Good to be Home Again!

I hope everyone had a very happy holiday! We just got back in tonight after visiting several family members in various parts of Tennessee. We’re very fortunate to have both sets of parents within easy driving distance so we can visit them both at Christmas. We also spent several days in west Tennessee in Trenton … Read more

Merry Christmas!

Here’s just a quick post to say Merry Christmas to everyone out there! I may not have a chance to post over the next week so I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday with lots of food, family, and fun! Hold true to the spirit of the holiday and it’s true meaning and … Read more

Perusing and Planning with the Seed Catalogs

I’ve seen many posts recently about gardening and seed catalogs. Some posts analyze the timing of the seed company’s publications. Most posts are simply people salivating in anticipation of what may come! I have to admit it I am doing the same. Ask my wife what my favorite bathroom reading material is and she’ll tell … Read more

A Cool List of Trees

Now here is a cool list of trees for those who may like to bring a bit of the Smokey Mountains into their landscape. On the Great Smokey Mountains National Park website they have published a list of all the trees in the park and even included the non-native ones denoted with an asterisk. What … Read more

Smokey Mountain Photos

Chris over at Outside Clyde posted a great picture of the Smokey Mountains that reminded me of when we lived out that way. We really miss living in east Tennessee because of the proximity to those mountains. There are all sorts of beautiful nooks and crannies to explore, breathtaking views, and animals to see. If … Read more

Taking Flowers from the Dead

I saw this story online at the Tennessean Newspaper’s website. Apparently a women was stealing decorations from grave sites and adding them to her landscape! How desperate must your landscape be to take fake flowers from the graves of the deceased then add them to your garden. The story also says that she took solar … Read more

Mystery Berry

We went shopping yesterday so I didn’t have time to post anything but here’s something I’ve been wondering about. The other day I was walking in our backyard near the woods with the camera and found these interesting little pink berries. I was trying to identify what they were and thought about beauty berries or … Read more

Tennessee Garden Bloggers

Are there any other Tennessee garden bloggers out there? I found one yesterday courtesy of Nan at Gardening Gone Wild. If you have a chance go visit Frances over at Faire Gardening over in east Tennessee. If you are a Tennessee garden blogger let me know and I’ll add you to the roll!

First Snowfall?

I’m not sure how this snowfall counts. Would it be the first one in Middle Tennessee? Would it even be enough to count? I’m not sure, I only know that we did not receive what our northern neighbors have been gifted with this December! I know it disappointed my two year old daughter who asked … Read more

Arbor Day Experiment (Part 2-2)

In one of my last posts I mentioned receiving my free Arbor Day trees. Those trees have now been planted. While planting them I was pleasantly surprised by a couple things. 1. The trees were marked very clearly with the color coding system. It was not just a thin little line above the roots indicating … Read more

Plant of the Week

Let’s try this a little differently this week. If you can identify the plant of the week post what you think it is in the comment area of this post!

Arbor Day Experiment (Part 2)

Part two of my Arbor Day experiment will begin soon! Today I received my 10 free trees. I found them unceremoniously shoved into my mailbox courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service. Fortunately I don’t think any damage was done. I would think that a package that has LIVE PLANTS in big letters on the outside … Read more

Growing Crocus in the Garden

These particular crocuses were tiny little bulbs (actually corms) that we planted outside of our apartment in east Tennessee. We didn’t have much space to do anything and just experimented with a few just to see if we could get a little color along our short walkway. They would pop up in the early spring … Read more

Weird and Wacky Winter Weather

Snow is falling in the northern parts of our country as we are experiencing record 75 degree temperatures in Middle Tennessee in December! The forecast goes down from here with even a possibility of snow in the future for the weekend. Strange weather! Mid 50’s would not be surprising for this time of year but … Read more

Arbor Day Experiment (Part 1)

They finally came! My experiment with Arbor Day has begun. Earlier in the year I ordered several trees from the National Arbor Day Society. I also got a few free trees with my order. I know many people have had mixed results when ordering from Arbor Day. They either have trees that don’t make it … Read more

Save the Mums!

Mums are the staple of almost every household in the fall because of their abundant fall blossoms and varied array of colors. One thing many people don’t think about is that they are actually perennials. Some people realize this of course, but often people treat them as annuals only to buy them all over again … Read more

Happy Thoughts

I was tagged by Christopher at Outside Clyde to list eight things that make me happy. Then I get to name 8 other victims to do the same! Here are the rules: When tagged, you must link to the person who tagged you. Post these rules before your list, then list 8 thoughts that make … Read more

December and Still Digging

Yesterday I fought the wind and dug a few more holes in our front garage/sidewalk garden. Its not much to look at now all bedraggled from the frost. Our perennials have said “good night” and only a few small shrubs look of any account, but in this bed I planted 60 tulips. I didn’t use … Read more

Garden Thoughts: A Gardening Equation

(Time x (Knowledge + Experience) x Money )= Your Garden How successful is your garden? I think you can tell just by observing the outcome, but there are elements that go into it that effect your desired outcome. Time to me is by far the most important. The amount of time spent planning, weeding, planting, … Read more

Planting in Three Dimensions (3D)

When you plant a tree there are many things to consider about its location. The amount of sun it needs, the soil qualities and the size of the plant are some things that need to be considered. When you think about the size of the plant you need to think in three dimensions: the height … Read more

Native Substitutes for Exotic and Invasive Plants

Today while browsing I checked the Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council’s website and found some very useful information for home gardeners. But first let me tell you why I was looking for it. I saw a post discussing Allan Armitage’s view of native plants over at Garden Rant. To sum it up in three words: … Read more

Plant of the Week:Oak

The plant of the week this past week was an oak tree. This tree is actually in West Tennessee at my wife’s grandmother’s house. It is a very large and majestic tree that provides great shade and a bounty of acorns each year. The picture was taken from the base of the tree looking up … Read more

It’s the The Final Mowdown!

Today I took the mower out for a final spin in the balmy 60 degree weather before closing shop over the winter. I’m sure the mower was appreciative of the action as it had rested in my garage for a month gathering dust. It was a good day. It was just the mower and me, … Read more