Taking Care of Your Garden During the Winter Months

While you may not be thinking of your garden when the temp falls below 32 degrees, you should be -- particularly if you've got young trees and shrubs out in your yard.

Winter is a hard season for a lot of us (although, here in Fort Wayne so far the weather's been pretty enjoyable and mild). It's also hard on your young plants and the wildlife that visits or lives on your property.

Squirrels and other small mammals may start stripping bark from trees -- especially trees with tender bark that easily comes off. Protect your trunks with hardware mesh.

While it may not be snowing a lot here right now, it's only a matter of time. The extra weight of wet snow will easily snap young branches and stems. Tie your stems and branches together -- firmly yet gently -- with plant tape or twine. Tying them together gives less of a surface for the snow to settle on and also adds strength by combining them all together.

The salt that will surely be dumped on the roads to provide safe travel can damage your broadleaf evergreens such as arborvitae. Protect your branches from the harsh salt and other chemicals by covering them with burlap. The salt can burn the leaves and kill off branches.

Meanwhile, enjoy the winter frolicking of birds and squirrels throughout your yard while watching from a window, covered in a blanket, wearing fuzzy slippers and sipping a cup of cocoa ;)

Real Vs Fake: Choosing the Right Christmas Tree

It's that time of year -- and Shaun and I are planning to go pick out our Christmas tree this weekend sometime. A lot of people seem surprised when they find out we prefer real over fake, considering I'm into the environment and preserving ecosystems. This group of people, as it turns out, may not fully understand what goes into the production of real and fake trees.

Final Plantings and Purchasing Plants

Autumn is -- and it's no secret -- the ideal time to plant several types of trees, shrubs and perennials. The question seems to be "how late in the season you can actually plant?" The answer to the question is difficult to answer, although in many parts of the Midwest and around the nation you still have a week or so -- maybe even longer -- to get those plants in the ground.

Spring and fall both offer transplants different benefits. In spring, the benefit is that if you get the plant in early enough, it will become better established before hot, long summers. This is important for young plants especially. In fall, the plants are put in the ground just before they go dormant for the winter. The benefit here is that the plant can become somewhat established in the ground and have a nice, long winter nap before its glory is displayed in the spring.

When planting this fall, remember to make sure your plant has plenty of its needed nutrients so that it has a better chance of surviving a harsh winter. For young, tender roots, consider mulching around the base of the plant to help shield them from the elements. You also get lucky this time of year with mulch -- use raked or mulched leaves. For small, tender plants, you can also put a cage around them and fill the cage with leaves or straw. Tomato cages are ideal for this.

Changes of Fall: What's Going on in Nature and Home Improvement Tips

Fall is a wonderful time of the year that brings so many changes many people overlook. While many see spring as the "new beginning," autumn plays an important role in making sure that that "new beginning" is as spectacular as it should be.

Along with the cooler winds and changing of the leaves, a quick look around will show you much more going on in nature. The squirrels provide a brief, yet amusing, snapshot into what's going on. As they frantically run around and chase each other, they're also gathering supplies for the winter. Hidden morsels carefully tucked away in secret locations need to be reclaimed from the ground. These guys need some fat and protein to survive this winter when food is scarce and temperatures take their drastic drop.

Autumn's Gift of Craftiness

This year has been a magnificent year so far for color change. After our wet, cold spring that jumped directly into a hot, dry, drought of a summer, fall has brought with it some much needed rain and now a beautiful dash of sunlight and warmth.

As someone who truly enjoys nature and the gifts it offers, I've begun collecting some fall leaves and blooms for my presses. These intriguing purples, yellows, oranges and reds have given me the opportunity to create some beautiful pieces.

I've made some beautiful ornaments and have quite the pile of unused frames at my disposal for arrangements. I must admit though, I've been preoccupied with my crafts and not so much on my writing. Sometimes it seems so hard to find the perfect balance.

For right now, though, I'll keep trying to find that balance while I'm also collecting for my presses.

Coming in for the Autumn ... What to Know About Different Creatures

As the warmth of this summer drifts into the past and the cool and crisp autumn winds bring changes, you'll probably be seeing a lot more activity of the many-legged kind inside and around your home.

