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It's important to understand the essential elements of a successful garden. Soil, sunlight, water, fertilizer and mulch are all essential elements that every beginner gardener needs to know about to be a great gardener. We will share about each today. Understanding Soil Soil is the foundation of a healthy garden. In Middle Tennessee, we tend to have a fair amount of clay in our soil. This is important to know because clay holds onto water which can lead to root rot in plants

Being successful with houseplants can be a challenge with all the varied instruction out there. We will try to make it easy for you with the following information: STEP 1: Light Placing plants in the proper light conditions is your first step to success. We group light conditions into 3 categories: LOW LIGHT: Northern exposure with no direct sun. East or west exposure with curtain filtered sun. Some plant labels will use descriptive words, such as indirect light, defused ligh

Fall is the perfect time to plant trees and shrubs! It's technically the best time to plant almost all trees and shrubs, because it gives new plants time to become acquainted with its new soil and environment before spring and summer growth months. Did you also know that fall is typically our driest season in Middle Tennessee? We've had a very dry summer and are experiencing a dry fall so far. You need to water even established trees and shrubs this fall if we aren't receivin

We're sharing quick tips today on how to care for Chrysanthemums- the beloved fall flower! Mums bloom best in full sun locations (6+ hours). Mums bloom once each year. Their flush of blooms last several weeks! Our Mums are perennial. You can plant them and enjoy their blooms year after year. When watering Mums, carefully water at the base of the plant. Their stems are fragile and can easily break when a strong stream of water hits them. Mums are usually pretty thirsty- check

Newly planted (planted within the past year) trees and shrubs need tending to during the first year they're planted in your yard. Often, summer and fall are very dry in our area, and you'll need to supplement with deeply watering newly planted trees and shrubs to ensure they don't dry out. While we are currently experiencing little to no rainfall and hot temperatures in Middle TN, you'll want to water deeply/ keep an eye on watering established plants by following the guideli

There are a few simple things to do to show your shrubs some extra love as we head into winter! Many of these easy tasks can be beneficial for other plants also. Deadhead spent blooms. Plants with large blooms, such as Hydrangeas, should be deadheaded before winter. The reason to do so is because snow and ice can weigh down the stems of these shrubs, damaging the plant. This is not the time to heavily prune shrubs, however. Just snip the dead blooms off. Apply fresh mulch if

Autumn has arrived and, oh, how we love the beautiful foliage it brings! While many of us think of fall foliage in terms of trees, there are many shrubs that offer gorgeous foliage in fall, too. Many of these offer berries. Have you considered adding a few of these beauties to your gardening beds? Above photo: Barberry Azalea : both deciduous and Encores. Deciduous Azaleas provide the colors of fall we all love, while Encore Azaleas are evergreen yet bloom in spring AND in fa

If you love figs, you may be interested to know you can easily grow your own in our region! Figs are delicious as a snack themselves, in jams and jellies, dishes and desserts. To us, they are a decadent-tasting fruit! 'Chicago Hardy' fig is as its name suggests, hardy in our region, stays compact, so it fits well in smaller landscapes, and can even be grown in a container pot. If left to its own devices and not often pruned, it can grow to be 10' tall by 10' wide. If grown in

Water and water well! Fall is the best time to plant but it's also our driest season in Middle TN! All newly planted plants (planted within the last year) need to be deeply watered every 3-4 days during fall when we aren't getting adequate rainfall (and we haven't for awhile!). For trees and shrubs, "deep watering" means setting a hose at the base of the plant on a slow stream of water for approx. 20 minutes every 3-4 days. A very slow stream of water is important so it slowl