It pains me to see customers spending hundreds of dollars on new plants and simultaneously refusing to spend a few more on a bag or two of compost and a box of starter fertilizer. These two items are not unnecessary “add-ons” that the retailer is just trying to add to the sale, they are critical components of a successful transplanting process - or as I like to refer to them as “plant insurance”. Unless you have phenomenal soil, you should always add compost and starter fertilizers when you are planting new plants. Here is why…
Let me be transparent and state that, without a doubt, fall is my favorite time of the year. As a local native, I like my weather partly cloudy with temperatures in the 65 to 70 degree range and hopefully some rain, but only from 10pm to 6am or so. Is that too much to ask from Mother Nature? Sounds perfect for outdoor projects in the fall - not too hot, not too cold, but just right for us gardeners...
April is typically the best month in our region to overhaul our bedraggled lawns after a long, dark and wet winter. By this time of year, the moss has made huge strides and the dandelions are in full bloom. Keeping a healthy and attractive lawn doesn’t have to be an enormous amount of work, nor does it have to be…
First off, let me just say that lawns, in and of themselves, are not the Evil Empire that some people would like us to believe. If cared for in an environmentally responsible manner, they are actually a benefit in that they act as a bio-filter, can minimize erosion, and will reduce the temperature around our houses…
As we wrap up the end of August, we should for the most part be able to simply sit back and enjoy the fruits of our labor. Yes, there are still beans to pick, cucumbers to pickle, zucchini to put on the neighbor’s front porch when they are at work, flowers to harvest for dining room bouquets, and of course watering. But certainly, there is not the intensity of gardening chores that we face in the spring of the year…
Recently, I was browsing through my past columns looking for ideas when I came across my very first monthly check list, written in June 2001, 20 years ago. I have spilled a lot of ink since then, but the idea of a list of chores for every month of the year still seems useful. That being said, here are some thoughts to ponder…
The Golfing Gardener
Trevor Cameron
I often refer to myself as a “plant enabler”, a sort of legal dealer that tries his best to hook his customers up with the best plants for their landscapes. Plants are easy to get addicted to, believe me, and running a garden center means you are surrounded on a daily basis by treasures that beckon you to take them home, plant them, and watch them flourish - even if you are out of room, just ask my poor wife. If I jump in a time machine to some 30 years ago, I can see…