Get Into Your Growing Zone - USDA Plant...As every gardener knows, different plants are adapted to growing well in specific climates. Plant hardiness zones help to define the optimum growing climates. By knowing what hardiness zone you live in, you can properly select the plants that are best suited to your growing conditions.
Things to Consider When Building a Garden ShedGarden sheds are valuable for storing garden tools and other garden equipment, but before you set out to build one (or buy one), there are several things you will want to consider.
Tips for Planting Ornamental BordersThe secret to creating an attractive ornamental border is to create a mixture of permanent plants such as shrubs and perennials flowers, and combine them with annuals, biennials, and even vegetables, to provide extra color during the growing season.
Planning and Design Tips for PatiosPatios are becoming essential elements for today's backyards. Here are some design tips for creating the perfect outdoor space to use for summer dining and entertaining.
Tips for Planting on SlopesSlopes can be tricky areas to plant. They present unique growing conditions', dry soils and excessive erosion. They can be physically difficult, even dangerous, to maintain. Here are some tips for taming your slopes, as well as how to know when it's time to call in the experts.
Maximizing Fragrance in the GardenA visually appealing garden is made even more beautiful by sweet smelling flowers and plants. If you deliberately plant for fragrance each season, here are a few handy tricks for capitalizing on those heavenly scents.
Digging Tips for GardenersDigging garden soil can either be a pain in your back, or an enjoyable way to spend an afternoon outdoors. Here are some helpful tips to make this necessary garden chore easier, safer, and more enjoyable.
What to Wear While GardeningThe best clothing to wear while gardening is the kind that feels comfortable while you are reaching, bending, crouching, and sitting.
Plant Seeds Now for a Second Season CropMid to late summer is a great time to plant seeds for a "second season" crop. After harvesting early maturing crops like salad greens, radishes, peas, and spinach, plant a second wave of your favorite cool-season vegetables for a bountiful fall harvest.
Gardening With GreenhousesGreenhouses allow you to extend your growing season, raise new types of plants, and maintain total control over growing conditions. Fortunately, you no longer have to be a professional plant grower to enjoy the benefits of owning one.
The Top 2011 Gardening TrendsThe numbers have been crunched, the receipts tallied, and the survey responses read. Once again, based on consumer behavior, Garden Media Group has released the top gardening trends for 2011. So put your garden gloves on and join the fun because apparently 'Gardening with a Purpose' is taking root.
Learning To Garden In A New ZonePlants are not always the only things in the garden to get transplanted. Sometimes it's gardeners themselves. If you move across the country, or even across the state, you may suddenly find yourself in entirely new Hardiness Zone.
Recycle Your Christmas Tree For the GardenOnce January 1st rolls around, millions of Americans find themselves looking for a way to dispose of their Christmas trees. Although most communities offer curbside Christmas tree recycling program, there are also some great ways to put your post holiday tree to work for you in the garden.
Ladder Safety For GardenersA recent accident in my community (and the resulting fatality) caused me to think about how something as common as an extension ladder could be both useful and dangerous at the same time.
How Property Laws Affect GardenersMany residential property laws can affect the activities of gardeners. In some cases, county, state, and even Federal laws can also apply. Do you need a building permit to construct a gazebo?
Preventing Garden TheftResidential garden theft is on the rise. It isn't necessary to surround your property with razor wire, but for all the time, money, and hard work you invest your yard and garden, taking a few simple precautions against theft is well worth the effort.
Getting To Know EarthwormsIt was the famous naturalist Charles Darwin who once said about earthworms, "It may be doubted whether there are many other animals which have played so important a part in the history of the world, as have these lowly organized creatures."
Tips for Gardening With Small ChildrenStudies show that children, no matter how small, can benefit socially, physically, and academically from participating in gardening. Here are some helpful tips for getting (and keeping) small children engaged in gardening.
Five Great Reasons To Visit a Botanical GardenAccording to Wikipedia's definition, botanical gardens are "well-tended parks displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names. They may contain specialist plant collections such as cacti and succulent plants, herb gardens, plants from particular parts of the world, and so on."
