It seems that my little collection of barn board birdhouses has sparked some interest from people who would like to build a barn board birdhouse of their own. Even more cool is the fact that these people have been inspired to build their birdhouses from barn board that they will recycle from old outbuildings [...]

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I absolutely love garden watching. There’s no better way to gather inspiration for your own garden than to take the time to stop and smell the roses, or in this case, view the poppies in someone else’s garden.
While driving to the farm to do some work last week, I was greeted by this glorious [...]

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Here are several homemade recipes for preventing fungus such as powdery mildew or blackspot on perennials. The emphasis here is on prevention. That means these methods are meant to be used before you notice a fungal infection.
All-Purpose Recipe:
1tsp. baking soda
few drops Trounce or 2 drops liquid soap
2 cups water
Mix and spray generously on plants. Repeat [...]

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Are you looking for simple, natural ways to control harmful insects in your garden and home? Here are a couple of recipes for insect treatments that might work for you:
Insect/Pest Repellents
All-Purpose Insect Spray
2 garlic bulbs
1 onion
1 Tbsp. cayenne pepper
1 quart water
Blend together and steep for 1 hour. Then strain and add 1 Tbsp [...]

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If you massed your plantings in one large container, I found this cool tool at Gardener’s Supply Company that I think would work especially well for separating the individual plants for transplanting into their new outdoor homes.

The serrated edges allow you to easily cut through roots and the wide, curved, spoon-shaped scoop makes easy work [...]

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How to Keep the Sandbox Clean?

It’s quite simple really - put a lid on it!
Roaming neighborhood cats and other prowling critters will use a sandbox as their own personal litterbox. Unless you expect your child to wear gloves while playing in his/her sandbox, keep it covered when not in use. No child should have to [...]

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If it’s too complicated to plan out your vegetable garden keeping the companions together and the ememies apart, stick in some of these hard-working herbs. They seem to improve the growth and flavour of nearby crops. Their scents and blooms attract and feed beneficial bees and butterflies. On top of that, they [...]

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Our lawn is looking worse than usual these days. No, it’s not due to drought, grubs or cinch bugs - it’s because we finally had some topsoil delivered to fill some low spots and now there are large brown patches of that topsoil everywhere.

In the winter time I’m only too happy to have a [...]

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Maybe it’s just folklore, but whether it’s true or not, many gardeners plan their vegetable plot carefully to have friendly plants close to one another and enemies far away. Friendly plants are thought to repel harmful insects such as aphids, borers and maggots. They might also attract pollinators with their scent or [...]

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Wow, what a difference a few weeks makes in the appearance of a garden! Come along for an early June garden tour.
The three Bridalwreath Spirea shrubs are fully loaded and bending under the weight of thousands of glorious white blossoms.

It’s hard to believe they are the same scrawny, spindly specimens we planted last year.

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