UGA Vegetable Gardening Publications
With food prices high, folks have been thinking about growing some of their own food. Food gardening is not hard and it doesn’t have to take much room in your landscape. You can even do it in containers! These gardening publications are available on the Internet or ask for a...
Shrub – Transplanting 1-2-3
Most shrubs and trees should be transplanted when the demand for water is least, in late fall or winter. Since many roots will inevitably be lost, they need many weeks to regenerate themselves before the hot, dry blasts of summer arrive. If you are contemplating moving a plant that would...
Shrub – Pruning Calendar
The Home & Garden section of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution published a very nice pruning calendar several years ago. When viewed on a sheet of newsprint, it was gorgeous. When reduced to fit onto a sheet of typing paper it was impossible to read. I imagine you didn’t keep...
South Africa Adventure – 2014
As many of you know, I led a group of gardeners and spouses to South Africa in 2010. The memories of that vibrant, beautiful, surprising country still linger in my brain! We had such a good time I’ve decided to lead another group trip there in January, 2014. Want to...
New Gardening Books
I regularly receive interesting-looking gardening books from publishers. I don’t have time to read them all or give an intelligent review but I know they would appeal to many gardeners. These are some of the books I’ve gotten recently. You can click the link under the book cover images to...
Rain Gardens
It seems impossible to “garden” rain but the practice is not so far-fetched. Rain gardening actually means planning your landscape so rain stays on your property to benefit your plants. If excess water occurs, rain is directed to an area...
Pollination – Further Explorations
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the “Pollinator-Friendly” Plant Sale at the Dunwoody Nature Center (770-394 3322). A recent radio caller wanted even more information on pollination. He queried, “I understand perfect flowered plants (both sexes in one...
Plants – Failure to Bloom
Few things are as frustrating as having a plant that is known for its beautiful flowers fail to bloom. Worse yet is when your neighbors’ plants are in full flower while identical ones in your landscape sullenly produce only foliage....
Plant Societies – Locating
Lois M., who describes herself as “a seventy year old gardener who has been enjoying tomatoes, squash, beans and peppers from my garden since early June” directed a string of questions to me recently. “In your calendar, you said to...
Non-Blooming Plants
Figuring out why a plant doesn’t bloom, or why one thrives and another doesn’t, is often a hopeless task. Sure, SOMETHING isn’t making the plant happy…. but you’ll have a dickens of a time deciding what it is specifically. The...
Native Plants – Good or Bad?
Precious few opportunities for controversy arise in the gardening world but I seem to have struck a nerve with my answer to a question regarding a requirement for native plants in a community. The respondents raised such good points, I...
Locating Buried Utility Lines
Whenever you dig in your yard you should be aware of the attendant hazards of buried utility lines. There is a free service for homeowners available. The Utilities Protection Center, funded by all the utilities such as gas, cable, telephone,...
Landscaping Maintenance – Summer
FEED FLOWERS Summer annual flowers are go-for-broke types of plants. They have only a few months in which to grow, flower, form seed and die. Gardeners are usually more interested in the flowering part of their life cycle but not...
Landscaping – Textbooks
If you are considering a career in Landscaping or Landscape Architecture, it might be well to read one of the introductory college textbooks. Dr. Richard Ludwig, Program Director of Environmental Horticulture at Gwinnett Tech, recommends Residential Landscape Architecture by Norman...
Landscaping – Late Summer Jobs
One of the advantages of doing a vocation and avocation for a long time is that you get a feel for what needs to be done and when to do it. Gardening is no different. I gardened (under duress) as...
Landscapes – Evaluating Scientific Claims
One of the most ill-informed decisions of my life was to major in chemistry in college. Sure, I had excelled in the subject in high school. I could make my own gunpowder from ingredients bought at the pharmacy in town....
Landscape Design Software – List
Here are a few of the software packages I’m aware of: 3D Home Architect Landscape Design DesignWare 3.3 DynaScape 3.0 Professional EarthScapes Landscape Design Software Instant Landscape Design LandCADD Landscape Design Landscape Vision Master Landscape Pro PRO Landscape 11.0 Total...
Landscape Design Software – Choosing
I recently appealed to gardeners for their experiences using landscape design software. Landscape Software – List As could be expected, some liked it and some did not. Here are their comments: Marjorie: “I work on computer software for a living,...
Landscape – Resources for Planning Your Own
Recently I listed several great landscape planning tips contributed by Master Gardeners who are also garden designers. We learned the importance of making a sketch of the existing yard, planning different areas according to use and identifying “borrowed” views. We...
Landscape – Planning Your Own
A few weeks ago I received a question common to many at this time of year. “We are very interested in landscaping our yard and have consulted with a few companies to do the preparation and planting. The cost is...
Landscape – Photographing
Severe thunderstorms and lightning in the summer can do major damage to your landscape trees and shrubs. Your homeowner’s insurance may cover losses due to storms. The Internal Revenue Service may even allow a tax deduction for the damage. But...
Landscape – Fall Planting
A couple of weeks ago I described how to plant a balled & burlapped tree correctly. Some of the points I made in passing deserve more explanation because they are so basic to your success in planting anything this fall....
Landscape – Effects of Wet Weather
In my line of work, few things give me more opportunity than bad weather. I spent most of last fall blaming the preceding drought for plant problems. Earlier this spring I diagnosed a number of plant troubles based on their...
Weeds – Identification with Pictures
Weed control in the landscape is a tough business. You have to know a lot about the weed in question just to get started! As in most situations, a picture is worth a thousand words. Websites Preen has terrific weed...
Diagnosing Holes in the Yard
Sometimes many heads are better than one when it comes to solving a problem. Wade Hutcheson, my Extension colleague in Spalding county, gets plenty of calls from the citizens of his area asking his help in identifying various holes in...
Brown Patch – Diagnosing
You have brown patches of dead grass in your lawn. Is it the common lawn disease ‘brown patch’ or is it something else? The answer is important: if it is brown patch you probably need to spray with a fungicide....
Bermuda – Weed Control
BASIC INFORMATION: Weed Identification Pictures General Turf and Weed Info Lawn Care Calendars THREE METHODS There are three primary methods of controlling weeds. Any one method, when used alone, will not usually control all of your weeds. To consistently control...
Lawn – Timing Pre-emergent Herbicide
One of the sourest phrases that can be directed at a child or adult is “I told you so!” Whether you touch a hot match, leave tools out in the rain or lift cinder blocks all afternoon, someone is usually...
Crapemyrtle – Pruning
One of the most confounding arguments I face is whether and how to prune crapemyrtles. They are mercilessly “murdered” by unaware landscapers and homeowners each winter… yet they still bloom in summer. Some people even believe a crapemyrtle won’t bloom...
Lawn – Growing in Shade
OK. I admit it. I have given up. I came to the conclusion that grass just would not grow in the corner of my lawn near the ornamental cherry trees. The shade there is so dense that my grass, no...
Lawn – Leveling
A new home in my neighborhood had bermudagrass sod planted in March. By May, one area was a perfect checkerboard of straight lines, composed of weedy plants, surrounding the individual squares of sod. Evidently the sod installers were in such...
Bermuda Grass – Disease – Brown Patch
Brown patch is most prevalent on bermudagrass which has been heavily fertilized when night temperatures are above 68 degrees and day temperature are above 80 degrees. Dead patches of grass may start small but can grow and join together to...
St. Augustine Grass Seed – Where to Buy
Q: Please tell me where I can buy St. Augustine grass seeds. Our lawn has some now and we like it a lot, but we’re having trouble finding seeds. A: You can’t buy St. Augustinegrass seed. The plant is very...
