Over the Garden Fence 2018

I purposely did not go back and count how many times this season I have discussed water. Either we are getting too much, it is interfering with planting, or we are in absolute need of water. Recent weather patterns have brought much needed rain to some of us, but others were left dry. Master...

Where you plant your dwarf fruit trees can make a big difference in how they grow and perform. A major consideration is the soil. Fruit trees are no different from other trees and shrubs in your landscape; the soil needs to drain well. Placing the home orchard where water will drain away very soon...

Relying on chemical crabgrass preventer is just one strategy homeowners can employ to reduce the potential of crabgrass in the home lawn. Crabgrass preventers also will prevent other annual grassy weeds, like the foxtails, and a few broadleaved weeds, like annual chickweed. These products are...

A couple of weeks ago, my column covered getting ready for the vegetable gardening season. This time it is about the home orchard. While dormant pruning has been and will continue to be done, getting ready for the management of fruit tree diseases and insects can be done inside, dry and warm. In...

Let's start with a few confusing sentences this week. You plant spring flowering bulbs in the fall and summer flowering bulbs in the spring. You dig up summer bulbs in the fall. You divide spring bulbs in late summer. Your favorite spring bulbs are winter hardy and for them to bloom in the spring...

By this time of the year, there has already been a lot of landscape mulch applied for the summer. Landscape mulch can provide more benefit than just how nice a freshly applied layer looks. When applied around young trees, we know that it reduces the competition from grass and makes it easier for...

Now that the snow is all gone our yards are now shades of brown. All too obvious is the debris from the neighborhood that has blown in, collecting in the ground cover and shrub beds and at the base of your fence. Time to do that quick walk about and pick up so you do not have to look at it every...