Many homeowners have questions when they decide to plant a tree. Just follow these easy steps when planting shade, ornamental or fruit tree. By using these expert tips as your guide, your tree should thrive and provide years of enjoyment in your yard. Select the Right Tree for Your Location Before you plant a tree, you need to decide what kind of tree to want to plant. Do you want a tree for privacy or to provide shade? Maybe your tree is meant to be an ornamental focal point in your yard. Perhaps you want a fruit tree to produce and edible crop of fruit. Another key consideration in selecting a tree is how much space you have in your yard. According to Jeff Dinslage, president of Nature Hills Nursery, which grows and sells all types of trees, many homeowners buy small trees that become too large for the space available. “Nature Hills lists the mature sizes of all of our plants right on the web page,” said Dinslage. “Compare the mature height and width of the tree to the space … [Read more...] about How to Plant a Tree in Your Yard
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7 Expert Tips on How to Care for Poinsettias
Poinsettias are the most popular potted plant during the holiday season. For millions of us, it's not the holidays without a few brightly colored poinsettia plants in our homes. That's why we all need some tips on how to care for poinsettias. Poinsettias (Euphorbia pulcherrima) are excellent plants for natural decoration, and they will easily look great throughout the holiday season with minimal care. Fortunately, they thrive in warm indoor growing conditions. To keep your poinsettia plants alive and well during the holiday season and beyond, just follow the expert tips on how to care for poinsettias listed below. If you follow these easy steps, your poinsettias will look healthy and happy throughout the holidays. Tips on How to Care for Poinsettias During the Holidays 1. Start out with healthy plants. When selecting poinsettias for your home or office, choose the plants that have lots of leaves. Avoid the plants that have dried out so much that the leaves are drooping—or … [Read more...] about 7 Expert Tips on How to Care for Poinsettias
Attract Butterflies to Your Garden
If you’re like an increasing number of gardeners, you want to attract butterflies to your garden. Butterflies are truly the winged jewels of our landscape. Not only are butterflies beautiful, they serve the greater purpose of helping to pollinate plants and provide food for other important insects in the pollinator food chain. While monarch butterflies are my current focus, they weren’t always. But as most gardeners soon learn, one thing in the garden leads to another. When you plant a seed, you learn about soil. When plants grow in your garden, you learn about weather and the insects those plants attract. With more insects, more songbirds are likely to visit your property, too. See what I mean? One thing in the garden really does lead to another, and another, and … So, if you want to attract more butterflies to your garden, it’s helpful to know what plants and plant attributes butterflies enjoy. Keep the following tips in mind and you’ll be on your way toward having a … [Read more...] about Attract Butterflies to Your Garden
5 Life Lessons I Learned while Foraging for Wild Foods
No one is born an expert—in foraging for wild foods or anything else. We learn by doing, and along the way we make mistakes. As a forager, I’ve struggled to find that essential balance between adventurousness (Hey, I’m eating wild food that I just picked myself, that’s adventurous!) and caution (Hey, I’m eating wild food, I’d better be careful! ). The first, and absolutely essential rule of “The Forager’s Creed” is never put anything in your mouth if you’re not 100% sure what it is. Actually, that’s good advice for life in general. Here are five more life lessons I’ve learned from foraging for wild foods. May you save yourself some time and trouble by learning from my mistakes. Foraging for Wild Foods Lesson #1: Don’t procrastinate I discovered a giant patch of mayapples one August afternoon when I was hot and sweaty and tired. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than a cool swim in the lake. I’d read how unusual it was to find more than one or two, but here was an … [Read more...] about 5 Life Lessons I Learned while Foraging for Wild Foods
7 Essential Houseplant Care Tips
Taking care of another living thing can be a daunting task—and that includes houseplant care. Of course, houseplant care isn’t nearly as complicated as caring for a baby, a puppy or a kitten. But, especially for beginners, caring for houseplants can sometimes be challenging. Fortunately, the 7 essential houseplant care tips presented here are easy to follow. And these tips will help you to understand the basics of keeping houseplants alive and well. There are three basic needs of any plant: light, water and environment (temperature and humidity). The houseplant care tips below will help you understand how to provide the right conditions for the beautiful plants you bring into your home. Houseplant Care Tips: #1 Check the Light Most commonly grown garden plants like to grow in full sun. But most houseplants tend to thrive in partial sun, bright light or low light. So, the first thing you need to know is how much light you have to offer a plant. Determine which direction your … [Read more...] about 7 Essential Houseplant Care Tips
