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
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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
Easy-to-Grow Houseplants for Beginners
Easy-to grow-houseplants are more popular than ever. Even people who have never grown plants are adding houseplants to their indoor spaces. These new houseplant growers would never call themselves “gardeners,” yet they are going crazy over indoor plants. Why are easy-to-grow houseplants trending? Lisa Eldred Steinkopf, whose website at TheHouseplantGuru.com is a great source of information and inspiration about indoor plants, says houseplants nourish the body and the soul. “So many studies have been done that show the benefits houseplants have in the home and the workplace,” said Steinkopf. “Plants clean the air, they make people feel happier and actually lower their blood pressure. In office environments, plants also reduce the occurrence of sick days. What more could we ask for?” Expert Advice on Easy-to-Grow Houseplants Lisa Eldred Steinkopf (Twitter handle: @TheHouseplantGuru) says that anyone can successfully grow houseplants. “Growing a plant successfully is … [Read more...] about Easy-to-Grow Houseplants for Beginners
Kill Fungus Gnats Naturally with BTI
Looking for a way to kill fungus gnats naturally? Sooner or later you will have to deal with fungus gnats infesting your houseplants. Fungus gnats are the tiny flying pests that can swarm like an annoying black cloud whenever an infested houseplant or outdoor potted plant is moved. Fungus gnats (Bradysia species) are small, mosquito-like insects that commonly infest the soil or growing medium of potted plants. When outdoor plants are brought indoors for the colder months, fungus gnats in the potting mix are brought indoors. That's when they can quickly infest the soil of other houseplants. Fungus gnats thrive in moist potting soil, where they lay their eggs. After the eggs hatch, fungus gnat larvae live in the top two to three inches of the potting soil. Fungus gnat larvae can cause plant damage by eating plant roots. After about two or three weeks, the fungus gnat larvae pupate in the potting soil. Then they become the tiny black adult gnats that fly erratically when a potted … [Read more...] about Kill Fungus Gnats Naturally with BTI
