Lower South Regional Report

Plan Next Year's Garden Now

I absolutely love the winter season in the south. It brings a welcome break from the heat of summer and just sort of gives you a new start in the garden. When freezes shut down last year's garden, you can get ready to go at it again in a couple of...
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Resources

Pruning Ornamental Shrubs
'Marie Pavie' Rose

Cover Plants Properly
Protect Tender Seedlings
Soggy Soil is Death Sentence for Houseplants
Have Your Soil Tested
Starting a New Christmas Cactus From a Cutting

Really Cool Salads

My favorite groups of cool-season crops are the cool-season salad greens. A long while back I fell in love with this diverse group of veggies and here's why. Prior to my "discovery" of these leafy crops my salads consisted of taste-challenged chunks of...
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Resources

Heating Mat
Freeze-Protection Light

Keep Christmas Tree Fresh and Safe
Rake Fallen Leaves Off the Lawn
Don't Wait to Plant Trees and Shrubs
Collect and Store Pecans to Maintain Quality
Reduce Fertilizer for Indoor Plants

Give the Gift of Gardening

The season for gift giving is upon us and gardeners have a unique advantage. We know the joy of growing things and the way that plants and gardening can provide ongoing interest and satisfaction over time. Gardening itself is a gift to give and...
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Resources

Great Gardening Books
Seed Starting Kits

Store Fall Potatoes and Squash
Plant Winter Flowers
Prepare Soil Now for the Spring Garden
Protect Marginally Hardy Plants
Extend the Life of Holiday Plants

Plant Propagation the Easy Way

If you are a gardener sooner or later you're going to try your hand at plant propagation. I'm talking about making more plants from those you already have, or perhaps from those of a friend or neighbor. You may have avoided trying to propagate plants in...
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Resources

Basic Seed Saving
The Rooter Pot

Tidy Up The Garden Now For Spring
Prepare Beds for Late-Winter Rose Planting
Put Perennial Flowers to Bed
Give Fruit Trees a Fall Clean Up
Prepare Power Equipment for Winter Storage

Cool Season Color for the South

This wonderful cool weather has arrived just in time to revitalize the gardening zeal in all of us. The first frost will take out our warm season plants in a month or so, but we are blessed with a palate of many other wonderful plants to bring...
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Resources

Propagation by Cuttings, Layering, and Division
Cyclamen

Store Tulip and Hyacinth Bulbs for Mid-Winter Planting
Storing Fall Potatoes and Squashes
Select Fall Foliage Ornamentals
Transition Color Beds
Move Tender Plants Indoors

Harvest Season for the Soil

The arrival of cooler weather assures us that fall is here and "leaf season" is just about to begin. Now I suspect that many of you look upon the annual deluge of leaves with a bit of dread as it means spending some weekends at the end of a rake...
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Resources

Building a Floating Hydroponic Garden
Get a Head Start on Fall Garden Planting

Plant "Blue-Leaved" Vegetables
Dig and Store Caladium Bulbs
Pick Up and Discard Fallen Branches
Plant Salad Greens
Purchase Bulbs for Forcing Indoors

Plant Spring Blooms in Fall

You've heard it before, "Fall is for planting!" I've been urging gardeners for years to consider the many benefits of fall planting, especially here in the lower south where our winters are mild and the summers are brutally hot and long. Much fall...
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Resources

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Corn Poppy

Harvest Sweet Potatoes
Plant Naturalizing Bulbs
Start Cuttings to Overwinter Tender Plants
Fertilize the Lawn
Protect Tender Plants from Hungry Pests

Shrub Roses for an Easy-Care Landscape

I am not a fan of plants that need pampering. I will occasionally tolerate a particularly unique plant's demand for special care just because I really want to grow it, but those initial intentions of providing frequent nurturing most often are abandoned...
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Resources

Earth Kind Roses
Air Layering Oversized Houseplants

Minimize Brown Patch With Proper Turf Care
Plant Cool-Season Flowers
Plant Fall Vegetables
Start a Strawberry Bed
Clean Up Pests On Outdoor Houseplants

Time To Evaluate the Landscape

This summer has been a long, hot one; but that's not abnormal in the lower south. Most years we experience at least limited droughts in summer and the temperatures often climb to the triple digits. Summer is our second dormant season. Our landscapes...
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Resources

Shrub Fact Sheets
Mexican Mint Marigold

Maintain Pecan Tree Health
Coax Poinsettias and Christmas Cactus into Bloom
Fertilize Citrus
Return Lawn Clippings to Fight Weeds
Divide Summer-Blooming Perennials

Vegetable Gardening Is "In"

I've noticed increasing interest in vegetable gardening over the past couple of years. Perhaps some of this is due to rising food costs. I believe it's also due to a desire to get back to nature in a simple, tangible way. Allow me a little...
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Resources

Cooperative Extension Offices
Container Veggies

Prevent Squash Viruses
Start Cool-Season Transplants
Trim Back Roses for Better Fall Bloom
Rejuvenate Heat-Stressed Summer Flowers
Stop Fertilizing Tender Ornamentals

Mari-Mums for Fall Color

Don't get me wrong, I love chrysanthemums. In fact, I think every landscape should include a few of these fall-blooming plants. I just want to tell you about an awesome imposter that may just outshine the mums in your landscape this fall. Calling it...
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Resources

All-America Selections
Weed Wiper

Plant Fall Potatoes
Maintain Fall-Bearing Fruits and Nuts
Break Up Webworm Webs
Protect Transplants and Seedlings From Hungry Insects
Shear Herbs and Summer-Blooming Salvias

Lower South Regional Report

Plan Next Year's Garden Now

Resources

Reminders

Really Cool Salads

Resources

Reminders

Give the Gift of Gardening

Resources

Reminders

Plant Propagation the Easy Way

Resources

Reminders

Cool Season Color for the South

Resources

Reminders

Harvest Season for the Soil

Resources

Reminders

Plant Spring Blooms in Fall

Resources

Reminders

Shrub Roses for an Easy-Care Landscape

Resources

Reminders

Time To Evaluate the Landscape

Resources

Reminders

Vegetable Gardening Is "In"

Resources

Reminders

Mari-Mums for Fall Color

Resources

Reminders