HERE IS A SNAPSHOT OF SOME POPULAR GARDENING TRENDS THIS YEAR First, Happy New Year to all. Typically, January is when there is not too much activity outside with the cold, dreary days. But now is a good time to think about what you want to do come spring. As you sit in your favorite … Read more
HURRAH! SEPTEMBER IS FINALLY HERE September is the beginning month of the FALL IS FOR PLANTING SEASON. I want to share my thoughts on August. Yes, August was hot. Nothing too unusual. But the last week of August was lovely. Westend Richmond and Northern Chesterfield got a good soaking of rain, much needed as we … Read more
HERE WE ARE IN 2023 AND EDIBLE GARDENING IS STRONGER THAN EVER I wrote on this topic a few years ago. The idea of edible landscaping was just becoming popular. Jump to 2023 and edible landscaping is thriving with homeowners. I want to share my personal story: At my previous house I had my vegetable … Read more
I try to plant at least one new thing every year in my flower and veggie/herb gardens. Over the past few years, I’ve compiled a list of my favorite vegetables. As I continue to try new things, this list is subject to change. Most of my favorite veggies are not necessarily the “standard” varieties. Some … Read more
I sat on my deck yesterday and surveyed my backyard—it was a great excuse to escape the vacuuming I should have been doing. I made a mental checklist of everything I wanted to get done before frost. We’ve been lucky thus far—usually, we’ve had several touches of frost by now. Move houseplants indoors—done. Well, except … Read more
Should you mulch your vegetable garden? Well, it can help with such problems as weeds and conserve moisture. But what you use on a vegetable garden is almost as important as what you put in it. Here are some options: Black Plastic–Black plastic mulch can warm the soil. Earlier in the spring, around the end … Read more
Seems like almost every day, I get asked: “What do I have to do to be successful with my tomatoes?” So here are a few things we need to know. Tomatoes need FULL sun! Anything less and their productivity goes down. If you only get five hours of good, strong, midday sun, you’ll still get … Read more
So many people are out now taking advantage of warm sunny days to plant their vegetables, I thought I’d re-run my blog from a couple of years ago on preventing diseases in your vegetable. It’s a whole lot easier not to get a problem in the first place… Unfortunately, our commonly grown garden vegetables are … Read more
