How A Heatwave Affects Garden Pests - While its been a trying time for us and our garden plants, the heat has been a blessing for many a garden pest. Each species of garden pest/insect has an ideal range of temperatures within which they complete their life cycles. All of them are essentially cold-blooded, which means they can’t produce their own body heat.
July can be full of a diverse range of colors, hues and textures and your garden beds can flourish with minimal maintenance if you just use native plant species. Here’s six (6) varieties of native perennials that bloom during July, many of them lasting into August.
A water-efficient landscape has functional lawn areas that are irrigated properly and plants grouped and irrigated according to their water needs. Plants native to our region can help with landscape water conservation because they are adapted to our climatic growing area, and they can be watered less frequently than landscape plants native to other growing zones.
Sustainable landscaping for wildlife. I’ve always been fascinated with bluebirds. The bluebird is a longtime symbol of happiness, good health and hope in North America. Native Americans displayed the bird in their art and told tales of its beauty and humility in their folklore. The Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) is a small, lively thrush with a rounded body, short beak and stumpy tail.
A tad bit over three years ago we did a blog post for Arbor Day 2021 promoting their membership initiative wherein for joining their organization they would send to you 10 native trees of your choice. We chose Eastern Redbud - Cercis canadensis. Here is their growth after three years.
Organic land care is not simply about the type of fertilizer or pesticide used on a home landscape. It is a holistic approach to landscaping that improves the natural resources of a site by fostering cycling of resources, promoting ecological balance, and conserving biodiversity. Organic, in particular, means landscaping with no synthetic pesticides of any kind (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc.) and with no synthetic fertilizers or soil amendments.
Started in 1970, this designated day of April 22 has become an annual reminder of our responsibility to be good stewards of the Earth. You can contribute to a healthier Earth in multiple ways: utilize native plants in a garden, plant a tree, purchase biodegradable products and avoid pesticides of any kind, practice organic and sustainable principles at home, and commit to reduce, reuse and recycle.