When people have shade in their yard, they either don’t realize that shade is less than 4 hours of sun, or they’re bummed. Consider it a blessing. When it’s mid summer and 90-something degrees, you’ll be lounging and happy. There are so many great ways to add color and unique foliage to a shade container. [...]
Ask yourself if you will tend a garden plot. Will I have time to water and weed? Start small. It’s best to start out with a few pots or maybe one bed. Starting with these vegetables from seed can be very rewarding: carrots, lettuce, kale, cucumbers, beans, squash. Take a long look at the light [...]
Every gardener, hobbyist or professional, gets excited about plants. Be it talking about plants, planting plants, getting new plants, looking at plants, but the success of a garden all starts with the soil. Be kind to your soil! Use compost over fertilizers to build healthy organic humus rich soil. Try to work the soil as [...]
Believe it or not, there are vegetables that like the soil temperature to be a little cool, around 50 degrees. So when you get in the gardening mood this early, these little guys are ready to join in. Beets Broccoli Carrots Collards Kale Lettuce Peas Spinach Swiss Chard Turnips Follow the seed sowing depths and [...]
It looks like Spring is here! Here’s a list of tasks that won’t be in jeopardy if we do get a little cold snap. Pick up trash. Clean up lawn furniture. Realign rock, brick that may have moved during the winter. Add stepping stone so as not to compact the soil when you cross through [...]
As the weather warms, I dream of being outside all the time. With a full sun yard, it’s a struggle to make a comfortable shaded seating area. This trellis and bench project from The Family Handyman offers hope. With a cost range $500 or below and “simple” rating, it looks like something I can tackle.
Oh my are the chickens everywhere in East Austin! I would wake up in the morning to their chuckles. It seems Austin has embraced the backyard chicken and celebrates it with the Funky Chicken Coop Tour in early April. The benefits of chickens: great addition to your garden ecosystem local protein no need to worry [...]
First off, why is this happening? Thoughts on La Nina, active solar storm season, and global warming all come to one’s mind. With solar storms come beautiful auroras, that were highly visible last Tues in some parts of the world (image above is Matthew Hodges‘). Now, what can one do for the garden? Well, mostly [...]
Here in Chicago, we’ve had little to no snow. None has stuck with temperatures ranging in the 30s and 40s so far this December. Not bad for Chicago, but let’s take a look at the benefits and non-benefits of snow in relation to our gardens. Snow, Uh Oh Heavy snow can break branches on trees [...]
Christmas is just around the corner. Besides your tree and wreaths, you can add a little nature in your holiday spirit with bark, pine cones, and ornaments made of natural fibers.