Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

Thank you for stopping by to see what’s blooming here in TN during September. Also thanks to Carol for hosting Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day each month. Before you look at the pictures below I want to invite you to participate in the Fall Color Project for 2010. Click on the link to see the information about the Fall Color Project….

Fall is a great time of the year for seed saving. Our plants have spent their time over the summer building up energy to produce seeds which will one day sprout, grow, and create new plants. Seedlings are essential to the diversity of a species. When open pollinated plants share their genetic makeup they can pass on variations in their…

The world is full of creative ideas and this ancient method of watering plants is a very cool one.  An olla is a clay pot that is buried in the soil near plants.  The non-glazed clay pot has a watering hole in the top that allows the gardener to fill it with water when needed.  When the soil is dry…

Pyracantha with root Here are some rooted cuttings of Pyracantha augustifolia also known as Firethorn. This is a very good plant to use in the landscape for privacy hedges and for attracting wildlife. Birds and insects both love this plant. Insects for its white flowers in late spring and the birds for the bright orange berries in fall and winter….

Saturday I took another small but significant step toward my quest for a greenhouse, I began the dig! While I still have some planning to do regarding the construction of the greenhouse no matter how I eventually decide to put it together I’ll need level ground with good drainage. That’s why I spent and hour and a half digging out…

Here are two more updates for the Garden Blogger Fall Color Project! I want to take a second to thank everyone who has submitted a post so far. I’ve seen so many interesting places with fantastic colors and scenery that I never would have been able to see in one season! If you haven’t submitted anything yet don’t worry about…

This week’s name that seed might be a challenge.  The seeds are in the exact state that I found them in however they do not look exactly like they would if they were freshly formed on a tree.  Here is your one clue: the tree prefers shade.  All answers should be posted by the morning of Monday December 22, 2008…

New to our garden this year ‘Powis Castle’ artemisia is proving to be a powerful perennial plant for foliage! I’ve always enjoyed artemisias for the silver foliage and really liked the ‘Silver Mound’ artemisia that we put in the front sidewalk garden so once I found this cultivar at a local nursery I thought I would give it a try….

We have tomato weather but no tomatoes! That’s not surprising for June here in TN as most tomatoes don’t produce ripe fruit until July.  Knowing that fact though doesn’t diminish the desire for that first fresh from the garden homegrown tomato! Our plants are doing very well so far, healthy and strong with stout stems and trunks.  At this point…

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 you will have a very…

Yesterday I asked people what varieties of vegetables they would recommend from their own experiences.  My goal is to add a few new vegetables each year just to try something new.  Some vegetables are tried and true and will always be in my garden but there are so many types of vegetables out there that I know I will never…

As real gardening time approaches and we stop planning and dreaming to actually begin planting we have to know what we are going to do with our gardens. The big thing on my mind lately has been the vegetable garden. I miss the tomatoes, squash, and cucumbers that came out of our garden fresh everyday. I want to grow more…

Once your seeds have grown big enough to plant out in the garden it’s time to find a way to get them into the garden.  Direct sowed seeds have a big advantage in this area as they have grown from the start in the great outdoors are are already well adapted to the weather.  Seedlings grown indoors aren’t so lucky. …

The other day I mentioned rosemary but another herb that I utilize often is mint. While mint is a great plant to have it also has a reputation. You see, once it gets established it grows fast – very fast. It can quickly overtake other plants that are near it. Some people wouldn’t plant it with a ten foot pole…

Today I’m going to tell you of a special technique for growing Echinacea or coneflowers from seed. You may have heard of this technique before and perhaps you’ve even tried it. Whether you have or haven’t this technique is worth trying I call it: forgetting you planted the seeds.Here’s how forgetting you planted the seeds works step by step. The gardener…

One of the fun side events caused by the gardening habit is the witnessing of nature’s amazing works. Lately I’ve been seeing quite a bit of the fritillary butterfly in its various stages of growth.  It’s probably the gulf fritillary butterfly but there are several different kinds in our area and even though I’m a plant person I’m not necessarily…

It’s taken a long time for our moonflower vine (Ipomoea alba) to finally become mature enough to produce a flower. I planted two moonflower vines from seed at the base of the arbor I built for Better Homes and Gardens soon after its construction. The first couple weeks of their life was difficult due to the rabbits and their taste…

You have raised beds in your backyard ready to go for spring vegetables but over the winter what are they doing? Are they just sitting there?  I’m sure this idea has occurred to some of you before.  Why not use the raised beds over the winter to propagate a few plants?  The amazing thing is that this can work so…