Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

What posts stood out to me this week? Read on! I was struck by the beautiful setting in Rob’s post at Our French Garden in the Beautiful Dordogne. The rest of the post is great too but you know what they say about first impressions! This week was Carol’s Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day which is always worth a look at…

The other day while on a shopping trip I sat in the car with my daughters while my wife ran into the store for a few things. In front of our parking space was a magnolia. I doubt it was the full sized magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), as the placement of such a large tree in a limited growth area like…

This year is going to be a challenge.  I can tell already judging from the weather we’re having.  A delayed start combined with high moisture and strange weather is creating a tricky situation for gardeners.  All this moisture may sound like a good thing but I’m very concerned about the potential for fungal diseases on our tomatoes and peppers.  Powdery…

I found this plant on a limestone outcropping near the Yellow Corydalis and the False Garlic. It appears to be a type of succulent. The stems and larger leaves have a red tint around the edges while the smaller leaves are more narrow and green. I suspect it is a wild stonecrop of some sort but I don’t know for…

This past Sunday I asked a for some inspiration on perennials for fall plantings. Here is a summary of what people suggested. I’ve simplified this post to show only the specific perennials themselves but those who commented offered some great ideas for where to use these perennials and some other options like trees and shrubs so please go back and…

This Saturday is the Middle Tennessee Plant Swap at Henry Horton Park. This is a fantastic opportunity to talk to other gardeners and exchange those extra plants you don’t need for some you do! If you haven’t already gotten your plants ready you should do that ASAP to give them time to recover from any potential plant shock. Exchanges aren’t…

Yesterday’s post had many of the colorful plants I planted around the garden shed today’s post may be less colorful but hopefully still interesting! First let’s start off with a small stepping stone pathway. I bought some cheap 12″x12″ stepping stones to lay down for this little pathway. To the left of the pathway is an area that still needs…

The greening of the willows! It’s just more evidence that we’ve left winter behind and are heading full speed into spring. The leaves on the ‘Hakuro Nishiki’ dappled willows are emerging. And so are the catkins! The catkins are the reproductive mechanism of many plants like willows and birches.  Willows are dioecious and have separate male and female plants. If…

I would like to thank all those who posted an entry for the EcoSmart bug killer giveaway!  All the names were dropped in a hat (actually a Halloween candy bag), mixed, and one name was drawn by my oldest daughter.  The name that was chosen was Stacyjo! Congratulations to Stacy.  All you need to do is go to the EcoSmart…

Sunday was a bit of a catch-up day. Over the past few weeks I’ve had several chores that needed done in the garden but just haven’t had the time to get them accomplished. I finally made a dent in that to-do list. Here’s what was accomplished: Birdbath garden and pathway Transplanted: Birch, 2 dappled willows, redbud (these do not transplant…

One of the lesser shown areas of my yard this year has been the sideyard and corner shade garden. In the past I’ve featured it quite a bit but to be honest I’ve been disappointed with it this year. After I removed a cedar tree in the spring the morning sun began to cook the hostas in the garden. They…

It seems like I’ve blinked and it’s gone from May to September!  This summer has been a complete blur to me, but that’s how life is sometimes. Needless to say there are many garden chores that are coming up that will need done this month.  Here’s my September garden chore list! Finish pruning trees and shrubs. Here in Tennessee we…

It’s been a looong time since I’ve posted a new Name that Plant. This one was contributed by Lola a frequent visitor here who was wondering what this plant is in her yard. I have a suspicion of what it might be but I can’t say for 100% what it is. See if you can help us out! Lola’s garden…

It’s that time of the year again. That time when I go out and take cuttings of everything I can. For today’s post I took 6 cuttings of a ‘Husker’s Red’ Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) and 6 cuttings of Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia). I picked up the ‘Husker’s Red’ Penstemon on the discount racks last year just as it was losing…

It’s been a while since my last garden shed update and I’ve done a few more things. Not directly on the shed itself but around the shed. You’ll see in the pictures below that there are two distinct garden areas near the shed. One directly in front of the shed and the other to the left (eastern) side. In between…

To say that this month has been difficult is an understatement. My time in the garden has been minimal and its current state is more akin to a wild meadow (and that’s being kind) than a well tended garden at the moment. Fortunately we still have some very reliable blooming flowers to show for Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day. I’ve included…

This was a historic day. It was the first day I’ve ever seen a frog in my garden. I’ve seen a toad or two but never an actual frog! Amphibians are a good indicator of the heath of an environment. They are kind of like environmental canaries in a coal mine, if something is wrong they are one of the…

Everyone starts somewhere with a vegetable garden.  You can’t instantly have the garden of your dreams. That dream garden has to come together bit by bit, a little each day.  That goes for experienced gardeners as well as those just starting their first vegetable garden.  It’s just the nature of gardening.  You don’t receive instant gratification but each day you…