, and then we can

communicate better with people.

>> So, Ms. Margo, this is

Eleanor, and she's 10 years old.

>> Mm-hmm. She's beautiful.

>> I think personally that she's

the smartest dog in the world.

>> Of course,

you're the master of that, huh?

Oh, she thinks so too.

>> Right, right? She does.

It's true.

She's the smartest girl.

>> So you have to pick out

three stones for her,

and then I'll see

>> Okay, so I -- So don't look.

>> Right. I won't look. Okay.

>> No, I mean I don't look.

I don't look, correct? Yeah.

>> You don't look.

And just try to place them

right here in front of you.

Okay?

>> Alright.

>> Okay.

Get your vibe for her.

>> Get my vibe.

>> And listen to her to

see which ones to pick out.

Just tell me when you're done

because I got -- I have my eyes

closed too.

♪

>> This right here.

Okay.

>> Okay.

Well, first of all,

she represents, like, a bobcat,

so she's always on the go, go,

go, and she's ready for

anything, and she likes to take

charge.

She likes to voice her opinion.

You have the bear tooth,

so the bear tooth represents

a good healthy, long lifeline.

It also represents

that she might hibernate.

When it's her down time,

she'll hibernate a little bit

longer to come out and emerge

back up.

The last one is about her

communication.

At times, she might be

confusing, not knowing

what direction to go to,

and that's why she hibernates

a little bit, you know,

and then she does her own thing,

like you said,

that she's the princess.

She's the smart one.

She already knows she was,

and with the bear tooth,

it also represents

that she likes you

to communicate to her more

and more, you know, like,

tell her what you're doing.

If you're changing around

furniture or anything,

she needs to know.

She wants to be up ahead,

ahead of the game.

>> You have told us that, and we

have -- and we always tell her

what we're doing.

>> Good.

>> She knows, and we just talk

to her in our normal voice.

We're just like, "Okay, beds

are going to go here.

We're going to do this.

We'll be back in approximately

this much time,"

and she's really good with it.

She loves it.

>> Well, she's the lady of the

house.

You can't leave just a written

note.

She says she can't read

that, so...

[ Laughter ]

Well, hi, baby.

How are you doing?

>> So Ladybird's about five, and

she was a rescue, so we've --

>> She has an old soul.

She has a very old soul

that she's very graceful.

She, you know, and that

she's lived a few lifetimes,

and that's what it shows me,

that she doesn't mind

being dainty,

but she has an old soul.

Yes. I know.

I'm telling him all about you.

Want me to tell him some more?

>> Should we find out some more?

>> That was the sign.

>> Okay.

So just pick out any three and

just tell me when you're done.

>> I know. Oh, okay. That one?

Alright.

You tell me when.

Tell me when.

That...Okay. I got it.

Alright. Thank you.

>> Okay.

Well, she has a secret medicine

bag, and we thank you for that.

That means a lot of prayers,

that she just doesn't

pray for herself.

She prays for others,

whoever she crosses paths with,

and this is actually the stone

that she had picked that

you actually

take the back of the skin

when you're scaling

and defurring it or, you know,

when you're cleaning it

up and stuff, the rawhide.

So this means she likes ancient,

old things.

She comes as a deer, so she

likes to eat healthy and good.

Deers do have a good,

healthy, long lifeline.

She'll stare you down when she

wants to, you know, get her way.

She'll, you know,

give you those puppy eyes

or whatever she needs,

but she does it in a classy way.

With also the medicine pouch,

this means

that she puts a lot of thought

and her energy into things.

She'll mull it over.

She doesn't want to just dive

into something new.

She's a classy lady.

>> You are a classy lady.

>> Yeah, a classy lady.

You like that.

>> So, Ms. Margo,

we have a tradition here

at "Life in Bloom" that I make

flower crowns for our guests.

>> Ooh, wow. What a great honor.

>> So this is for you.

Let's see how we did.

>> It's perfect.

>> Does it fit?

