17 Vegetables to Plant in October for a Late Fall or Winter Harvest
October can still put fresh vegetables on the table, but I choose the crop and…
15 Herbs to Plant in Fall for Fresh Winter Flavor
A few well-chosen herbs can keep winter cooking from depending entirely on dried leaves and…
17 Ways to Improve Garden Soil in Fall for Better Spring Growth
Fall is a useful time to improve garden soil because I can see what the…
19 Fast-Growing Cover Crops to Plant in Fall for Healthier Soil
An empty vegetable bed is one of the first places I look when planning the…
25 Perennials to Plant in Fall for Spring Color
Perennials to plant in fall should give me something specific to look forward to in…
15 Trees to Plant in Fall for a Beautiful Backyard
Trees to plant in fall should earn their place long after the autumn color disappears.…
15 Common Fall Pruning Mistakes That Can Damage Your Plants
Fall pruning goes wrong when I treat every tired-looking plant as something that needs shortening.…
21 Fall Gardening Mistakes to Avoid for a Better Spring Garden
Fall gardening mistakes often stay hidden until spring. A shrub looks neatly trimmed, but its…
17 Perennials to Cut Back in Fall for a Healthier Garden
Fall pruning is most useful when it removes a problem: disease-spotted peony leaves, iris foliage…
15 Plants to Divide in October for a Fuller Garden
A bigger garden does not always begin with another trip to the nursery. Sometimes it…
21 Winter Gardening Mistakes That Can Kill Your Plants
Winter can be surprisingly hard on a garden, even when you're growing plants that are…
21 Best Fall-Planted Perennial Flowers
Fall is one of my favorite times to plant flowers, especially when I want a…
17 Fall Soil Improvement Tips for Better Spring Growth
Fall is when I start paying closer attention to the soil beneath my garden rather…
October Lawn Care for Bare and Patchy Grass
October lawn care for bare and patchy grass starts with two questions: why did the…
20 Vegetables to Grow in a Cold Frame This Winter
A cold frame can keep spinach, salad leaves, and a few well-chosen root crops on…
How to Bring Outdoor Plants Inside Without Bugs
Before I bring outdoor plants inside, I inspect the leaves and pots, remove debris, rinse…
18 Ways to Keep Pumpkins Fresh for Halloween
To keep pumpkins from rotting before Halloween, I start with a firm, undamaged pumpkin, keep…
15 Plants That Need Winter Protection Before the First Hard Freeze
The plants I put at the top of a fall protection list are not necessarily…
23 Big Bold Foliage Tropical Plants
Big leaves can change a garden before a single flower opens. When a patio feels…
17 Galvanized Tub and Stock Tank Water Feature Ideas
A galvanized tub can give a garden the pleasure of water without the excavation involved…
15 Hanging Basket Mistakes Too Many Gardeners Make
A hanging basket can go from cheerful to disappointing surprisingly quickly: the flowers thin out,…
18 Dark Foliage Plants That Make Your Garden Pop
I reach for dark foliage when a garden has plenty of flowers but still looks…
20 Mailbox Flower Bed Ideas That Boost Curb Appeal Fast
A mailbox flower bed is one of the first planting areas I would improve when…
18 Easy Landscaping Tricks to Attract More Backyard Birds
When I want more birds in a backyard, I start with the landscape before I…
16 Perennials to Leave Standing in Fall for Winter Wildlife
Before I cut down a faded perennial in fall, I ask what I would be…
18 Features Every Successful Hummingbird Garden Needs
A successful hummingbird garden needs more than a red feeder and a few bright flowers.…
Top 20 Plants Perfect for Dry Shade Gardens
For a dry shade garden, I start with plants such as epimedium, bigroot geranium, Pennsylvania…
20 Perennial Bulbs to Plant in Fall
If I am planting bulbs in fall, I want more than one impressive spring display.…
20 Best Flowering Hedge Plants to Add Color and Privacy
I choose a flowering hedge by the view I want to soften before I choose…
20 Things to Plant in October for Winter Growing
October can still put fresh food on the table, flowers beside the back door, and…
13 Berry-Producing Shrubs for Winter Color and Backyard Birds
I want a winter garden that gives me something to look at and gives birds…