Several arthropods (and even some mammals) may try to use your home as an escape from the pending winter. While many insects and arthropods die off in the fall, others overwinter to start new populations in the spring. Lucky for you, control is natural, cost effective and can ultimately save you from the sight of various creatures!

Oh! The Joys of Harvest

There's nothing better than a salad made from vegetables picked straight from the garden. It's one of my favorite summer meals and snacks -- the freshness of the veggies makes for a delightful and colorful meal. While this summer I've used various vegetables from other people's gardens (my dad's and farmer's markets, to be exact), I am never dissatisfied by the way it tastes.

With our 12 tomato plants Shaun and I have in our garden this year, we've only picked 4 or 5 so far -- but have many that are ripening at the same speed (anyone else have the word "salsa" come to mind?). Being the disorganized person that I am, I forgot to mark all my plants with which varieties they are so I'm "eating blind." The tomatoes we've had thus far are nice and sweet, juicy and kind of small.

Undeveloped Lakes: A Thing of Beauty

This year for our annual family trip, my parents, sister, brother-in-law, husband and I went down to Southern Indiana to see Patoka Lake. This almost-9,000 acre lake is beautiful. One of the reasons it's so beautiful is that people can't build on it. I'm sure if they could, they would, as all beautiful things it seems must be ruined by development.

We rented a pontoon and spent 9 hours cruising around the lake. Yes, there were lots of other boaters out there, but even that didn't take away from the pristine beauty of this beautifully clean lake.

Nowadays, when people talk about going to the lake it seems they're always speaking of a lake that has multi-million dollar cottages built on it and an overwhelming amount of people. To each their own, but to me, that's not relaxing AT ALL. I enjoy nature for what it is, not for what people want to abuse it for.

Basil -- The Powerhouse of Companion Planting

I didn't do very much companion planting this year in our first garden, but I'm pretty sure what we did do has paid off. Companion planting, if you're unfamiliar, is planting plants that benefit each other together. This isn't just for vegetable gardening, either, but this post is about the veggie garden.

For our first veggie garden at our home, we decided to plant basil and tomatoes together. Basil is a powerhouse in the garden, especially for tomatoes. It not only improves the growth and flavor, but also repels several pests of tomatoes (and other fruits and vegetables). Basil repels white fly, tomato hornworms, aphids, flies and mosquitoes.

Pruning Basics

Most of us have a basic understanding of what pruning is, but few of us know how to do it correctly. It's not simply shaping the plant to give you what you think is the best look; it's actually for helping to maintain the health of your shrubs and trees (which, coincidentally, adds to the aesthetics). Pruning correctly also stimulates new, fresh growth and the production of buds -- keeping your shrub looking new and young for many years.

Before you go shearing your shrubs into an unrecognizable box, get in tune with your plant and figure out a few things about it before you've actually damaged it.

What You'll Need to Know: 

1. Does your shrub bloom on previous or current year's growth? This refers to when your shrub sets its buds. A general (and by general, I mean most of the time, not all of the time) rule of thumb is that summer-flowering shrubs bloom on current year's growth and spring-flowering shrubs on previous year's growth
2. How thick are the branches I'll be cutting and which tools will I need?
3. Is any of it dead, diseased or injured?
4. Should I really prune it back to a different height or width or should it be moved to an area where it can grow as it should?

Fertilizer?

Fertilizer is often a term tossed around by gardeners and other people, but what is it? Why do you need it? Do you need it? Ah, the questions that arise when planning and planting a garden. Fertilizer supplements the needed nutrients that your soil may be lacking. It comes in various forms: Granules and liquids; man-made and organic; etc ...

When you look at a bag of fertilizer, you'll notice 3 numbers on the bag or box. These 3 numbers represent NITROGEN, PHOSPHOROUS and POTASSIUM, in that order. These 3 macronutrients are the ones more likely to be needed in your soil. The numbers represent what percentage of each is in the fertilizer you're getting. But what exactly do these nutrients do?

Spiders: Why I Love Them

It seems even some of the more environmentally minded people are still squeamish around spiders. Although I'm not, I have to admit they can be somewhat intimidating with eight legs and the ability to snare  their prey with high-quality death traps of sticky silk; well, some of them anyway.

