One of the most attractive features you can add to a garden is water, whether it’s in the form of a pond, fountain, or man made brook. Water sounds so soothing when it gurgles and trickles and bubbles. Even the backyard birds can’t resist it; they’ll often drop by for a quick drink or bath. [...]
Maybe you’ve never heard of NOAA, so let me introduce you. NOAA is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, pronounced like No-ah, or Noah, the guy who built that big ark when it rained. NOAA is part of the U.S. government’s department of commerce (commerce? Yep. Apparently its mission to protect lives and property and [...]
Okay, I’ll admit: you won’t find any trashy talk here today, no matter what my heading says. But we are going to talk about trash, because today’s blog is about compost. As you probably know, compost is simply a mixture of decaying vegetation and well-rotted manure. You can make it by putting your kitchen scraps [...]
Happy New Year’s Day! If you’re like me, you’ve been oohing and ahhing over the fantastic floral designs and floats in the Tournament of Roses Parade. I needed all that splashy color now that we’re in the gray days of winter. Makes me yearn for spring. But spring is still some time away, so instead [...]
Made any resolutions for 2009? My list includes the usual (eat less and exercise more), but I’m also thinking green this time around. When it comes to my next year’s garden, I resolve to: keep my indeterminate tomatoes staked as they grow, instead of waiting until they start to fall over. weed more often, so the [...]
We admit, we’re a little nosy here at the 2009 flower show. What are you passionate about? C’mon, you can tell us. After all, the theme for the show is Passion: How Do You Bloom?, and there’s no wrong answer to the question. Passion is for… Flowers Gardening Life well-lived Garden parties Sharing with friends [...]
Lately I’ve been getting a new garden catalog in the mail almost every day. Today brought a packet of info from the Trial Gardens at the University of Georgia in Athens. Ooo la la….the gardeners there have given their thumbs-up to some stunning new plants for 2009. Known as the Athens Select 2008-2009 Plant Collection, [...]
It’s dreary and rainy here today, pretty typical weather for December in Atlanta, so I decided to dig out some photos from last summer. I was looking for some colorful reminders that spring is coming, and I found these pictures. You might recognize the yellow and black butterflies as Tiger Swallowtails , the state butterfly [...]
Merry Christmas! We are so excited about what next month will bring: the launch of the 2009 Southeastern Flower Show on January 28. We’re passionate about the gardens and ideas we’re going to share with you, as speakers lecture on everything from African violets to oak trees, and experts tell you how to find the [...]
” ‘Twas the night before Christmas, And all through the house Not a creature was stirring, Not even a ……..” Okay, this isn’t a mouse. It’s Cornbread, one of the little cats that likes to hang around my garden–possibly because I keep out a bowl of kitty chow for my furry neighborhood visitors. He’s pictured [...]