12 Fall Lawn Care Steps for Greener Grass Next Spring
A greener spring lawn begins with the decisions I make in fall, when there is…
17 Ornamental Grasses to Plant in Fall for Four-Season Beauty
I look for ornamental grasses that will still give a border something to say after…
15 Fall Planter Combinations That Stay Colorful After Mums Fade
I build a longer-lasting fall planter by making leaves do most of the work. Burgundy…
How to Stop Powdery Mildew From Spreading This Fall
I like a fall garden with a little age showing: faded flowers, seedheads, and leaves…
How to Take Plant Cuttings in Fall for Free Plants Next Spring
I always look at a favorite plant differently when autumn approaches. That coleus spilling over…
15 Flowers You Can Direct-Sow Before Winter
I used to think flower sowing ended when frost arrived. Once the beds were cleaned…
13 Groundcovers to Plant in Fall Before Weeds Return
The bare patch beside a path rarely stays bare for long. I can pull the…
How to Ripen Green Tomatoes Before the First Frost
A forecast that suddenly drops toward freezing changes the way I look at a tomato…
How to Care for Lavender in Fall Without Causing Winter Damage
Lavender is one of the few plants I approach more cautiously as the garden starts…
When to Plant Garlic in Fall for Bigger Bulbs
Garlic is usually the last crop I plant before winter. By then, most of the…
What to Do With Hostas After the First Frost
The first hard frost changes a hosta bed faster than almost anything else in my…
How to Keep Dahlias Blooming Until the First Frost
By late summer, my dahlias usually become the center of the garden. The early annuals…
8 Spring Bulb Planting Mistakes That Ruin Next Year’s Flowers
Every autumn, I plant spring-flowering bulbs with a picture already forming in my mind: daffodils…
What to Do With Roses in September for More Blooms Next Year
September has taught me to pay closer attention to my roses instead of treating the…
When to Plant Spring Bulbs: A Simple Guide by Growing Zone
The first spring bulb display I planted was done almost entirely by the calendar. I…
How to Winterize Hydrangeas Without Damaging Next Year’s Blooms
The first hydrangea I ever “prepared” for winter taught me more than any pruning chart…
How to Store Tender Bulbs for Winter
Every fall, there is a point when my dahlias, cannas, gladiolus, elephant ears, caladiums, and…
How to Prepare Raised Garden Beds for Winter
I have never looked at fall cleanup as the point when I simply shut down…
How to Divide Perennials in Fall
I have learned that a perennial bed rarely announces that it needs attention in a…
What Not to Cut Back in Fall: Plants to Leave Until Spring
The first thing I look for during fall cleanup is living growth near the soil.…
How to Protect Garden Plants From the First Frost
The first frost forecast always makes me look at the garden a little differently. Suddenly,…
21 Fall Garden Tasks to Do in September
September is the month when I stop pretending summer will last forever. The tomatoes may…
20 Low-Water Front Yard Ideas With Curb Appeal
The first low-water front yard I helped change was not short of gravel. It had…
20 Flower Bed Edging Ideas That Look Polished
For years, I treated flower bed edging as the last little job—the line I would…
20 Winter Balcony Garden Ideas for Small Spaces
My balcony used to have two seasons: crowded and empty. From April through October, I…
25 Long-Blooming Perennials for Color From Spring Through Fall
I used to judge perennial flowers by the way they looked on the nursery bench.…
How Often Should You Water Your Garden? A Complete Watering Guide
I used to water by the day of the week. Sunday morning was “watering day,”…
How to Improve Clay Soil Without Digging It All Up
Clay soil has a way of making a gardener feel personally challenged. In wet weather,…
25 Fast-Growing Plants for Backyard Privacy
The first privacy screen I ever planted was a straight row of shrubs set much…
How to Choose Native Plants for Your Garden
I used to think choosing native plants would be the easy part of creating a…
How to Design a Flower Bed
I can usually tell when a flower bed was designed at the garden center. It…
How Many Plants Do You Need for a Flower Bed?