How To Hire A Landscape ProfessionalThe American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) recommends that homeowners invest 10 percent of the home's value into professional landscaping. Not only does professional landscaping give your home instant curb appeal, but it can add as much as 15% to the resale value of your home.
How Using A Garden Tiller Can Harm Your SoilOne of the fundamental principles of organic gardening is to build your soil. Using a garden tiller to work your soil may be a good way to avoid back-aches, using it too often, or under the wrong conditions, can actually break your soil down rather than help build it up.
5 Mistakes to Avoid When Shopping for...Most gardeners look forward to their first trip to the greenhouse each spring with great anticipation. Walking down aisles of flowers that are exploding with color and fragrance is one of gardening's greatest joys-especially after enduring a long winter.
My Garden is Like LifeThe garden is like people. All sorts of different kinds, colors, some that are beautiful, some functional only. There are those which are delicate with special needs, and those which are hardy.
Gardening Trends for 2010Each year Garden Media Group, a public relations and marketing firm for the gardening industry, forecasts gardening trends for the coming year based on consumer spending habits from the previous year.
Garden Safety TipsGardening may seem like a low-key leisure activity, but it involves a lot of tools and at times, a lot of physical effort. Each year hundreds of thousands of people visit the emergency room for gardening related injuries.
Training Vines To Climb Arbors And PergolasVines are a great way to add color and interest to your garden. They're great for hiding unsightly views, providing shade, dividing garden spaces, or creating a sense of privacy. Here's how to train them over arbors and pergolas.
Can I plant wisteria pods?Can I plant wisteria pods or should it just be the seeds?
Helping Garden PollinatorsWithout pollinators, many of the fruits and vegetables we plant in our gardens would be impossible to produce. Scientists around the world are telling us that pollinators are currently in a serious state of decline due to loss of habitat, pesticide use, and disease.
Cultivating Patience: Growing Woodland...Ferns are commonly found in the wild and are well adapted to woodland environments in most parts of the country. Many of the ferns you see for sale commercially in your area are the same species you find living in the wild.
Starting A Self-Sowing GardenFor the busy gardener, the idea of a flower garden that sows itself is pretty appealing. The idea of a garden that sows itself AND saves you money sounds almost too good to be true.
Forcing Branches: Bringing a Touch of Spring IndoorsFor me, one of the hardest parts about spring (besides keeping the mudroom clean) is the endless waiting for it to get here. The arrival of March (at least here in zone 4) brings the first few promises of spring.
Saving The Natives: Wild Flower Rescue GroupsMost of us are familiar with the concept of pet rescue groups, groups that take in unwanted, abused, or stray animals and attempt to find suitable homes for them. However, did you know that there are similar groups dedicated to rescuing native wildflowers?
Attracting Toads To Your GardenWho needs pesticides to protect your flowers and vegetable garden when a single toad can eat thousands upon thousands of pesky garden insects in a single season? In fact, they may eat as many as 50 to 100 slugs, flies, grubs, grasshoppers, and cutworms in just one night!
Gardening This Season - What's Hot and What's NotEvery year a leading garden research group releases a report citing the gardening trends for the upcoming gardening season. You and I actually create the data for this report, according to how we spend our gardening dollars over the previous 2 years.
Gardening Resolutions For The New YearEach year I come across new ideas for improving my garden the following year. Sometimes I find a new idea for an outdoor project, and other times I discover a way to improve upon an old gardening technique.
Garden SavingsSpring gardening can sometimes add up to quite a chunk of cash. Instead of burying your money in the soil, plant some of these seeds and grow some savings.
Tips For Growing Moss on RocksTips for getting moss to grow on rocks and planters in your yard. Post your own techniques here.
Strategies for Gardening on SlopesNot everyone has the luxury of gardening on perfectly flat terrain. This article has advice about gardening or landscaping on steep sloping lots.
