BIRDING IS THE COUNTRY’S SECOND-MOST POPULAR PASTIME (AFTER GARDENING) BIRD FEEDING IS OKAY AGAIN IN VIRGINIA Some of you may be asking yourself “was there an issue with bird feeding last year?” The quick answer is yes. But, for us here in Central Virginia we were not affected as badly as in the mountains and … Read more
Is anything prettier or more dramatic than amaryllis in full bloom? What we call ‘amaryllis’ are really ‘hippeastrum’—members of the amaryllis family. The plants that are really ‘amaryllis’ are the Amaryllis Belladonna and relatives. These days, however, hippeastrum has been called ‘amaryllis’ for so long, we’ll never be able to get people to call them … Read more
GOODBYE OCTOBER / HELL-O NOVEMBER! YES, IT IS NOVEMBER BUT IT IS STILL FALL AND A GREAT TIME TO PLANT! October was a warm month and a little dry, unfortunately. Thank goodness for the rain that we got the last week of October. A lot of planting was done in October. So, the key to … Read more
I’ve pulled up all my spent summer veggies—the tomatoes that were “done”, the squash that looked, well, squashed, and the last crop of bush beans that had given out about a month ago. I’ve already planted some fall vegetables—I have some fat little kale plants, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli in right now. But these cool-season … Read more
BECOME AN ECOLOGY BUG – KEEP ECOLOGY IN MIND WHEN MAKING LANDSCAPING DECISIONS Earlier this month I did my Thursday NBC12 gardening segment on the topic of conserving energy with landscaping. I got some good reactions from viewers who called wanting to learn more and asking if I had any handout information (which we do). … Read more
Horror writers over the years have picked bats to play the villains in some of their books but, in reality, they’re heroes in the garden! Because October is Bat Appreciation Month, I’m sharing an updated version of an earlier post on why bats are so important. Interesting Bat Facts Here are some interesting facts about these … Read more
FALL IS NOT THE SEASON TO BE DOING RANDOM PRUNING ON OUR SHRUBS AND TREES. YOU COULD BE DOING MORE HARM THAN GOOD. Fall is a favorite time for most of us to take advantage of the cooler temperatures and get out into our gardens. After a hot summer, we are all eager to get … Read more
IT IS NOW OCTOBER AND NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO CLEAN As with any outdoor water source, a water garden collects organic matter that needs to be cleaned out. The best time to do this is when the water temperature is cooler, such as now. Cooler water temperature helps minimize any stress to fish … Read more
We’ve got a great assortment of spring-blooming bulbs, so here is what you need to know: Planting Bulbs by the Numbers October is a good time for planting most bulbs. The exception is tulips, which should be planted in November—they like to be planted in cooler soil. To store them until time to plant, keep … Read more
FALL IS FOR PLANTING AND OCTOBER IS A VERY ACTIVE GARDENING MONTH HERE ARE SOME GARDENING TIPS Before I get into sharing some October gardening chores, let me do a re-cap of September. The first day of September started with a bang. Tropical Storm Ida passed by us giving us some rain but, thankfully, nothing damaging. … Read more
