Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

The end of the line has come at last for the leaves on our trees. Today I went out and took a few pictures around the greenhouse project and happened upon this image of the trees bereft of leaves in one of the large picture windows I installed on the greenhouse and thought of the Gardening Gone Wild Picture Contest…

Insect pests (like aphids) are always frustrating to find on your plants. I’ve dealt with aphids many times before but I still never like to find them again. Inevitably I do. Aphids are one of the most common insect pests in every garden. If you garden you will eventually find them on one of your plants. I’ve had them on…

Spring is just around the corner but the cold days of winter are still present here in Tennessee. Sometimes we have really nice, beautiful, spring-like days in February and it’s so tempting to get in the garden and get a lot of work done. One task I believe that gardeners should wait on is cutting back perennials and ornamental grasses…

…I noticed something odd on the shelves and it was a little disconcerting to see. I went to the big chain bookstore in Franklin to see what kind of garden books they were carrying with the intent on purchasing one with some leftover money I received for my birthday last July. I know it’s been a long time since July…

You may not believe me but snakes really can be a garden’s (and gardener’s) best friend!  Many people carry a fear of these creatures.  I can understand being afraid of poisonous snakes but the others are quite beneficial.  Yesterday while I was outside near my vegetable garden putting in some outdoor plant shelves (made from old wooden pallets) I moved…

Weeds are one of the most troubling elements of gardening that gardeners face.  A gardener’s definition of a a weed is simply a plant you don’t want in a place you don’t want it!  Which means that even desirable plants can become a weed pest in the wrong place.  Gardener’s want simple and easy ways to remove weeds from the…

What is my favorite tree?  That’s a hard question to answer, since there are so many trees that I enjoy.  Some trees provide fruit, other trees, shade, and others flowers which makes them hard to pick a single favorite.  I have to categorize.  In the spring for the flowering trees I would have to say my favorites are the cherry…

Some plants just really know how to grow! Take this Ajuga reptans (Bugleweed) that I planted in my corner shade garden area last fall for instance. I had one plant that I divided into two and planted on either side of a large stepping stone. Those two plants have now become all those that you see in the picture below….

The fan shaped leaves of the ginkgo are one of my favorite trees to watch in the fall. The leaves turn a bright gold that really is quite magical to see! You know what though? The summer leaves look pretty awesome too! Ginkgo biloba backlit with the sun.

November finds my GROW project seeds from Renee’s Seeds pretty much finished. We’ve had 3-4 frosts which have brought the end to my ‘Yellow Splash’ Marigold and ‘Italian Cameo’ Basil plants. Both of these two annuals did very well in my garden.  The basil was tasty and able to take a fair amount of neglect (it’s been a busy year…

It’s Sunday and another family wedding is complete! The happy couple said their vows yesterday before the thunderstorm arrived. Since the wedding was outdoors at my mother-in-law’s house it was fortunate that the rains only came during the reception that followed. Rather than talk too much I’ll show you the results of our wedding preparations.Here is the arbor with the…

Why should you consider raised bed gardening for your vegetables? It’s a good question. The alternative is to put the garden in the ground which people have done for centuries with success. Why change a good thing? For the small home garden raised beds are a much better option. Below you will find some very good benefits of gardening in…

Tonight we were able to make good use of our vegetables from the garden. Here’s a quick look at what my family had for dinner tonight!Now the chicken was the main course and it didn’t come from the garden but the squash did! I covered it in olive oil with a little salt and pepper then grilled the squash halves….

I find Garden Tours fun to put together. It’s an opportunity incessantly talk about plants, plans, and ideas and that is one of my favorite things to do! I put together a garden tour of our current garden on YouTube which you can watch down below. To summarize the year so far we moved in November of 2023 to our…

Alright you tomato crazed vegetable gardeners! It’s time to give away some tomato seeds to start your heirloom tomato collection for next year. The seeds I’m talking about are from a tomato called ‘Woodle Orange’.  Which is perhaps a lesser known variety but definitely not because it under performs. In fact it’s a delicious alternative to the standard reds and…

Recently I started a few nasturtium seeds as a part of the Grow Project hosted by Mr. Brownthumb. Renee’s Seeds offered to send seeds for several volunteer garden bloggers to try. Each month throughout the season I’ll update you on the progress of the nasturtium seeds as they grow. Seed Starting Mix on left, Potting Mix on the right Today’s…

Who wouldn’t want to make more lavender from cuttings? Lavender is a great perennial plant to have around the garden and is an easy one for home gardeners to propagate. Designers use it in knot gardens, formal gardens, or even in pots. It smells great when touched and also has insect repellent properties to help keep the bites at bay….

The other day I took this photo of a pot my mom put together of pansies and violas. I’m not much of a potted plant person so most of my plants go in the ground but I thought this easy to put together arrangement of annuals was perfect. The larger pansies went in the center and were planted around with…