Answers to Seldom Asked Gardening QuestionsWhat's the difference between a tree and a shrub? Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable? What makes pepper hot? These are just some of the interesting questions that gardeners may or may not ponder while on their knees pulling weeds.
Gardening Trends for 2007Once again writers from The Garden Writers Association along with the folks at Garden Media Group have tracked consumer garden purchases for 2006 in order to predict trends for the upcoming year.
The All-American Selections for 2007The All-American Selections for 2007. In 1932, a seed producer named W. Ray Hastings proposed the idea of All-American Selections as a way for home gardeners to learn which new varieties of vegetables and flowers are truly improved each year.
The Surprising Facts Behind 10 Gardening...If a statement or idea is repeated or passed on long enough, eventually it will be taken as fact. This is true, even when there is little evidence or proof to support the idea. Gardening lore is no exception to this phenomena ...
Gardening For Good HealthGardening is the number one recreational activity in the United States. One out of every three people spend some of their leisure time in the garden and it's easy to see why. To put it simply, gardening is good for you.
Easy Cover CropsBy the time the summer growing season ends, your garden soil has been depleted of many of the essential nutrients needed to sustain plant growth. Amending your soil with compost and manure is a great way to add those important nutrients back into your soil.
Selecting and Maintaining Garden...Our gardens and patios have truly become an outdoor extension of our indoor space. And just like furnishing our interior spaces, decorating our exterior spaces can be an expensive investment in furniture and accessories.
Propagating Plants By LayeringLayering is one of the easiest ways to propagate plants-especially if you're looking to fill gaps in hedges, fill in specific areas with shrubs or re-root leggy plants. New roots grow on the stem of the parent plant while it remains firmly planted in the ground receiving nutrients.
Planning an Inexpensive GreenhouseImagine how wonderful your garden plants would grow if you had total control over their temperature, light, and humidity and they never suffered damage from any garden pests.
Gardening With AllergiesGardens should be a respite from the stresses of everyday, but for gardeners who suffer from hay fever and other allergies, certain plants and weather conditions can make gardening more miserable than tranquil. Here are some tips to help make your time gardening relaxing and sneeze-free.
Dragonflies: Dinosaurs of the GardenDragonflies arrived in the garden more than 300 million years ago-a mere 70 million years before the earliest known dinosaur. With expert hunting skills and the ability to fly at speeds over 30 mph, it's not surprising that their species have been able to achieve such longevity.
Trends for the 2006 Gardening SeasonEvery year writers from the Garden Writers Association and the Garden Media Group conduct research on consumer garden purchases to predict the latest trends in gardening. Here's what their research says about trends in gardening for 2006...
Buying Bedding PlantsOne of the best parts of spring is taking that first trip to the nursery or garden center to shop for bedding plants. If you're like me, walking into a greenhouse that is overflowing with green plants and colorful flowers is exhilarating and even a bit overwhelming-especially after a long winter.
Tips For Ordering From Garden CatalogsJanuary is the month most garden catalogs arrive in our mailboxes. Each one is chock-full of compelling descriptions and colorful, larger-than-life photographs of perfect plants.
Lunar Gardening BasicsPlanting a garden based on the cycles of the moon has been practiced as long as humans have been planting food. Just as the gravitational pull of the moon affects the tides, it also has an effect on moisture in the soil.
Have a Bee Friendly GardenIf you must use pesticides, do so in the late evening when most bees have finished collecting nectar and pollen for the day. Try to use pesticides that are safe to bees. Bees pollinate fruits and veggies. If you have no bees, then you'll have no fresh fruits and veggies.
Create a Butterfly GardenEvery gardener appreciates the sight of butterflies flitting about in the garden. Show them a little hospitality, and these "flying flowers" will return to your garden year after year. Here are a few tips on how to turn your garden into the perfect spot for a butterfly social.
Garden Solutions from the Kitchen, Bath and...Here are examples of how a few products that nearly everyone has laying around the house can be incorporated into the garden.