I know even the most arachnophobic people out there have heard either "They're more scared of you than you are of them" or "Oh, but they're soooo beneficial." And most of those arachnophobic people, no matter how severe the fear, believe it deep down in their heart but just can't seem to appreciate these eight-legged predators.

Few creatures have had to endure the horrible reputations caused by stories and tall-tales like spiders; wolves and snakes may be the only other two that are in the same category. Horror stories of massive spiders in toilets, faint-causing photographs of bites and of course the Hollywood machine have all put images in our heads of spiders with fangs the size of steak knives readily hunting us as their next meal.

Beneficials in Your Garden

The term "beneficial" is thrown out a lot in the gardening world. If you're not sure what it refers to, it's typically referring to various arthropods and creatures that live in your garden and are 'beneficial' to its health. Beneficials are also the number one reason NOT to use insecticides, herbicides and other toxic chemicals in your everyday gardening practices.

What's a Pest? (and Figuring Out If it Really is or Not)

As an outdoor enthusiast and someone who works at a nursery, I run across all sorts of insects, spiders and other arthropods on plants and in their natural habitats. I'm also one of those people that hates the thought of killing anything, realizing everything has a place (even if it happens to be on one of my plants). By definition a pest is an annoying person or thing; a nuisance; or an injurious plant or animal that is especially one harmful to humans.

While many people get queezy, scared or downright frustrated at the sign of any arthropod, people need to take a step back and realize that just because you're frightened of it doesn't necessarily give you the right to destroy that creature.

The Hows, Whats and Whys of Rain Gardens

Rain gardens are an important, beautiful addition to any yard, especially those in urban landscapes. What is a rain garden? Well, in simple terms a rain garden is a landscaped area that is slightly depressed. When put in the correct location, these gardens absorb much of the rain runoff and snow meltoff that can become polluted when crossing roads, lawns, driveways and roofs.

The plants in rain gardens help filter out this water before it goes into storm drains and pollutes local bodies of water. Every time rain and snow run across these areas, the water picks up various pollutants such as pesticides, chemicals and fertilizers. Because the rain garden is slightly depressed, it helps the roots of these plants capture this polluted water and catches what is not easily absorbed.

The best plants for rain gardens are sturdy, native perennials that do well in both wet and dry conditions. Natives are hardier than non-native species; they require little maintenance, little fertilizers and have strong root systems that are accustomed to local soils.

When planning your rain garden, you'll need to take some measurements, pinpoint runoff locations and make final decisions regarding plants, location and size. During heavy spring rains, try to locate where your water runs to and where any puddles may develop. Start at your downspouts and follow water as it runs through your property toward storm drains.

For more information on how to plan and measure for your rain garden, visit the University of Wisconsin Extension's online pamphlet: Rain Gardens: A How-To Manual For Homeowners.

Invading the Truth About Invasive Plants

An invasive plant is one that is not native to an area, can reproduce quickly and spread over large areas in a relatively low amount of time. Because of their reproductive abilities, these plants can choke out native species; this creates a problem for not only the direct local ecosystem, but in some way for the entire ecosystem of the planet.

Most, but not all, invasive plants were brought to the United States as ornamentals for landscapes. Sadly, many nurseries still sell invasive plants due to their popularity and an uneducated -- and sometimes uncaring -- general public.

According to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, invasive species are second only to loss of habitat as far as threats to global biodiversity go. While it may not seem like a large threat, choking out native species is detrimental. These quick-growing invasive species outcompete our precious natives for sunlight, vital nutrients from the soil and precious space.

Some may think this still doesn't sound like a problem. What's wrong with plants taking over for other plants? A lot, actually. Our native plants are homes, food sources and vital players in local habitats. Some species are so aggressive that they may wipe out almost all native plants in an area.

Forests, fields and waterways are all invaded by these unlikely monsters, causing messes that are not easily cleaned up by man.

How can you prevent invasive species? It's rather simple if you know what you're looking for. Before adding to your landscape or garden, research the plants you are interested in. Native plants are always the way to go, but there are many non-native species that are not invasive. Only shop from garden centers and nurseries that refuse to sell invasive plants.

For more information, visit Invasive.org, a one-stop information hub on invasive plants, insects, pathogens and animals. Your local university's extension service should also have detailed information on invasive plants.