>> Okay, hold on.

>> Okay.

>> I have a tiny head.

>> Do I need to tighten it up?

Are you good?

>> We'll tighten it up.

>> Okay.

>> But I have a tiny head,

so I had to go like this now.

>> Oh, okay.

>> It's okay. It's all good.

>> You are such a special

friend.

You have helped me in so

many ways.

The heart that you have

for everything that you do

is so wonderful,

and I wanted to show that

with our people...

>> Aw.

>> ...and let them know

Ms. Margo is a wonderful flower

in my garden, so I appreciate

that.

>> Oh, thank you.

♪

>> When I was a little kid,

probably the first arrangement

I remembered is a poodle mum

because they would make them

in the store,

and as a kid, you know, you're

fascinated by the fact that it's

a flower arrangement that

wasn't a flower arrangement.

It was a flower arrangement

that looked like a dog.

When it got to be really popular

in, like, the '60s, there were

other kits you could buy, and

you could make, like, a giraffe,

and you could make a turkey,

and you could make an elephant

and a Santa Claus

and a scarecrow,

so it really kind of took off

and was the beginning of what

we know as novelty arrangements.

♪

I've taken a third a block

of flower foam,

and I've soaked it in water with

flower nutrient and stood it

on end in the basket,

but we need to carve down

the edges because it'll actually

take the place of part

of the body of the puppy.

My basket has a liner,

so I can add water to this,

and it'll last a long time.

♪

I've taken a little bit of fresh

moss and surrounded the foam.

Then we'll start with the face

of our puppy.

The first carnation forms

the nose.

The next two form

where the eyes go.

♪

Then we'll use two for each

leg -- two in the front

and two in the back.

We originally used

chrysanthemums,

and I think because

they're so big and white,

you know, and that looked good

for a poodle mum.

With the avenue of carnations

being more durable,

it takes more flowers to do it,

but the carnations

are a little more durable,

a little more long-lasting.

Chrysanthemums are still

long-lasting too though.

I love both of them.

They're both, what I would

consider, classic flowers.

We'll fill in the body,

and we'll also use a standard

carnation for the tail.

I like working with the standard

carnation and many carnations.

That way, if I need to fill

in a smaller space, I can use

the smaller-sized flower.

I'm using another type

of carnation,

the Green Trick carnation,

to fill in between the legs.

I like this because it gives

good definition,

and this is actually a dianthus

or carnation too.

It looks like fresh moss.

♪

Eye and nose placement

is super important.

That's how you give

your puppy personality.

I've created the eyes

and the nose

out of a pipe cleaner.

I've just used a black pipe

cleaner and tightened it

into a nice little circle.

I glue them on with a low-temp

glue gun.

You could also use rubber cement

or a glue tab.

♪

I also made three little bows.

We use two on each ear

and one on the tail.

We'll glue those into place too

using the low-temp glue gun.

When I was a little kid, it was

kind of the thing you got taught

first because you could do that.

You could glue

the chenille eyes on them,

and we even used googly eyes

at one point in time,

so you could glue those pieces

on, and it was something

that I could do as a kid.

I started helping in the flower

shop when I was probably 4 or 5.

Absolutely, it's a project

for kids because they

get excited about it,

and I think it's interesting

because everybody does.

It brings back the kid

in everybody.

Everybody is like, "Oh, look it.

It's a little puppy

made of flowers,"

and I think that

that's an important part

about it for people

is it's a little magical,

and it's a little bit memorable,

and it reminds us of being

a kid again, so I think

it's a fun way for kids

to get their hands on flowers.

Carnations are very forgiving,

and they would love

to be played with by kids.

♪

Making healthy treats

for your four-legged friends

is easy, and you probably have

all of the ingredients

right in your pantry.

♪

Today, "Flower Cocktail Hour"

is going to the dogs.

We're making a traditional

greyhound cocktail

but not in a martini glass.

We're going to make it in a mug,

and we're going to change it up

a little bit.

