This is mainly photos of my visit to Valkaria Tropical Gardens. You'll love the tropical feel! Enjoy !<< MORE >>

Gardening is a fantastic opportunity for both developing and expressing your personal style and taste. Personal style, mixed with time, is the recipe for an incredible expression of who you were, and now, who you have become. << MORE >>

If you want to use your kitchen scraps to benefit the soil but don't want the hassle of actually having and maintaining a compost pile or a worm composting system there is an easy way to do this.<< MORE >>

When I grew up in Massachusetts I used to experience S.A.D., but back then they simply called it "cabin fever" or a variety of other names. I didn't understand what was happening to me, and there certainly was no one that could explain my emotions to me. It just wasn't a known disorder at that time. << MORE >>

Preparing the worm bin is important to the success or failure of your vermicomposting (composting with worms). Basically what you need to do is<< MORE >>

Lately there has been a lot of discussion about composting with worms, also called vermicomposting. Using worms to compost your kitchen and yard waste is a relatively clean method of getting free compost. But in order for the worms to do their job, they need a home. Here I will give you instructions to construct your own vermicomposter.<< MORE >>

             Thanks for the questions about where do I get my red worms.  Since I live about 10 minutes from the ocean, and 5 minutes from a couple of rivers, I used to get my red worms from my local fish & bait store.  However, the quality became pretty bad, so I searched online for a reputable dealer.  I have dealt with   and have been very happy.

                                  

        

LUBBOCK, Texas - Loathed by homeowner and restaurateur, the lowly cockroach is gaining some respect in the agricultural community.

"It just brings out ...

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    Decorative outdoor lighting has become a key part of the homeowners landscaping plan.  Designer landscape lighting often looks expensive, but it doesn't have to be.  

    Not too many years ago solar lighting became all the rage.  But then it's popularity dwindled because people were not happy with the light they put out.  Sometimes the solar lights only lasted a couple of hours and were so dim they were almost useless.

    But now, outdoor solar lighting is much brighter and lasts much longer and come in a wide variety of decorative lighting.  You can easily achieve many effects these days with solar lighting.  

    There are decorative lights in flower shapes, balls, stars, cat-tails, floating pond lights, roses, pillars, flood lights, darling little hanging lights to place in bushes and trees, and solar stepping stones.  

    Solar lighting might be a tad more expensive in the beginning, however, it pays for itself and more over a period of time.  Now most solar lights last about 10 hours, while the LED bulbs generally last 10 years or better. 

    Add a couple of solar lights in the flower shape to your flower garden, or make a path using a Solar Lighted Stepping Stone, or add a Mosaic Cascade Solar Fountain to your landscape.  Place a couple of Solar Pillars in a pathway to both decorate and light your path or add a few Solar Star Lights to your garden.

    These days solar lighting is not only efficient, but can be whimisical and fun.

        

More beginner tips: If you are landscaping your yard, remember that...<< MORE >>

10 More helpful tips for beginners: Before you purchase a new plant, think about how .......<< MORE >>

Heck, You don't even need a large spot for composting in this manner. A regular Easy-Open Composter is plenty room enough. There are people like myself who have made their own worm bins out of old plant buckets. Not very attractive, but it certainly does the job. << MORE >>

                                

    My poor bamboo.  I only bought this a couple of years ago.  I planted it and it was doing great.  Then suddenly it began to go downhill.  Because I am not always able to walk very well, I couldn't go and check it out immediately.  So finally, about 2 weeks later, I walked out to take a look and discovered the leach field was not working properly.  A lot of the household water waste was being drained onto my bamboo.

    With the help of my daughter, and some boots, we managed to get the bamboo out of the ground.  We thoroughly rinsed off the roots and then put it into a pot.  It now sits in the back end of the yard until I can nurture it back to health.

    I had looked for this bamboo vulgaris for a couple of years, so it is important to me.  It does seem to be springing, well, maybe not springing, but coming back to life.   The poor thing is almost bare, yet I do see a couple of signs of life.  I had to totally trim off several stalks, but I would rather lose them than lose the entire plant. 

        

At least for me these are a 'must have'. As you can probably tell by the main photo on this blog, I absolutely love lilacs. The bigger, the bushier the better, that is until<< MORE >>

Recently I have come across a few people who want to have their own garden but don't know where to start. So over the next several months I will add to this list of tips for beginners. If anyone would like to add to it, just let me know in the comment section and I will publish your tips for beginners.<< MORE >>

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People from far and wide called him to come and remove the bats from their attics, garages, businesses and sometimes from inside their homes. I was fortunate enough to go to several jobs with him and help out. Fortunate you say? Yes, well, it is a dirty, dirty job, but what I learned, in my humble opinion, far outweighed anything else. << MORE >>

Adding a topiary or two to your landscaping can add years of enjoyment for you, your family and your neighbors. I do not take very good pictures, but here is a picture of my rabbit topiary. He has just been planted with ivy and will take a little time to fill out. I have another topiary.<< MORE >>

     Growing onions from sets is probably the easiest way to grow them.  Transplants generally come in bundles of 60-80 young onion bulbs, and are usually pre-selected for us.  The pre-selection is done by the location in which the onions will be grown.  Here in the south, what is called the 'short day' varieties are good because of the heat.  The 'long day' varieties are best for northern gardeners.

     Onions can be planted as soon as the garden can be prepared in the spring.  For Florida gardener's sometimes the onion planting can begin in December or January.  The cool ...<< MORE >>

Hey ya'll !    I have a plant that was given to me and I am not sure what it is.  Someone told me a hollyhock, but it has been some 30 years since I have seen one so I don't know.

Is there anyone out there that can help me?
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