Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

While the winter is still in gear I thought it might be helpful to begin reviewing some of the toughest plants I have grown over the years. I’ve grown a lot of them (and killed a few of them along the way). In my garden it has to be a tough plant to survive over the years. Today I’m going…

Several years ago we began to create a garden along the fence at my parents home.  As you can see in the first two pictures there was very little there. A birch tree was planted along the fence to eventually create some shade. On the right are two apple trees that died and were removed since this picture was taken….

I’m a big fan of foliage! There is no better time of the year than autumn for those who love foliage, and naturally fall is one of my favorite times of the year. I thought I would share with you some photos I have taken over the last month of the foliage from my garden. Tennessee often has amazing fall…

This past weekend while the weather was looking pretty close to awesome we re-made the roof window on my greenhouse shed. The first attempt was leaking in a couple small spots which prompted me to re-think the whole design before the project was too far along. I found out while I was removing the first attempt that if I had…

Who is this hiding among the Bradford Pear Blossoms?I didn’t notice the lady beetle before I took the picture. It was only after I was perusing pictures from today’s beautiful weather that I noticed the little orange and black insect hiding among the blossoms.

Plant propagation can continue at almost every time of the year, the winter is no exception. This is especially true if you have a little space in your house to put your cuttings or can manage to manipulate them into interesting centerpieces! In this post you will see how to propagate Leyland cypress from cuttings. A Brief Bit About Leyland…

On Saturday I purchased most of the vegetable seeds that we plan on growing for this season. We are dividing seeds with my parents since neither of us need all the seeds this year. The raised beds still need to be assembled but the wood is in the garage just waiting to be used. We also bought some herb and…

The number one thing people think of when the fall season comes is the leaves.  Thoughts of harvests, festivals, and cooler weather come too but when the fall season comes to mind its the leaves that get the attention.  Everybody loves the leaves!  Here’s why: 5 Reasons to Love Your Leaves The colors.  Mother nature gives us a spectacular color…

When I went to the plant swap this past weekend I was hoping to find some shade tolerant plants to add to the corner shade garden. Something new or unique would be a great addition to the shade garden. I saw several hostas at the swap. Almost everyone loves them (I don’t know anyone who doesn’t) and they are easy…

The summer heat is coming and with the heat comes a whole new set of rules for gardening. The warm season vegetables grow great while the cool season plants bolt quickly. What if you want to keep your cool season plantings growing longer into the summer? Is there a way to do that? The answer is yes there is, move…

The vegetable garden is finally taking off! Even though it feels like things have been moving slowly, we’re already seeing exciting progress — tomato plants are starting to flower, and our pepper plants are showing off their first baby peppers. This year, I planted around 36–38 tomato plants of various types and a generous amount of both sweet and hot…

It’s time for a few herb cuttings!  Surely you didn’t think it would be too long before the plant propagation posts began again?  The warm weather is here – early – but the plants have responded and it’s time to take some stem tip cuttings.  My wife finds these posts boring and floats right by but hopefully you won’t. 😉…

After my post yesterday about the Snowy Owl Visit to Spring Hill, TN, Pete sent me a few of his pictures of the owl. He was able to get much closer to the bird than I could and his pictures are fantastic! He prefaced the pictures with a story that I’ll share with you in this post. I am a…

Today I begrudgingly bring you some very beautiful flowers. The only reason I’m hesitant is because of the tree that these perfect little white blooms flower from each spring. Can you guess it? If not I’ll give you a couple clues – it’s over planted. Still can’t guess? It’s smells awful in the spring, I’m talking rotting-fish awful. Still can’t…

One of the most interesting things about the fall season is the ability to observe the transformation from lush flowers and foliage to seed heads and dried leaves that flutter on the wind. It’s the beginning and the end of two gardening seasons for many plants. The seeds are the bridge that will reach across the gap and bring us…

In my last post I told you how to begin planning for an edible landscape and how to determine what to grow. Today let’s examine what elements you need to incorporate into the plan.  With an edible landscape we need to focus on one thing: sustainability.  Sustainability is a word used a lot these days and for our gardening goals…

Just one really neat sight I saw this weekend was the monarch sipping nectar from the milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). Milkweed is the host plant for the monarch butterflies which serves a very important role in the life of the fluttering favorites of backyard butterflies. Milkweed contains a chemical called glycosides which get consumed by the monarch caterpillars (see more here…

The last thing I want to do in the heat of July is a list of chores but to help the garden through the blazing summer sun there are a few things I have to do. I suspect that you will be doing at least some of these things too! Watering: In the morning is the best time to water…