Bonnie’s Garden

I’m getting my vegetable garden ready for fall now.  I just pulled up the last of the squash.  Most of my tomatoes are now long tired looking vines with only a few blooms at the tips—and they won’t have time to set fruit and ripen by the first frost.  I pulled them up. I’ve pulled … Read more

Now is the time to plant peas for a fall harvest so I thought I’d share some interesting facts about these deliciously sweet veggies (well, scientifically speaking, they’re technically fruits.) Peas are one of the oldest cultivated crops. Fossil evidence shows that they were even eaten during the Bronze age! Green peas are actually unripe—that’s … Read more

I know fall is on the horizon when the bearded iris rhizomes arrive in the store.  We just got ours in so fall can’t be far behind (exactly one month from this coming Thursday, to be exact.) History Irises are a genus of over 250 flowering plants.  The word “iris” is from the Greek word … Read more

This time of year is a perfect time to think about your fall garden.  What are you going to do when the tomatoes, squash and green beans finally give their last?  Do you let your garden lie fallow over the winter or do you want to grow broccoli, peas, kale, etc.? If you’re going to … Read more

This Wednesday, August 8th, is National Sneak Some Zucchini onto Your Neighbor’s Porch Day. Yes, really. Zucchini does seem to be the one vegetable of which I often do have an over-abundance. So what can I do with it? While I don’t “sneak” it onto my neighbor’s porch, I do offer them bags of zucchini, … Read more

Today is National Avocado Day.  Have you ever thought about growing your own avocado?  It’s not hard. Yes, I’ve done it.  The up-side—they’re easy, fun, and make a beautiful dramatic houseplant.  The down-side—they get HUGE over time and the chances of them ever fruiting are slim to none. But for lush tropical foliage, they can’t … Read more

July 16th is World Snake Day.  I can already hear some people go “Oh, Gross!”  I used to be one of them, but as a devout gardener, I’ve developed a healthy respect for them.  Still, every summer, I get a lot of questions about how to kill or otherwise get rid of snakes. So maybe … Read more

July is National Blueberry Month.  Nice to have a whole month dedicated to one of my favorite things. So here are a few interesting tidbits about these delicious berries.  Blueberries belong to the family Ericales.  This makes them related to cranberries, Brazil nuts, persimmons, camellias, azaleas, and rhododendron! They are native to North American where … Read more

I’m getting so many people these days looking for plants that repel mosquitoes, that I thought it was time to repeat this blog. Swirling cloaks, spooky music, and a voice with a Hungarian accent saying “Good E-e-e-vening.” Or incredibly annoying little insects buzzing around your face and feasting on every square inch of exposed flesh. … Read more