We'll call it Yappy Hour.

We've got a special vodka

for today too.

It's a vodka that has rose

and grapefruit infusions,

so we'll add that first,

and then we'll add

our fresh grapefruit juice.

I love squeezing the fresh

grapefruit juice

and adding a beautiful

grapefruit as our garnish.

I love our arrangement too

because we have rose lilies and

roses fresh out of the garden.

Time for a Yappy Hour.

♪

So I didn't want to do a show

about pets and not address cats.

I don't have a cat, but my

niece, Grace, does have a cat.

>> Yes, I do.

>> Flossy.

>> Yes.

>> Who we love, right?

>> She's so sweet.

>> We want to talk a little bit

about catnip because catnip

isn't just for cats too,

which is kind of interesting.

>> And I just kind of learned

that recently.

>> This is Flossy's.

>> Yes.

What I do is I just take off

a little piece,

and I break it up like this

and just give it to her.

And what she'll do is she'll rub

it over her head and then eat it

when she's done with that.

Flossy will sometimes, like,

get really, really energetic

after she takes it,

and then she just lays out

for a while after that,

so I think that change

in energy level,

really, I can see it

when she takes that catnip.

>> People can use it also

for training, right?

>> Yes.

Yeah, so what we have is

some catnip spray in a bottle,

and when we were training her

to where she could scratch,

what was an okay place

and not an okay place,

we should just spray

the scratching post,

and she'd go right over

and start going for it,

so now she knows she can

scratch there and not the couch,

and we don't have any issues

with that whatsoever.

>> They claim that for humans,

that you can also make

a tea out of it.

The interesting thing

is it will induce sweating,

so that it's good for fevers.

>> Okay.

>> So you could reduce your

fever by taking some catnip too.

>> Well, and I love hot tea,

so that would be really

interesting to try out.

>> Wheatgrass too is, like,

another thing that people can do

with their cats too.

>> Yeah. Yeah.

>> So does she like the

wheatgrass?

>> Yes, so what we do is

we sprout some seeds

every once and a while.

They grow up, and then we put it

right by the window

so that she can look outside

while she's eating the grass,

and she just goes up whenever

she's a little bit hungry,

has a little bit, and then

when she's full, she leaves.

She's done with it, so...

>> And do you leave the grass

in the house the whole time?

>> Yep, correct.

>> So that...

So she has access to it.

>> Yes, she has the kitty grass

all the time, every day, all

day.

>> I love these.

These are square

ceramic containers.

They don't have room

for drainage, but I put

rocks down in the bottom,

so then this will just

drop down inside there,

and then you've got

a decorative pot for it.

And I think you've noticed at my

house, we just always have this

because I think it's pretty.

We don't have a cat,

but I just think that it's

pretty to have in the house.

So we have a flower crown

for you.

>> Oh, my goodness.

>> And so what I did is I made

it with herbs because catnip

is an herb, right?

>> Yeah.

>> So let's see.

It has an artichoke too,

which is...It's kind of heavy.

It looks good though, right?

>> Thank you.

>> That's good.

You're very welcome.

>> This is so nice.

Thank you.

♪

>> Pets have crept their way

into every corner of our lives,

including weddings.

Here's a simple way to create

a garland of flowers

so your pet can celebrate

with you in festive style.

You know, I was amazed when I

started thinking about clematis

because I see it outside

in the yard so much,

and I didn't realize it was

so durable and so easy

to use for flower arrangements,

so we're going to select

a few of each color.

I know how big my dogs are,

so I know how much I'm going

to need, but in some cases,

you might not be sure exactly

how big that dog is going to be,

so leaving yourself extra ribbon

gives you a little bit more

to play with,

and because we'll be weaving

the clematis around the ribbon,

I want to make sure that I have

plenty.

So, then we'll just line up

our blossoms,

and I'll alternate back and

forth with the different colors,

so we'll start with three,

and I'm actually just going to

act like I'm braiding them,

and at the same time,

I'm going to braid the ribbon

into it as well.

