White Mulberry vs Red Mulberry – Identification

I'm often asked to identify "that tree that has lots of blackberries hanging from it!". Most often it is a white mulberry, Morus alba. The mulberry was originally imported from China in the 1600

Panicle Hydrangea – Identification and Pruning

Panicle hydrangea, Hydrangea paniculata, is an excellent flowering shrub for late summer and fall. There is one particular variety of panicle hydrangea called Hydrangea paniculata ‘Grandiflora’….which many garde

Flowers for Drying

Harvest when the flowers are not fully open and in good condition. Don't wait too long, because flowers too far along will not dry satisfactorily. Select flowers or seed pods that are as close to perfect lo

Planting Pansies

Few plants create color in a winter landscape better than pansies. Given a mid-October planting, pansies laugh at temperatures in the ‘teens. They are even known to bloom after a winter snowstorm. Growers p

Acorns – Heavy Crop in 2011

Many gardeners have noted a heavier than normal acorn crop in 2011. They report a constant barrage of nuts falling from white oak, water oak and red oak trees. One even carries an umbrella to protect her head whi

UGA Plant Disease Publications

Following are useful plant disease publications from UGA: Azalea Diseases Camellia Diseases Cane Blight of Blackberry Centipedegrass Decline Christmas Tree Diseases Common Landscape Diseases in Georgia Common Tom

Flowers – Cold-Hardiness

Frost resistance of annual flowers. Very hardy*Frost tolerant**Tender***Warm loving**** Corn flowerBells of IrelandAsterAgeratum Ornamental cabbageBlack-eyed SusanNicotianaBalsam impatiens

Shrub – Transplanting 1-2-3

Most shrubs and trees should be transplanted when the demand for water is least, in late fall or winter. Since many roots will inevitably be lost, they need many weeks to regenerate themselves before the hot, dry

Tree Planted Too Deep – Examples

It's heartbreaking to have an attractive young tree in your landscape begin to decline. When you examine the trunk, you may see bark at the base peeling off, splitting, or generally looking unhealthy. In my

Dirt Can Make You Happy!

On my radio show, I exhort listeners to discover the happiness that gardening brings. Little did I know that certain bacteria in the soil are responsible! Following is a blog post by Naomi Sachs, of the Therapeut

Kudzu as a Farm Crop – USDA Farmers Bulletin No. 1923

I recently found a faded copy of Kudzu as a Farm Crop in my "way back" files. Asking around, the Gwinnett Extension office had a better copy. This brought back further memories of my grandfather, Walt

Yaupon Holly – Make Tea from Leaves

Yaupon holly is a native holly often used in urban landscapes. Native Americans also found it useful….but not for making their homes more attractive! The following is for information only! Yaupon Tea posted

Georgia Cities and Their Flower Festivals

Many Georgia communities are proud of the flowers that easily grow in their area. As a result, they celebrate their "city flowers" at festivals throughout the year. Here is a list I recently compiled.

Hummingbirds – Plants For Attracting

Few creatures in the landscape are as exciting as a hummingbird. The mysterious hum, the darting back and forth, the tiny size all make the bird a thrill to watch. If you want more hummingbirds in your landscape,

Bradford Pear – Wildly Sprouting Thorny Bushes

Curtis Young , editor, and other contributors to the Buckeye Yard and Garden Line have shed light on why there are so many thorny sprouts of wild pear showing up unwanted every year. “One of the certainties of ed

Serviceberry (Juneberry, Shadbush) – Identification

Sometimes I'm asked for my favorite plant. While I have several, one of my favorites is serviceberry. I remember ten years ago that I needed a small tree to put next to my mailbox. I wanted something with m

PLANTING IN THE DROUGHT

Sometimes I hate following my own advice. I hate it especially when it concerns properly digging a bed for planting. You remember the July Fourth weekend don’t you? Unbroken bright sunshine, temperatures in the n

TO DIAGNOSE PLANT PROBLEMS, CONSIDER ALL THE ANGLES

I should have been a detective. As an adolescent, I devoured books about the Hardy Boys and their crime solving adventures. My friends Marcia White and Kathy Graves loaned me their copies of Nancy Drew. I read ev

MANY TREES IN THE INTENSIVE CARE UNIT

“It sounded like a bunch of popcorn popping in my yard” said my friend Maureen. “I looked out the back window and could see nothing but limbs and leaves!” Her fifty foot tall oak tree fell without warning one aft

HOW TO TRANSPLANT SHRUBS

Back during the summer, my wife and I threw a big party to celebrate the end of remodeling our kitchen and sunroom. In honor of the occasion, I invited two people who knew my house “way back when”. Dottie Myers,