A flagstone path is a wonderful addition to almost any outdoor space. It looks terrific connecting a door to a driveway, as a decorative element in any garden space. And while it does take hard work to lay out the path, it is a project that is both simple to build and can be built…
When the uninitiated see a pile of compost they may see just a pile of regular dirt; but there’s more to compost than that. Quality compost is a dark color, usually richly colored, and it should have a sweet, earthy smell. If you were to make your own compost, at home, then you would find…
Compost is an extremely popular and useful soil amendment that most gardeners can’t go without. Perfect for adding nutrients and breaking up heavy soil, it’s often referred to as black gold. So if it’s so good for your garden, why use soil at all? What’s to stop you from growing plants in pure compost? Keep…
Beginning seeds indoors is a fun way to get the garden going early; imagine being able to extend the harvest of springtime plants; imagine being able to put out the tomatoes and cucumbers that have grown to a full foot-high at the annual Memorial Day planting session. All that work, usually, begins indoors. The indoor…
There are numerous winter chores that can help to expedite the spring planting season. Too often the frosts of fall lay everything flat, and folks wait for spring before they clean the beds, tools, structures, etc. But the fall and winter are the perfect time to prep for spring’s growing season. In fact, the cleaner…
A great garden typically requires a thoughtful preparation. There is an adage that says that the best garden is the one you will plant next year. One of the reasons for the adage is that preparation and experience are key components to successful gardening; gardeners have to control some of the variables in their garden…
When planting season arrives, it’s always good advice to make a thorough plan and stick to it. If the plan is executed well, then all or most of the problems that could potentially derail the planting will be negated. But for those who rely on organic methods of pest control, there are methods, both commercial…
Besides helping your landscape stay beautiful, mulch is a great insulator for your plants, helps retain moisture around their root system, and can also prevent loss of water from the soil evaporation. Mulch also suppresses weed growth and keeps your soil cool in the summer and warm in the winter. It also reduces erosion and…
Here are some general tips for mulch installation that may benefit anyone, regardless of what type of mulch you’re using. Tip 1: Before mulching, your top priority is to clear the area you’re going to mulch of any weeds or grass. This is imperative – if you skip this step, it’s likely that the mulch…
Using mulch in your garden is one of the very best ways to ensure success, especially if you’re growing vegetables. Mulch is inexpensive to use because most mulches are composed of organic materials that you can easily gather yourself, or which don’t cost much to purchase. Wherever you happen to live, city or suburb, north…