Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

Yesterday I asked people what varieties of vegetables they would recommend from their own experiences.  My goal is to add a few new vegetables each year just to try something new.  Some vegetables are tried and true and will always be in my garden but there are so many types of vegetables out there that I know I will never…

It may not seem to be the right time to be thinking about fall but it is! Temperatures are still in the 90’s here in Middle Tennessee but we have to get those fall seeds started and now is the time. Growing plants from seeds requires enough time to maturity to make sure you can have an abundant crop. Below…

With all the edible choices of plants to add to your garden blueberries are at the top of most lists.  They taste good, come back every year, and highly nutritious, and aren’t hard to grow if you do the right things for them. What do you need to do to grow a bumper crop of blueberries every year? Here are…

This are warming up again around our Tennessee garden this February.  While I’m writing this post spring-like storms are pouring down outside.  February again seems more like March than February!  But that’s how it is sometimes with our weather patterns in TN.  We get some crazy stuff sometimes.  The unseasonable warmth has given rise to many things that would normally…

The garden is coming alive now that February is in full swing.  The extra warm winter is supposed to become much more normal over the next week but that won’t stop our spring growth.  Yesterday I saw the ‘Okame’ cherries beginning to bloom.  Unfortunately I don’t have any here in our garden to show you but it won’t be long…

This week we began a series of posts on edible landscaping.  Below you will find several articles to get started on creating a productive and beautiful edible landcape.  There are many more articles to come in this series so please check back or bookmark this post for updates! How to Begin a Plan Create a “To Grow” list, identify a…

While I’m not officially wrapping up the Fall Color Project for this year the entries do seem to be slowing down! More and more leaves are finding their way to the ground, hopefully to become mulch or compost as nature intended! Today’s entry comes from the blog Garden Sense and shares with us the gorgeous colors that fall foliage brings…

Here is another little Tennessee wildflower I found over the weekend. It was located very close to the Yellow Corydalis and was thriving in that same environment. This particular wildflower is called False Garlic (Northoscordum bivalve). Here in the first picture you can see a blossom just starting to come out. This little flower grows from 4 to 12 inches…

By now you’ve probably heard about the study that says organically grown vegetables are not any healthier than their “conventionally” grown counterparts.  If you haven’t I’ll sum it up in a nutshell. The study examined the nutrients and vitamins present in organic produce and compared it to conventionally grown vegetables and didn’t find a significant difference between the two. This might…

It’s always fun to plant new plants in the garden! I’m sure you agree! Caryopteris has been one of my favorite perennials for a couple years now and I’ve gradually developed a hedge of caryopteris along one side of our yard. The hedge row was inspired by a picture I once saw of a caryopteris row at Longview Gardens. This…

One of the best times to work out in the garden is the early morning before 7:30 AM. Anytime thereafter the temperature and humidity skyrockets, at least here in Tennessee. Early morning is also one of the best times for watering. It gives the plants water in the coolest part of the day when they can absorb the most since…

Contrary to popular belief California does have fall color, and it’s pretty good too! Birches, maples, and crape myrtles all are displaying their fall show in Rebecca Sweet’s garden. The view of her ‘Forest Pansy’ Redbud really makes me wish the fall webworms hadn’t munched on mine. Take a trip to the Bay area of California to see what color…

Last week I received the seeds I orders from two different companies. I was very impressed with the delivery time from both Wildseed Farms and Baker’s Creek Heirloom Seeds. I made my order from Baker’s Creek last Monday and received all the seeds I ordered plus a bonus packet by Wednesday! That was very fast service. The crazy thing to…

Daylilies are one of those plants every garden should have. Unfortunately I’ve been lax in adding daylilies to the garden over the years. I’m not sure why really. It might be the fact that daylilies in the garden centers aren’t all that thrilling and that is where I do most of my shopping. I’ve perused catalogs for various online nurseries…

As usual the weather forecasters just couldn’t nail our weather forecast. Several days ago they began hyping the massive snowfall of 1-3 inches that was on its way. The forecast at one point even predicted 2-4 inches! OK I know you northern gardeners are saying “massive snowfall?” Please keep in mind that everything is relative and a massive for Tennessee…

Spring is in full swing and we all know that gardener’s everywhere are flocking to garden shows across the United States. This weekend is the Bloom ‘N’ Garden Expo in Williamson County presented by the Williamson County Master Gardeners. It’s hard for plant nuts to restrain themselves at these festivals and like everyone else I always bring home something –…

Summer squash is one of our family’s favorite summer vegetables.  A grilled yellow squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper is a simple and delicious treat when cooked along with some barbequed chicken!  There are a few things to know about growing summer squashes in the garden whether they are yellow squash or zucchinis.  Today’s Friday Fives will offer up…

Water gardening is a subject that I have very little knowledge of but thought many readers might enjoy learning about so I asked Mark Best of Garden Pond Advice to write a guest post on water plants. Water gardening is not a new subject but it is becoming increasingly popular in the everyday backyard garden. I hope you enjoying reading…