Are you Outside Gardening And Need Relief From Those Nasty Bugs, Try This…

I  found these two mixtures to help repel  insects , so I do not get bitten. The other day I forgot to spray something on me and I now have more than thirty bites to show for it. It was in the evening and they all seemed to descend at once!

Check this out:

What is a hot air balloon doing in this blog?

Are you thinking "What is a hot air balloon doing in this blog?"

Well, yes. There it is. Sometimes when we are out gardening we see amazing things!

As the summer progresses, many folks launch their own balloons usually early in the day. At least that is when I have seen the most of them. Usually I have looked up alerted by just an unusual movement from where there shouldn't be any or that strange 'whoosh' sound made by turning the gas on. There will be more hot air balloon festivals coming up too. These usually have launches in the morning from 4:30 am to 9 am, and end the day with launches in the early evening until about 7 pm. Some festivals have times at dusk to 'light up' the balloons. This is amazing to see.

Get out in your garden to dig some dirt or weed or water your plants...but keep an eye to the sky. Sometimes you will be astonished at what you might see.

Annuals versus Perennials .....oh, which one is better...

Annuals versus Perennials ...oh, which one is better?

Annuals are so great because either you can just go out and buy some and you have instant color for almost the rest of the growing season if you care for them correctly. You do want to think a bit about how the colors complement or contrast with each other. Also how the heights vary from the front to the back of your garden beds so you do not hide the shorter plants. The height and colors you have work through with your  perennials too.

Perennials need to have planning involved so that the timing of their blooming periods overlap yet follow one another to achieve some color in your garden throughout the growing season. You have to realize that there will be areas of just green spaces where some perennials will either be coming into bloom or going dormant. To offset all the green, you can take into effect the foliage of your perennials. This means pick some gray greens like silver mound, chartreuse, or a variegated type, or you could pick different leaf styles like a finely cut fern leaf, a heavy waxy sedum leaf, a wooly lamb's ear leaf, or spiky type yucca spears and so on.

Money-wise annuals are cheaper for one year, but over the long haul you will be shelling out money each year, so that cost will mount up. Perennials will cost more at the beginning, but after you are all set, you will only have to care for them and enjoy the view.

I think that there is a bit of a compromise and use the best of both worlds. Put in as many as you can afford with the perennials, then fill in where you need color with the annuals.

Do what works well for you. Most of all enjoy your garden because that is what is important.

How To Pick Just The Right Plants For Your Garden...

Have you been checking out the various garden centers and nurseries in your local area? This is a great time to do this. Just before summer sets in, there is a shift in the varieties of plant material available.

There is also a change in the blooming of the perennials as we move along though the seasons. I find that if I check out the perennials when they are in bloom, then I will be sure to get the right colors that I am looking for in specific areas of my gardens. For me locally there is Seawright Gardens in Carlisle MA where they specialize in day lilies and hostas. In a couple of weeks I am going to visit there and pick up several varieties of day lilies and hostas. My problem is limiting the number that I want because they are all so beautiful.

Check out any specialty places that might be local to you. If not, find a knowledgeable garden center or nursery and they can special order plants in for you if you have something specific in mind for your garden.

How to Improve Your Garden in the Winter

Now that it is wintertime, a great thing to do is check out your local family farms, gardening centers, and nurseries.

First, support them by buying their products if they are open in their ‘off’ season.

Then see if they have any classes teaching you how to be better gardeners. My favorite place in the Massachusetts – New Hampshire area is the Lake Street Garden Center in Salem NH. They are very knowledgeable and deliver a wealth of information to help you be better at gardening and, in turn, making your garden fabulous! Check them out at lakestreet.com.

I love going there in the winter. As you enter you smell that nice earthy aroma…It makes you feel like it is springtime already.

If you have a family farm, nursery, or garden center, get some great ideas at SuperStarGardening.com.

How To Keep A Gardening Journal…

One of the most valuable things that I have done is to keep a gardening journal. Here I write down when and where I planted something and what its requirements were, when to expect it to sprout and bloom, and what the weather was like i.e. 4-6 am, 72°raining heavily or 7:45-9pm 96°humid, very cloudy. Then I jot down if I put in a tag and what it said or was it just a number; also list what special needs the plant might have.

If the plant has significantly different water needs or fertilizer requirements over the course of the year, record those as well. This can have a major impact on its growth.

The sun or shade is another major factor because certain plants prefer different light requirements. Most vegetables like tomatoes and sun-loving flowers like geraniums like at least 6 hours of sunshine a day, whereas, most ferns and Jack-in-the-Pulpits prefer the shade.

The ferns and Jack-in-the-Pulpits also like moist soil. Other plants like their roots a bit drier between waterings. Note this in your journal. Also plan ahead to group plants with similar needs together; it makes gardening easier.

Later if you are going to plant in a certain location, you can go back and see what you successfully used. You may want to use a plant that is related to the ones that already grow successfully in your garden. Think reasonably.

In your journal you may find that brightly colored are great on cloudy days and during the evening hours the white and pastel colors stand out more as well as you notice their fragrance more too.

Keeping your journal for your garden areas pays off big time in the long run. Whenever you are thinking about planting in a certain spot where you have taken notes before, you can go to your journal and see what worked best. This way you cut down on your time experimenting with various plants that may not work in certain locations. Try these first before you waste your money especially with the cost of some really fancy plants.

Good luck and see you on our garden’s path…
P.S. Check out these:


With this one, remember it is never too late to start planting for harvest...

Hurry The Summer Is Going By Fast....but....

Hurry the summer is going by fast....but I still have a few plants in six-packs!

I have made a commitment to get out there and plant them this week before it is too late and the snow starts falling on them. My time has just been passing me by so quickly that I can't believe it!

I just picked off about a dozen cabbage worms (caterpillars) from my broccoli and cauliflower plants. They were so camouflaged that I missed them until I saw the leaves disappearing. That's when I took a much closer look to discover the little droppings and the little devils themselves.