Whenever I plan a new flower bed, the exciting part is choosing colors, leaf shapes,…
18 Wild Cottage Garden Ideas Full of Natural Beauty
A wild cottage garden should never look as though someone scattered a packet of mixed…
20 Flower Picking Garden Ideas for Families
A flower-picking garden is one of the most rewarding spaces I can create for a…
18 Backyard Bar Ideas for Outdoor Entertaining
A backyard bar can completely change how an outdoor space feels and functions. I have…
20 Wildlife Garden Ideas with Cozy Natural Charm
A wildlife garden should not look as though somebody scattered a packet of wildflower seed,…
20 Eco-Friendly Garden Ideas That Reduce Waste
The greenest thing in my garden is not the compost bin. It is the old…
18 Patio Garden Decor Ideas That Feel Warm and Inviting
A patio begins to feel inviting when it stops looking like a collection of items…
17 Fall Outdoor Dining Ideas for Backyard Gatherings
By the middle of fall, my garden has stopped trying to impress anybody. The dahlias…
18 Outdoor Plant Stand Ideas with Stylish Design
Plant stands sound like a small detail until one tips over in a July storm…
20 Front Yard Hydrangea Garden Ideas
Hydrangeas can do something few flowering shrubs manage: they make a front yard feel established…
18 Outdoor Shower Garden Ideas with Spa Vibes
The first outdoor shower I ever helped build was squeezed behind a weathered cedar fence,…
20 Sloped Backyard Landscaping Ideas That Actually Work
A sloped backyard can be one of the most beautiful parts of a property, but…
18 Fall Pollinator Garden Ideas for Butterflies
Autumn can be a surprisingly busy season in a butterfly garden. Some butterflies are still…
20 Fall Flower Arrangement Ideas from Your Garden
By the time autumn arrives, my garden rarely looks as polished as it did in…
20 Fall Balcony Garden Ideas for Apartments
Fall is when an apartment balcony often starts to feel forgotten. Summer flowers become leggy,…
20 Flower Bed Ideas with Stunning Color Combinations
I have learned that choosing flowers one plant at a time is one of the…
17 Fall Vegetable Garden Ideas for Cooler Weather
There is a point near the end of summer when my vegetable garden starts looking…
18 Fall Patio Plant Ideas That Thrive in Cool Weather
There’s a point every year when I walk onto the patio and realize summer has…
20 Fall Wildflower Garden Ideas with Rustic Beauty
There’s a point every year when my garden stops looking like summer and starts feeling…
18 Fall Flower Bed Ideas with Warm Colors
There’s a point every year—usually sometime in early September—when I walk through my garden and…
20 Labor Day Garden Projects You Can Finish This Weekend
Labor Day weekend always feels like a turning point in my garden. The afternoons may…
20 Front Yard Garden Ideas That Boost Curb Appeal
There’s something satisfying about pulling into your driveway and feeling proud of what you see…
26 Labor Day Outdoor Garden Corner Ideas That Transform Empty Spaces
Labor Day always arrives at an interesting point in my garden. Summer is still hanging…
18 Fall Mums Garden Ideas That Feel Cheerful
There is a reason mums take over garden centers as soon as late summer starts…
20 Banana Plant Garden Ideas That Feel Bold
There are very few plants I can put in a garden and get the same…
20 Yellow Flower Garden Ideas That Feel Cheerful
There are colors I use carefully in a garden, and then there is yellow. Yellow…
18 Palm Tree Landscaping Ideas with Resort Style
There’s something about palm trees that changes the mood of a yard almost immediately. I…
20 Orange Flower Garden Ideas with Warm Energy
There’s something about orange flowers that instantly changes the mood of a garden. Every time…
26 Purple Garden Ideas with Dreamy Cottage Charm
There is something magical about walking into a garden filled with shades of purple. Every…
18 Rainbow Flower Garden Ideas Full of Vibrant Color
A rainbow flower garden can be one of the happiest spaces you create outdoors, but…
20 Japandi Garden Ideas with Minimal Natural Beauty
When I first discovered the Japandi design style, I immediately realized how naturally it could…
26 Pink Flower Garden Ideas Full of Romantic Beauty
Whenever I want to create a garden that feels welcoming, peaceful, and full of charm,…
25 Pond Filter Cover Ideas That Hide Ugly Equipment
One of the quickest ways to ruin the natural beauty of a backyard pond is…
25 Pond Bridge Ideas That Feel Straight Out of a Fairytale
There's something about a bridge crossing over water that instantly captures my imagination. Even the…
26 Wildflower Garden Ideas That Feel Natural and Free
One of the reasons I enjoy growing wildflowers so much is that they remind me…
25 Easy Houseplants for Beginners
When I first started growing houseplants, I assumed every plant needed a strict watering schedule,…
25 Mini Pond Ideas for Patios and Small Gardens
I've always believed that you don't need a sprawling backyard to enjoy the calming beauty…