Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

This winter has been cold and nothing if not unpredictable. Here in Tennessee we’re experiencing a warm day every now and then followed by extreme cold. Hopefully now that March has arrived and spring is close things will be shaping up very soon. With that in mind I put together a project that will help me to get a jump…

When you are planning your gardens for 2010 and begin to think of what annuals to put in it give cosmos a look. It comes up easily from seed, blooms prolifically, seems to have few pest problems, attracts pollinators, and looks pretty darn good! The flowers in the above and below pictures are from the same plant just taken at…

These particular crocuses were tiny little bulbs (actually corms) that we planted outside of our apartment in east Tennessee. We didn’t have much space to do anything and just experimented with a few just to see if we could get a little color along our short walkway. They would pop up in the early spring and give us a little…

The other day I wrote about layering rosemary plants. Layering is the process of propagation where roots are formed by placing the stem of the plant underneath rooting medium (soil) to allow it to root with the support of the parent plant. If you look closely at the picture to the left you can see small roots being formed at…

The foliage is still there on some if the trees and shrubs in our garden and is fading fast. Most of what remains now has a reddish hue in the leaves but in some cases what remains isn’t just the leaves. The ‘Shasta’ viburnum is showing red in the last few of it’s remaining leaves. In my garden it’s the…

Is it spring yet? The weather sure seems like it! Today and tomorrow we are looking at temperatures in the mid to upper 60’s. Yesterday was warm also in the lower 60’s. The difference today will probably be the sun. That bright orange combustible ball of incandescent gas is out and warming things up instead of shyly hiding behind the…

The first yellow crocus of the year has emerged from the front garden! Many more blooms to come!

Today we have three more submissions for the Garden Blogger Fall Color Project! Nancy in Canada, TC in Pennsylvania and Liisa in Vermont.Take a road north to visit the wonderful fall colors in Nova Scotia with Nancy of Soliloquy. Canada is where the fall colors start their colorful journey to the south and we are lucky to have Nancy to…

Sunday was a bit of a catch-up day. Over the past few weeks I’ve had several chores that needed done in the garden but just haven’t had the time to get them accomplished. I finally made a dent in that to-do list. Here’s what was accomplished: Birdbath garden and pathway Transplanted: Birch, 2 dappled willows, redbud (these do not transplant…

Late August is an important time in the garden. The summer heat is still with us, but cooler weather is on the way. For gardeners in zone 7, this is the point where preparation meets transition—wrapping up the summer season while setting the stage for fall and even next spring. If you’re in a warmer zone, you may have more…

Last week I caught my first glimpse of something I have never seen before, a fox in my backyard.  There was a little doubt in my mind when I saw it.  Was it some sort of dog that resembled a fox or did I really seen one?  I’ve never been fortunate enough to see one in the wild just in…

You hear about it all the time crape myrtles being unceremoniously chopped off before they can become what they should be. This pruning method is best known as crape murder. The result of crape murder is a plant that ends up with lollipop like flowering tops with branches that flop all around in the slightest breeze. Can you tell I’m…

Before reading a certain garden blogger’s post I had never heard of a cotton plant with dark foliage (Gossypium herbaceum ‘Nigra’). Then this spring Nancy Ondra of Hayefield emailed me and asked if I would like to try some seeds. Me being the seed collecting addict I am I said of course! She also sent along some seeds for an…

Never say never right?  In my experience there are very few plants that are truly safe from deer.  This year I’ve had big time deer issues.  The extra tomato bed I planted was completely devoured by the two deer that are camping out in our backyard.  That isn’t shocking really.  I wasn’t able to put a good fence around any…

It’s raining. Again. No one can control the weather and even though sometimes it can’t be predicted accurately, today they got it right. The rain is good, don’t get me wrong but I really want to plant some vegetable plants and seeds in the raised bed garden.  I’m not late in planting at all, just not as early as I…

It’s not a secret that I’m a fan of plant propagation. Who wouldn’t be? You get free plants! One of the easiest ways to propagate a plant is through a technique called layering. With layering you essentially pin down a branch of a shrub or tree to the soil and encourage it to form roots. The roots usually appear at…

Over the past month quite a few people have hit this blog searching for information on various topics. Sometimes their searches are in the form of a question and I thought it would be fun to go back and answer the questions. Most people looked for information with the word “how” but a few used “what”even fewer used “where” and…

Welcome to the first Seed Sowing Saturday of 2011! Where all of us seed starting fanatics recap our weekly seed starting experiences and share with each other what we’re working on, how we’re doing it all, and of course the results! I chose to start my seed sowing this week by starting shallots. We do a great deal of our…