Butternut pumpkin is one of my favorite types of squash. It is resistant to squash bugs and tastes wonderful when roasted. Instead of planting the crop in soil enriched with compost, I experimented this year by planting in compost to see what would happen. This type of planting works best in a rolling compost pile …
Gardening Tips
There are dozens of uses for license plates if you just think outside the box a bit. The colors and designs lend them selves to loads of home decor projects, both inside and outside the home. Have you ever thought about using number plates in DIY projects? Using recycled items saves money on the projects …
Large, showy indoor plants are a delight in the home. Growing dracaena fragrans gives the feeling of being in a corn field. The striped yellow and green leaves bring a lot of softness to any corner of a room. It is not too hard to figure out why Dracaena Fragrans is called The Corn Plant. The …
Pruning forsythia requires some basic knowledge of how the plant is meant to grow. Forsythia flowers give us one of the first splashes of color in early spring gardens. But to get that color and a well shaped shrub, it’s important to trim forsythia bushes correctly. Check out this article for more information on forsythia …
Liriope Muscari Variegata is an evergreen perennial that easily spreads to form a deep carpet of grass-like plants that makes a great ground cover or border plant. This form of liriope aptly has the common name “variegated lilyturf.” Variegated liriope is less invasive than the normal variety. Keep reading to find out how to grow …
This list of 15 bulbs to plant in fall will make sure that next year gets started with a burst of color with very little effort on your part. If you enjoy the beauty of spring-blooming bulbs, it takes a bit of early planning to get that look in your garden. I’ve also included lots of …
How well do you know your flower bulb types? Do the words bulbs corms rhizomes tubers and bulbets seem like Greek to you? Read on and you find out what you need to know to be a bulb expert. Flowering bulbs are some of the easiest plants to grow. Some of the spring flowering bulbs, …
Which herbs should choose for your indoor garden? Here are my top 10 picks for herbs to grow indoors. There is nothing quite like the taste of fresh herbs to really add a boost to your homemade recipes. Many gardeners enjoy growing herbs outside during the summer months, but winter temperatures will kill them off …
This fall gardening checklist will help you get ready for the gardening off-season. Learn about autumn garden care and how to winterize your outdoor space to make things so much easier when the garden starts blooming next spring. Getting out in the garden this time of the year is a great time to look back on …
Seeing how many ways there are to dress up your home with window box planters was inspiring. They are a fabulous way to create curb appeal and are easy to take care of. I have recently discovered a love for window boxes. During my summer vacation, we toured 10 states and visited many Botanical Gardens. …
Rosemary is normally quite easy to control if you keep it in a pot, but if you have it growing freely in the garden, it can easily get woody and shabby looking. This is when these tips for pruning rosemary are helpful. All garden plants need pruning at some stage, and rosemary is no exception. …
Our summer vacation this year was a mainly tour of Historic Homes and Botanical Gardens in 7 Eastern and Midwest States. But while we were in Ohio, we stopped into the Cleveland Zoo and spent a few hours admiring the animals. This big zoo houses 3,000 animals of over 600 species on abut 180 acres …
Most gardeners love being out in the garden, but few want to see it as a chore. Even though the temperatures are getting cooler in most of the country, there are still lots of opportunities to make gardening easier. With a bit of planning and a few easy tricks, your time in the garden can …
Here are some of my favorites gardening ideas from the best of the internet. The ideas range from soup to nuts. There is something for all gardening styles here. My only requirement for a project to land on this page is that it must inspire me and have something to do with creative gardening. Grab …
If you want to attract hummingbirds to your garden, there are a few things that you should keep in mind when planting. The right type of flowers and color are the key to attracting these beauties. There is nothing quite like the sight of hummingbirds around a feeder, fluttering their wings the way only hummingbirds …
These swallowtail nectar plants are great at attracting butterflies to your garden. They just can’t resist them! Nothing makes me smile more than going out into my garden and seeing swallowtail butterflies fluttering around. Did you know that planting certain plants will make sure that you have these pretty visitors to your yard? Swallowtail butterflies …
There are dozens of vinegar uses in the home. From soaking your sponges to keeping your counters free of ants, this product is a must have. Vinegar is a versatile and effective household product that is more useful than just for making salad dressing. There are many vinegar uses around the house and garden. One of the …
I, for one, and many of my gardening friends have noted the declining bee population. And those that do visit our yards are the bumble bees, rather than the honey bees. With all the talk of GMOs, pesticides, and large-scale farming, one has to ask the question, “How important are bees to our Food Supply …
Critters in the garden range from beneficial to invasive. Some actually are listed by the US Department of Agriculture as invasive pests that need to be controlled. See my tips for dealing with these unwanted bugs. This post was sponsored on behalf of the United States Department of Agriculture – Animal and Plant Health Inspection …
If you love plants with a long blooming season, you will likely have a fondness for growing hollyhocks. This lovely biennial is a popular garden favorite that flowers throughout most of the summer months. Hollyhocks (Puccinia malvacearum) are often found in cottage gardens. They make a great background plant for shorter plants and come in …
Balloon Flower, or Platycodon grandiflorus, is also known as Chinese Bell flower. The common names of this pretty perennial plant come from the plump found flower buds that resemble hot air balloons or Chinese lanterns before they open. Blue flowers are unusual in the garden. Keep reading to find out how to grow this flower with a …
Have you ever wondered what you need to do to grow sweet tomatoes? Vegetable gardening is so satisfying, and homegrown tomatoes are at the top of my favorites list. The taste of homegrown tomatoes is nothing at all like those that you buy in the stores. Even the vine-ripened ones can’t compare in taste to the …
Since I don’t like to use chemicals in the garden, I have been trying to find natural treatments for poison Ivy prevention so that I don’t have to use poisons We have a patch of poison ivy that seems to keep re-appearing in one of my garden beds every so often. You have all heard …
Depending on your point of view, you will either consider monkey grass a lovely ground cover or an unwanted weed. If the latter is more of your mindset, these tips for controlling monkey grass will help you get rid of your unwelcome garden visitor. Check Craig’s list free advertisements on most weekends in the summer here …
A common gardening mistake is not staying on top of weeding. This natural vinegar weed killer is easy to use that retail products, takes care of the job, and so much better for the soil. Do you love growing perennials but don’t like the weeds that need pulling? The next time you walk outside and …
Growing great tomatoes doesn’t happen just by putting a few plants into the ground and turning on the hose. But anyone can master growing great tomatoes by following a few simple dos and don’ts. In the world of vegetable gardening, there is nothing quite like the taste of fresh home grown tomatoes. The flavor of …