Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

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…

With summers in Tennessee you never know exactly what your going to get.  Usually you expect dry and hot.  That’s a pretty safe bet.  But lately the temperatures have reminded me of fall.  The scents are on the wind.  Fall blooming plants like goldenrod and ironweed are beginning to flower.  The smell of fall is in the air – but…

Happy Valentine’s Day! I gave these to my wife but thought I’d also share them with you.     Too bad you can’t smell them!

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is one of the easiest herbs to grow. Here are a few growing facts about basil in the garden! Corsican Basil Basil grows well from seed.  You can sow it in the garden or start the seeds in pots.  It transplants well.  Keep basil seeds moist until germinated and established.Basil is a great companion plant to just about…

Finally I braved the harsh August summer elements and trekked out to the garden shed to lay the brick floor down. I didn’t get finished but I did manage to get some important work done like leveling the crushed gravel underneath where the bricks will go. I took a board and a level and made sure that the gravel was…

As you might imagine much of our time is spent in the garden. The kids are outdoors as much as possible (when the weather is cooperative).  I don’t think just being outdoors is enough, being in the garden is where children should be and here’s why: Gardening gets kids active physically. One big issue facing our country is childhood obesity…

The calendar hasn’t said so yet officially, but winter weather is already here. As I write this post sleet is spitting through the air outside. Fortunately I have a pot of hot coffee available to offset the cold. What should a gardener be doing on these cold “winter” days when the garden isn’t suitable for enjoyment? Cold winter days mean…

The most exciting time in the garden is the harvest time! It’s the time when you get to go to the vegetable garden and taste the goodies the garden has grown. All the hard work that you put into the garden shows up at the harvest stage. It’s also where you can measure how good your garden really is! I’ve…

The gardener gone A.W.O.L. was me of course, but for good reasons I assure you! No doubt you are familiar with the saying “make hay while the sun shines.” Well…the sun has been shining in our Tennessee home garden. The past couple days I have been busy in the yard trying to turn this place into a fantastic garden this…

Since I decided to remodel the raised bed vegetable garden this year a lot of work has been done.  The beds have all been built for this year and all the grading I wanted to attempt is finished, for now.  The fence will be something of an ongoing project but we’ve erected a temporary wire fence made of 3 foot…

I’m another step closer to actually using the greenhouse garden shed I built. I actually have the structure up for my big plant bench. I just need to do a few more finishing touches! I’m thinking of painting it white eventually to add some light reflection but that will most likely have to wait until spring.

I have to admit it, I really do like my lawn. The “in” thing right now is eliminating lawns by replacing them with gardens. That’s great idea that I fully support but it just isn’t feasible when you have a large yard. The other option is letting areas become meadows which I think is pretty cool too (and for one…

It’s no secret I like salvia in the garden. It’s easy to grow and hardy here in Tennessee. Most importantly it never fails to produce great blooms. The foliage is nice but nothing spectacular, however today I saw something very interesting. It happens every now and then on various plants and is responsible for the creation of many variegated varieties,…

I invited native plant expert and advocate Benjamin Vogt to write a guest post on attracting bees to the garden with native plants. I hope you enjoy it! -Dave This morning, once the sun hit the main garden, I took my video camera outside. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do, recording the most active part of the day in…

In my latest YouTube video I went through and checked on many of the plants I’ve taking cuttings from this summer. There are a variety of plants in the video including rosemary, ninebark, fothergilla, boxwoods, crape myrtle, and cherry laurels. This was actually the first time I’ve tried rooting fothergilla and I had pretty good success taking a few small…

I was on the radio yesterday to talk about gardening on Spotlight on Spring Hill (WAKM 950 AM) and had several fall gardening topics prepared to share. Then the first guest to talk, our City Codes Inspector, began mentioning some upcoming projects and I nearly got completely sidetracked. You see I meant to talk about leaves, not to burn them,…

I officially nominate the pumpkin for vegetable of the month! Do I hear a second?I realize that the selection of a pumpkin may be predictable but it’s such a seasonally appropriate vegetable for October. After all could you have even think of fall harvests and Halloween without pumpkins? Whether they are turned into pies or Jack-o-lanterns these orange globes of…