Planting for Pollinators – April and May
For several years now, the trend has been on what to plant for pollinators. This is a two-sided question. What do you think of when planting for pollinators? Do you think about what plants pollinators are attracted to for nectar and pollen, or attracted to as a host plant? We need to think about both […]
Dry Streams – Adding Functionality to the Garden
Dry streams are a way to hide or transform water using locations within the garden. These areas are not rain gardens, but low and sloped spots that water runs through quickly after a rain. It might be the location of the downspout outflow, a sloped spot in a level lawn, or a drainage swale used […]
A Look Through My Garden in 2021
My garden. Each year, I open up my garden to all of you, via the internet. 2021 was an interesting year, both in the garden and elsewhere. In my garden, the heat of summer played a big part in the amount (or lack thereof) of maintenance which I did. I am already changing some of […]
Fall Webworms
While most pests are winding down in late summer and autumn, fall webworms are just getting started. Many people get very upset when they see big webs of caterpillars in their trees (and shrubs) in late summer. As if things are not bad enough with spider webs dangling everywhere. While they are not considered to […]
Meet the Pollinators : Spring Flying Butterflies
I have done many a post on attracting insect pollinators, butterfly host plants, and pollinators. But I have not grouped when the pollinators are out. What are the spring flowering pollinators? Which butterflies overwinter as adults in the leaves and landscapes? All this and more I will cover in in this post. Let us meet […]
Lilacs – Fragrant Flowers in the Garden
Lilacs have long been known for their fragrance. In the early days of America, the old-fashioned lilacs were planted around outhouses as a screen, but more importantly to hide the smell. Unfortunately, lilacs back then only bloomed for a few weeks in spring. Now we have reblooming lilacs that they would have loved to be […]
Shade Gardening: Creation and Maintenance
Shade gardening is more than just an idea, it is a way of life for those living among the trees. When I first moved east from central Kansas, I had no idea that shade gardening would become such a big part of my everyday life. But after moving from town to town, my wife and […]
How To Attract Insect Pollinators to Your Garden
Welcome to the new year! Last season was one of the busiest gardening seasons for many across the country, with many new gardeners. With all those new gardeners, came a plethora of questions about a wide range of gardening topics. I am going to kick off the new year with one of the most important […]
Creating A Fruit Tree Guild to Improve Biodiversity
When I was first approached to write on this subject, earlier in 2020, I admit, I really had no idea what a fruit tree guild was. However, once I looked into it, I discovered that I was aware of the concept, if not the actual idea. I have been planting my gardens for maximum biodiversity […]
