DO YOU HAVE AZALEAS AND CAMELLIA SHRUBS? This past week I have had two different guests come into the garden center with samples of gall on their azaleas. Not to make light of this disease but I love using the tagline “you have some gall” with our guests. We both laugh. On a serious note,…
A couple of weeks ago, I did a blog on repelling mosquitoes. I had a customer come in and say her biggest problem was not mosquitoes—it was squirrels. So here’s how to live with them. First, Some Interesting Facts The word ‘squirrel’ comes from the Anglo-Norman word “esquirel’ meaning ‘shadow-tailed.’ They are native to every…
MY NATIVE PLANT PICK FOR MAY My AMERICAN BEAUTIES NATIVE PLANT pick for May is … ITEA virginica ‘HENRY’S GARNET’. You may know this plant by its common name – VIRGINIA SWEETSPIRE. Are you familiar with the American Beauties Native Plants? We have been carrying this line of plants for a few years now. Each…
I just got all my veggies planted. I can put up my feet and relax now, right? Well—no. So here’s what I need to do now: Keep Weeding Right now, weeds are already popping up in my freshly planted raised beds. If I slack off, they get out of hand fast, so I’ll check every…
MAY IS FINALLY HERE. IT IS A PERFECT TIME TO GET OUTSIDE AND DO SOME GARDENING As for the month of April, unfortunately, it turned out to be a challenging month for gardeners. April’s weather was up and down. April stayed a little dry for us until around the 20th when we got over an…
I’m getting so many people these days looking for plants that repel mosquitoes, so here you go: Citronella Citronella-scented geraniums are pretty, lacy-leaved members of the geranium family that contain citronella oil. Mosquitoes don’t like them. Other lemon-scented herbs that also contain citronella oil are lemon thyme, lemon balm, and lemongrass. The lemongrass and citronella-scented…
I’ve had several customers inquire recently about what to do about birds in their newly planted veggie gardens. You ask and we answer! Here a few tips: Tips to Keep Birds Out of Your Garden Birds Aren’t Stupid Scarecrows work pretty well—for several days. Birds are smart enough to figure out the weird-looking thing that…
IDENTIFYING THE CULPRIT Over the past couple of weeks, I have lost count of how many people have come into the garden center with samples of leaves that “aren’t right” and have holes. Customers come to us for professional advice as to what is going on with the plant. If you are not sure what…
I’m getting so many people these days looking for plants that repel mosquitoes, so here you go: Plants That Can Help With Mosquitoes Citronella-scented geraniums are pretty lacy-leaved members of the geranium family that contain citronella oil. Mosquitoes don’t like it. Other lemon-scented herbs that also contain citronella oil are lemon thyme, lemon balm, and…
HOMEGROWN HERBS IN CONTAINERS Container gardening continues to be a very popular gardening trend. A couple of reasons for the popularity of herb gardens are that almost anyone can grow homegrown herbs in a container. And, secondly, container gardening allows individuals to grow fresh herbs on a patio, deck, or porch. Sure, you can get…
