Ideas, Info, Tools & Technology to Create Your Dream Garden
gardening
Planning Your Vegetable Gardens
Feb 13th
This is what the garden area looked like before we started any work.
This year I’m trying to be more organized about my planting. You see, there are certain vegetables that you don’t want to plant in the same place every year, because of soil born disease and pests. The most prominent of these are: tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers.
Last year I experienced early blight with my tomatoes. So, this year I want to be sure to plant them in a different location, so that if any of the blight bacteria lived in the soil over the winter I won’t have to More >
Excitement Dimmed
Feb 2nd
Day before yesterday I finally made arrangements to get a load of clean fill dirt so that we can level the area for the greenhouse. He said if it didn’t rain he’d be able to deliver it on Friday. It rained buckets yesterday!
This is how it goes with people who work outdoors. When you make plans for something you need to allow for the fact that Mother Nature may not cooperate. Even during times of the year when you don’t usually have any problems, a freak storm could cause delays.
Whenever I do an outdoor project I try not to put More >
Harbingers Of Spring
Jan 31st
Not even February 1st and the crocuses are already starting to bloom!
Ack! I was outside yesterday and the first crocuses are already blooming! I’m so far behind. I still have bulbs sitting in the storage room waiting to be put in the ground!
Even the best-laid plans can go haywire when you have to work around weather, work, and other obligations.
It looks like I’m already into the spring madness. Seems every year I get myself into the same pickle. I don’t manage to get all the cleanup and planting done in the fall that I need to, so then in the More >
Early Spring Bloomers
Jan 26th
Right now many of us gardeners are champing at the bit to get back out in the garden. If there is a warm moment, and the ground is clear of snow, we may find ourselves pacing back and forth in front of areas we know contain crocus, daffodil, and tulip bulbs, looking for signs of growth. There are other plants that bloom in very early spring, that you may want to consider including in your landscape.
Everyone knows about Pussy Willows (Salix discolor), the wonderful fuzzy harbingers of spring. Every time I seem them blooming I have to laugh, though. When More >
What Gardening Means To Me
Jan 23rd
What little girl could resist growing a Beauty Bush.
Today is my birthday. So, I thought I’d take time to write about what gardening means to me, why I’m such an avid gardener.
In all honesty I think I’m an avid gardener because my mother was, also. She loved to be outside planting things and started me off at a very early age. I remember helping plant pansies at around the age of five.
Not too long after that, maybe a year or two, I had my first garden. It was a flower garden and had all my favorites: pansies, marigolds, dahlias, snapdragons, More >
Getting Projects In Order
Jan 6th
OK, here’s the lineup, as it stands today. First, we need to get the temporary storage finished outside, so that we can move some of the boxes cluttering our laundry/pantry room out where they belong and actually be able to use that area for its intended purpose. Second, I need to build the window bench for my office, so that I can make the pillow cushions and get all the bags of foam off the floor in here. Third and fourth are to redecorate the small bedroom and get the greenhouse up.
My plans are to video building the window bench, More >
Elegant Pools And Ponds
Dec 24th
This beautiful iridescent tile would certainly create a fairyland effect at night.
Now that the gardening season has come to a close for most of the United States, we can all start making plans for improvements for the coming season. Many of us may be considering a water feature for our yard. Pools and ponds are outdoor features that add a lot of value to your property, not to mention the enjoyment they bring.
There are a lot of different styles to choose from as well. You can go totally natural, to highly sophisticated, to renaissance elegance, creating just the mood you More >
Invasive Plants Weren’t Always Considered Invasive
Dec 22nd
I was reading and interesting article about a book on invasive plants. “Invasive Plants: Guide to Identification and the Impacts and Control of Common North American Species” by Sylvan Ramsey Kaufman and Wallace Kaufman not only has a listing of invasive plants found in the US, but the history of why they came to the country.
Here in the mid-Atlantic there are several plants that are considered invasive that were mentioned in the article. One of my favorites is the mimosa tree. Although listed as an invasive plant I’ve never found more than a few of them dotting the landscape here More >
Long-term Planning For Gardens
Dec 19th
Shade patterns change throughout the year. Keep a log for successful planting.
Maybe you’ve got it on you resolution list to finally do something with the yard. You’ve got some ideas, but aren’t sure exactly which plants will work well for each garden.
The first thing you need to do is know the lay of your land. Which way is north, south, east, and west? How does the house line up with these directions? Where are large trees or shrubs located in relation to the directions? Are the trees/shrubs evergreen or deciduous?
Before you plant anything you need to know what the shade More >
After A Hard Day’s Work
Dec 5th
Is your mattress ready for the junk heap?
I love my bed. As a matter-of-fact if I could take just one thing with me when I move, it would be my bed, really! I bought it 23 years ago and it’s still as comfortable as the day I bought it.
After working out in the yard, I often come in feeling a bit sore and stiff. One night’s sleep on my “magic” bed and I’m fit as a fiddle. When traveling abroad I dream about my bed at home. When I return my whole body anticipates the luxury of my mattress.
So, if More >