Up here, we'll weave it through

these as well, just so everybody

is good and attached.

♪

So I also weaved

another piece of ribbon

through there to give it

a little bit more texture.

I cut that first, and then

I take both ends of the wire

on one end of the ribbon

and pull those out,

so then taking both ends

and scooting enough wire out

that we can tie together,

so we'll tie them

together at one end,

and then that also gives me

a little bit of wire that can be

attached to the clematis stems.

I'll go back to the other end

and expose that wire again,

and then I can

gather the ribbon,

and it's actually going to make

a perfect little ruffle.

Now, we don't pull hard on this

because, again,

it's not a very strong wire.

It's just enough to give

the ribbon shape.

At one end, we'll cinch it up

nice and tight and then wrap

the wire around the end of it.

So now I have a piece like that

that I wove between everything,

and then I was also able

to use the wire

to connect things together.

You'll notice that I didn't use

any pins or anything on this

because I want it to be safe

for the dog,

and since pets are such

an important part of our family,

it's great for them to be

included in special events

and have their own flowers too.

♪

Pussy willows is the name

associated to many small trees

in the Salix genus.

Salix means willows and sallows.

The furry part of the

pussy willow is called a catkin.

The name pussy willow is derived

in part from the catkins,

which are covered in fine,

grayish fur leading to a fancied

likeness to tiny kittens.

The catkins appear long before

the leaves and are one

of the earliest signs of spring.

Pussy willows are native

to the wetlands of the Southern

US, Europe, Asia and Canada.

The pussy willow has deep,

far-reaching roots.

This makes them a perfect choice

for erosion control

and to hold soil on a hill.

Pussy willows symbolize good

will and motherhood.

Pussy willows are given

as a gift to new homeowners.

The flower is thought

to protect the home.

♪

You may not have thought

to include your pets

in your flower crafts,

but today, we'll show you how

your pet can make an impression

in your artwork.

You can use your pet's paw

prints as flowers in artwork

for your wall.

You can use a canvas

or a piece of paper.

Today, we'll be using these wood

panels,

and I've tinted the wood panel

using a translucent paint,

so we have a blue background,

but you could also do it

in a natural craft as well.

Then we're going to use

nontoxic paint,

and we'll put it out

into a tray like this.

Choosing the colors --

and these are going to be

the centers of our flowers,

so I'm going to bring Ladybird.

We'll dip her paw in there

and make paw prints as the basis

for our flower artwork.

It's a simple, fun project

that you can do with your pets.

♪

So now we'll come back in

and put detail

on the paw prints, turning them

into the centers of flowers.

♪

We hope you'll agree that life

is better with pets

and, of course, flowers.

For "Life in Bloom,"

I'm J Schwanke.

See you next time.

[ Laughter ]

But I just think that it's

pretty to have in the house.

>> Yeah, and it's really fun too

to, like, use scissors

to cut a little design in it,

so it's, like,

kind of like a hairstyle,

and then it can grow out,

and you can do it again.

>> Stop.

So, like, we could do a Mohawk?

>> Yeah.

I don't know if Flossy ever

really recognizes

what we're doing for her,

but we absolutely love her

and want to give her all the art

in the world.

>> Oh, that's very...I like it.

So now we have a little Mohawk.

That's fun.

>> Yeah.

>> Grace, I love it. See?

>> Yeah.

>> That's the best part.

♪

So you obviously would not

give her this.

This could go into a shake

for us, right, wheatgrass shake.

"J Schwanke's Life in Bloom"

is filmed in Grand Rapids,

Michigan.

>> "J Schwanke's Life in Bloom"

is brought to by

Albertsons Companies

with additional support

from the following companies --

CalFlowers, Design Master

Color Tool, Smithers-Oasis,

Sunshine Bouquet.

♪

Closed caption funding provided

by Ocean View Flowers.

♪

For everything flowers, recipes,

projects and more information,

visit ubloom.com.

♪