Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

Almost sounds like a Christmas song but White Nose is the name of a squirrel that frequents our yard and our back deck. He’s a pretty big little guy with a furry white nose, hence his name. He feels quite comfortable partaking of our bird buffet. I really don’t mind the squirrels visiting the bird feeders. The only bad thing…

I’ve propagated many plants over the years and one of my favorite plants to propagate is Russian sage. Yesterday I was able to transplant several Russian sage cuttings (Perovskia atriplicifolia*) into pots to grow for a little while until I can plant them in the garden. In this post I’ll describe how I propagate Russian sage from cuttings. *Plant taxonomists…

Being mid-November there isn’t much to show for blooms. We’ve had several light frosts and a couple hard freezes which for the most part silences the perennials and annuals that worked so hard for us during the growing season. But there is always something worth looking at in the garden! Like these pansies in the front garden. The salvia by…

While I haven’t written about it in quite some time we have a large hillside that so far we’ve left pretty natural. Over the last two years I’ve gradually cut into the slope in an attempt to cut down on the worst of all weeds, ragweed. Right now the slope has large pathways cut into the top that have natural…

This post is about two of my favorite vegetable garden plants: tomatoes and sugar snap peas! Both are delicious right from the garden and I have both growing in my home and garden! The snap peas are about 6 inches tall at this point. The pea growth has been slowed some by the cool temperatures.  Even though sugar snap peas…

Our front sidewalk garden has always been a tricky thing. I plant the plants I like there but I’ve rarely given consideration to other people who walk down the sidewalk which is becoming problematic. It’s a problem because of two things: many of the plants I plant attract pollinators (which doesn’t bother me a bit but does bother those who…

I have repeatedly written about how awesome salvias are.  I hope you’re not tired of that kind of talk because your about to get another dose!  Salvias are one of the easiest to care for perennials around. During fall they bloom profusely. They aren’t bothered terribly by heat and in many cases thrive in dry environments where other perennials may…

Every so often, I come across a plant I’ve been hunting for and I get pretty excited. That was the case this week when I finally tracked down American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) a native shrub that’s been on my wish list for quite a while. It was waiting for me at a local nursery where I stopped to ask about…

Have you ever wondered if the chlorine in your garden water harms the beneficial microbes in your garden soil? Chlorine, as you probably know, is a chemical  that is added to our water to kill off the harmful bacterias that might be present in our water supply. Unfortunately chlorine will kill the good things too. Recently I was sent a…

Do you know the feeling you have when everything major is accomplished for a while and you have nothing pressing that needs accomplished? You may still have chores and tasks that need done but it’s more maintenance than giant projects that constantly beckon for your attention. After hosting our garden club meeting where I lectured about building an arbor and…

Why Hostas are Great in the Garden Hostas are a very popular choice for gardeners. Who wouldn’t want an amazing foliage plant that has so many options. Hostas offer a wide array of colors, size, and variegation. It would be hard not to find a good hosta for a nice shady garden location! Smaller hostas can be easily tucked into…

As you might guess from the title I paid a visit yesterday to a fellow garden blogger’s garden to visit none other than Clay and Limestone’s Gail.  She invited me up to collect a tree for our garden that she didn’t have a home for after her patio area remodel.  The tree was a serviceberry.  A great tree to add…

Here are two more great fall color posts for the Garden Blogger fall Color Project. These two posts come to us from the mid-west specifically Chicago, Illinois and Iowa.Mr. McGregor’s Daughter in Chicago, Illinois is observing some really fantastic fall color. The red oaks are competing with the maples for an extraordinary autumn show. Usually the maples win hands down…

Some days the rain gets you!Here’s one very wet cardinal finishing off the seed from our bird feeder in the rain.

Recently I ordered plants (which I’ll cover in another post) and while choosing the plants I used a few criteria to guide my selections.  I wouldn’t rule out purchasing plants just because they might miss one or two of these characteristics but I do know that when all five can be found in the same plant I’ve got a winner!…

I had an idea a while back that needed a little more refining before I posted on it: A Seed Swap! At first I thought I would just offer a couple types of seed to trade among anyone who follows this blog but then I thought a little bigger. I thought “What if a bunch of garden bloggers hosted their…

My last post about the brick floor only had a small portion of the garden shed covered with bricks. I’ve made a little progress since then and have complete exhausted my supply of free bricks. I’ve been looking for more but so far I’ve come up empty handed. I’m pleased with how it’s turning out at this point but really…

Over the last year I’ve been enthralled with heucheras. I see a new one and I have to add it to the garden! If you are looking for a versatile foliage perennial then definitely take a look at the heucheras (Coral Bells). There are many varieties so far I have at least 5 different kinds in my gardens. The last…