"fall" yards, pictures, and ideas...
Divide and Conquer - Gardening With Bulbs, Part Two
When we last saw Our Gardening Hero, he was carefully noting the locations of clumps of crocuses, daffodils, and the like. He mapped them out in a way designed to show his children that this was not a treasure map, and then he went on to live his life....
Divide and Conquer - Gardening With Bulbs, Part One
“Good, cheap, fast. Pick any two.” That's what is said about hiring somebody to do a job. It can also be said about flowering bulbs....
Beautiful, Easy-Care Ornamental Grasses
Name one garden plant that offers handsome—sometimes striking—foliage that takes on eye-catching color in the fall and interesting flowers that become showy seed heads which linger throughout the winter; a plant that offers visual delight in all seasons and demands only minimal upkeep in payment for these rewards. Grasses!...
Pool Landscaping with Shapes and Colors
“Oasis”, “tropical resort”, “paradise” - pool owners tend to get a little carried away in describing their backyard. But some folks really do manage to create a poolside Shangri-La. How do they do it?...
Springtime Yard Spruce-Up
Spring is just around the corner. How far around the corner depends on countless celestial and meteorological factors, plus, of course, whatever a certain furry resident of Punxsutawney, PA had to say about it this year. (Fun fact: Phil has predicted correctly only about 39% of the time since 1887. So you may not want to take him to the track and let him pick the ponies for you. Just sayin’.) Large rodent shadows notwithstanding, spring is, in fact, coming. I know you’re ready. But is your landscape?...
Keeping the Kids in Mind
I grew up next door to a vacant lot. On any given weekend, it was a football/kickball/wiffle ball field, home to dawn-to-dusk “capture the flag” marathons, a BMX test track, an obstacle course, hide-and-seek homebase, or the site of our neighborhood Olympics. Maybe vacant lots are just rare these days… or maybe today’s kids demand more than an abandoned field to play in. Whatever the reason, more and more folks are dedicating parts of their yard to the smallest members of the family....
YardShare to the Rescue: Dullsville in Daytona
Brenda shared a single shot of her South Daytona front yard with a simple (and politely worded) request: “Make Me Pretty, Please.” Okay, Brenda, let’s give it a whirl. First, a look at the yard......
Let It Snow!
Winter eats up a full quarter of the calendar, but too many gardeners give it exactly zero percent consideration when planning their landscapes. It’s a time when the garden just shuts down under a blanket of white, right? I mean, why landscape for the winter when Jack Frost automatically gives you the kind of scenery that Karen W gets in her Michigan yard every year, right?...
Landscaping with Trees
Ah, the trees. They bud out to let us know spring is coming, they shade us in the summer, they put on their own little fireworks show in fall, and even when they’re bare, they provide interest and structure in the dead of winter. But not all of us are blessed with tall mature trees in the landscape like WhackyWaco in Plano, TX. Check out those live oaks and tell me they’re not the focal point of that front yard......
In Living Color
So you’re making some changes in your yard. What’s on your wish list? If you’re like most, “adding color” is a biggie. And if you’re like most, this is along the lines of what you have in mind......
