Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

It’s always fun to go back and look at the year. It helps to examine what went well or what didn’t. Usually I end the year with a post on how my garden projects went but this year I thought I would mention what the top posts on Growing The Home Garden were for 2013.  Once our newest arrival came…

Have you ever wondered why some plants are considered invasive? It’s usually because if the growing conditions are even slightly favorable they take over. Invasiveness can be due to a number of traits like rapid growth, prolific reseeding, and rooting vine habits. Euonymous fortunei is one such plant in which I have observed to have at least two of these…

I have to admit it, I’m way behind on the Facebook thing! I’m just now getting around to adding an official Facebook page for The Home Garden where people can follow the blog. Many other garden bloggers have already created pages there and it really looks like an easy way for people to keep up with their favorite blogs. So…

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…

We all know that Christmas is on it’s way and the gift buying season has commenced! Fortunately gardeners are easy to please with presents! Just find them something they can use in the garden and they will be thrilled! Below are some easy gift ideas for gardeners that you can use to give those with green thumbs something for Christmas!…

First of all let me apologize, I intended to announce the winner of the grill yesterday however I was out battening down the hatches in preparation for storms of epic proportions.  Fortunately the storms did not manifest to the extent our local forecasters predicted.  That is just fine by me! Our thoughts and prayers are with those in Arkansas and…

Here are some pictures that we have taken of 2008!Here is a snowfall on a very cold evening. I like how the white snowflakes are captured, frozen in time, by the reflected light of the flash. A visitor to our new bird feeder! This white-breasted nuthatch (Sitta carolinesis) is cracking open the shell of a sunflower seed for his feast….

The other use for my pile of rock was for garden borders. I’m gradually edging all my garden beds with natural limestone rock. Limestone is readily available all over Tennessee which makes it either cheap or free! I’m happy with the look o limestone but nearly any type of rock will work well for borders if it is large enough….

The first day of Spring is marked by gardeners everywhere.  Unfortunately not everyone gets to experience warm days, growing plants, and all the wonders of spring at the same time.  It’s different for every region but that doesn’t make it any less significant.  The first day of spring symbolizes the beginning of the growing season for many gardeners.  Even gardeners…

Every now and then there is a plant that will root from the leaves, like Asiatic lilies I wrote about earlier in the year. Sedums are another one of those kinds of plants. Recently I rooted several cuttings of ‘Autumn Joy’ sedum and another sedum I don’t know the name of but bears a resemblance to Sedum seiboldii.  You might…

This time of year can be very confusing.  Especially when the weather throws a few curve balls like extra warm temperatures!  It almost makes you think it will be fine to plant those tomatoes four weeks early.  I know why, everyone wants bragging rights about that first ripe tomato! I thought for today’s Friday Five post that I would mention…

In order to raise worms for worm composting (vermicomposting) you have to have a place to put the worms and the kitchen scraps. There are all kinds of composting bins that can be effective but they all work on the same idea. A box houses the worms, kitchen scraps, and bedding. As the worms eat they make their way through…

Every year in the garden is different. Sometimes it’s warmer than normal, sometimes colder. We may have more rain than usual or we may be in a drought. All of these factors affect how the plants grow, what comes up, and when they make their first appearance. One special event I like to notate each year on this garden blog…

Have you ever used a kids toy to plant seeds?  It might be worth a try!  While out in the garden planting rainbow chard and spinach I used a hula hoop as a planting aid.  Inside the hula hoop I planted the rainbow chard and in the outside ring I planted spinach.  When the plants sprout and begin to grow…

It’s that time of year again, time to think about spring! Yes, I said that right. Spring! Fall is almost here but if you want to maximize the potential of your garden next year fall is the best time to get some work done. The autumn leaves will be changing soon and now is the best time to get some…

Could there a be a plant more touchable than Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina zones 4-10)? The soft fuzzy texture of its pale silvery tinted foliage just invites passing people to pet its leaves. It grows fast, likes full sun, and can easily take over a garden bed so be prepared if you plant it to make many divisions to give…

The other day I wrote about the value of using echinacea in the garden. As it turns out that it’s not only valuable to us as an ornamental or as a pollen plant for beneficial insects but it also can be a host plant for the Silvery Checkerspot butterfly (Chlosyne nycteis)! This weekend I discovered this mass of tiny black…

Over the course of the years gardeners learn many things through experimenting, reading, and talking to other gardeners. There are many different ideas and concepts to use in your garden and eventually you develop a little niche. Dictionary.com defines an ecological niche as ” the position or function of an organism in a community of plants and animals.” Your gardening…