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Easy-to-Use Gardening Help & Advice?"
Discover the Quick, Easy AND Low-Cost Way to Achieve the Garden of Your Dreams.

Gardening Question of the Day for Tuesday, September 26, 2006
25 Sep 2006 at 11:00pm
How should I prune oleanders? (answer).

From The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Gardening Question of the Day for Monday, September 25, 2006
24 Sep 2006 at 11:00pm
Can you please share tips on pruning AND transplanting? Which should we do first? We have inherited an overgrown rose bush that hasn't been tended to for at least 6 years, AND we have NO gardening experience. I know that it is still living, but I don�t even know what would be considered killed wood or weak, let alone �crossing� wood! We are in a temperate area, mid-Delaware, so we�re coming up on time to prune, but I don�t know how far is safe to cut it back; I sure would like to handle this grand lady with well-deserved kid-glove treatment. (answer).

From The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Gardening Question of the Day for Sunday, September 24, 2006
23 Sep 2006 at 11:00pm
Why do some of my trees and shrubs suffer winterkill some winters and not others? (answer).

From The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Gardening Question of the Day for Saturday, September 23, 2006
22 Sep 2006 at 11:00pm
I received a fig tree (fruit-bearing type) as a Christmas gift and want to find out the correct time and way to set it into the ground. I live in central Mississippi. (answer).

From The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Gardening Question of the Day for Friday, September 22, 2006
21 Sep 2006 at 11:00pm
Why does my cherry tree bear wonderful fruit one year and nothing the next? (answer).

From The Old Farmer's Almanac.

EVERYBODY DOWNTOWN KNOWS LAURA SHEPHERD.

She's that back-to-nature gal who pulls up in a big orange pickup, leaps out, crams on a floppy straw hat, grabs her tools, then works in the yard like no woman you've ever seen, pullin' weeds, diggin' holes, sawin' dead wood and draggin' branches.

She's at Hyperion knocking back coffee every morning at 8 and seems to know everybody.

You DO know, she's that gal with the long frizzy braids, always got those earth shoes on and dirt under her fingernails. She's that downtown [hippie chick].

Yeah, that's Laura Shepherd.

She is one of the city's freest spirits, a single woman in her 40s who listens to her own inner voice.

It tells her to tread lightly on this earth.

So she lives simply, frugally and respectfully in a society dominated by extravagance, excess and disregard.

In the 1960s and '70s, Shepherd would have had many compatriots among the nation's ardent environmentalists and flower children who embraced the back-to-nature movement .

These days, Shepherd has friends…Read More

Although the fall months may seem like a time to sit back and relax after a hot summer filled with landscaping, pulling weeds, mowing the lawn and planting flowers, there is actually quite a bit that needs to be done in order to prepare your landscape for winter.

Many of the chores that need to be done in the fall may seen to be tedious things but they are important to help prepare the landscape for the following spring and summer. Preparing the landscape for winter is especially important in colder climate zones where the ground will freeze and all of the plants and trees will be covered with rain and snow. Although many of these chores are not as much fun as preparing a spring landscape, just consider that the cooler temperatures make the chores pleasant and you'll be prepared for the long winter months. Then next spring, your landscape will thank you for preparing it to survive a hard winter.

One of the first things to do once the fall arrives to prepare for a winter landscape is to change the setting on your lawn mower to the highest setting possible. The grass has begun to grow less so there is no need to cut into the blades so deeply. As well, this will prevent weeds from taking over the lawn at the end of the season and will also stimulate growth in the roots before the winter paralyzes growth temporarily. With weeds in mind, preparing your landscape for winteris an excellent time to remove any excess weeds so that they will not remain in the ground over the winter

This means not only pulling off the part of the weed that comes above the ground, but pulling out the weed by the roots, otherwise the roots will remain in the ground to invade your spring landscape. Preparing your landscape for winter is also a good time to go ahead and pull any patches of dead grass that appear and remove any dead plants, roots and all. Groom your ornaments and shrubs and groom back perennials 6 to 8 inches, getting things in shape for an attractive winter landscape. If there are large trees in your landscape that are dead, this is a good time to cut those down. And just think, you can use that extra wood for your fireplace! Even if trees are not dead, go ahead and remove long or low hanging branches, or portion of the tree that have died. This will stimulate growth in your spring landscape. Winter landscape mulching is also really important to take into consideration in the fall months. Especially if you have a landscape with many perennials or flower bulbs, laying down a new, thick layer of winter mulch will prevent damage to these favorite perennials. If you live in a warmer climate zone, this step is not necessary. It is also not necessary if the perennials are fairly hard and winter resistant to damage but if they are softer perennials, it is important to mulch with anything from compost to pine needles to dried leaves. Don’t bother heading to the lawn and garden store as there are plenty of items around the yard that can help in winter landscape mulching.

Another important element that goes along with is to take care of your garden tools. Since most power tools and garden equipment will remain in a garage or shed, you do not want the freezing winter temperatures to rust or ruin your equipment. This way you will be prepared for creating your spring landscape. Especially with power tools, it is important to remove the oil, gasoline and clean out the tanks that hold these liquids. This will prevent any damage to the machine if the liquid should freeze over winter. You will also want to clean and drain hoses to prevent frozen liquid from ruining the hoses. As well, go ahead and clean your tools, such as hoes and plows, so they will be clean and read to go in the spring.