Did you Get Lost in the Garden?

Unfortunately this week my garden blog surfing was cut back severely. I just didn’t get the time to go and visit some of my favorite bloggers and as a consequence I’ve only marked one post for today – but it’s a good one! You might be thinking “he’s on a path kick” when you read this next post and remember…

Everyone starts somewhere with a vegetable garden.  You can’t instantly have the garden of your dreams. That dream garden has to come together bit by bit, a little each day.  That goes for experienced gardeners as well as those just starting their first vegetable garden.  It’s just the nature of gardening.  You don’t receive instant gratification but each day you…

All of us experienced gardeners can tell you, you are going to make mistakes!  It’s inevitable.  No matter how much planning or forethought you put into your garden you WILL make a mistake!  How’s that for thinking positively?  You positively will make a mistake, and you know what?  That’s OK!  We’ve all done it – albeit some more than others…

As strange as it may sound there are things still growing in the vegetable garden in November and it’s not because of our unusually warm weather. Unfortunately there is only one vegetable growing but there are several kinds of herbs that are doing great. All the vegetable garden pictures were taken this morning while a light frost was still covering…

You just have to love a flower that brings the sunshine down into the bland February garden. Winter Jasmine (Jasmine nudiflorum)  is a perfect fit for those gardeners who are fed up with winter and can’t wait for spring. It isn’t very showy the rest of the year with its normal looking deciduous green foliage but just before spring this…

Saturday was one of those days that you had to be outside.  Sunny and in the 70’s the weather was nothing less than pure perfection. It was truely a spring weather day.  The kind of day that you take in from dawn until dusk without ever wanting to come back inside.  All days end but this one was a good…

Raised beds are one of the absolute BEST ways to grow a garden but there can be challenges to growing in raised beds. Often gardeners have questions about the best methods to grow in a raised bed. In this post I’ve taken some common raised bed garden questions and put together some answers based on my experience. I’ve grown in…

This year is going to be a challenge.  I can tell already judging from the weather we’re having.  A delayed start combined with high moisture and strange weather is creating a tricky situation for gardeners.  All this moisture may sound like a good thing but I’m very concerned about the potential for fungal diseases on our tomatoes and peppers.  Powdery…

I know what this plant is, do you? See if you can guess it!The young foliage.The flowers.A stem covered with bugs! (Crane flies, harmless but they are everywhere right now)

One of the best times to work out in the garden is the early morning before 7:30 AM. Anytime thereafter the temperature and humidity skyrockets, at least here in Tennessee. Early morning is also one of the best times for watering. It gives the plants water in the coolest part of the day when they can absorb the most since…

I found it. I finally found it. The First Outdoor Bloom of 2010 Today while working outside for the first time in weeks I saw a little yellow bloom peeking out from the edge of a raised bed in the vegetable garden. It’s not much but it’s a flower nonetheless. And it may not even be a plant you like…

One of the lesser shown areas of my yard this year has been the sideyard and corner shade garden. In the past I’ve featured it quite a bit but to be honest I’ve been disappointed with it this year. After I removed a cedar tree in the spring the morning sun began to cook the hostas in the garden. They…

It that transitional time of the growing season where the spring weeds are coming to an end and the warm season weeds are beginning to arrive.  This time of year is also when many of our warm season crops and plants are coming up too.  Sometimes it isn’t easy to distinguish between a weed and a seedlings planted from seed…

Even though Zinnias begin with the letter “Z” they shouldn’t be your last thought for your garden. I’ve found that zinnias rival any other flower for attractive hummingbirds and butterflies. Hummingbirds love them, so much so that feeders are unnecessary. They are easy to grow, just sprinkle some seed where you want them and keep them watered to make them…

This time of year it’s interesting to see which plants are still performing well.  If we pay attention to how things perform and how long they last we can make better decisions when designing our gardens with plants in the future.  If you want to extend the foliage we need to note which plants have long lasting foliage.  The same…

Here you can find links to my posts about building a rain garden.The First Step to RecoveryDigging the Rain GardenWorking on the Rain GardenThe Rain Garden is Almost DonePlanting the Rain Garden(still to come)

I’ve always been a big fan of solar lighting.  I like the convenience of adding light where I want it in the garden without having to wire in electrical lines.  I also like how solar energy is collected during the day and distributed later when it is needed without using resources from the power grid.  Solar energy is a very…

I was pruning the lawn on Tuesday night (aka mowing) and as usual I spent that time contemplating my yard and garden. It’s a nice time to relax and observe places in your yard that you may not go to frequently for various reasons. Think about it, when you are riding around on your lawnmower you end up seeing almost…