Blog
Discover insights for all your outdoor home improvement projects. If you have any questions about how we can help with your landscape design and installation project just reach out!
Fall Planting
Most people think that the best time to plant is spring. They are right. The second best time to plant is fall. In fact, the fall is almost as good as spring in most respects and better than spring in other respects. There are a few plants that should not be planted...
Roundabouts vs. Cul-de-sacs
In June of 2000 I visited Germany on a singing tour with the Midland Music Society. You may be asking yourself, what does that have to do with plants? Well my answer would be that just because I was there to sing, doesn’t mean I wasn’t looking at plants. Many people...
Beetles R Us but they won’t beat us.
Now is the time of the season to prepare for the devastation that the Japanese Beetles will cause next spring. Look back at the article I wrote concerning grubs in the spring. There is a “beautiful” picture of the grub damage that was prevelent last spring. It may...
Phenology
Phenlogy is a study in the correlation between bloom times, degree days, and insect emergence. It is very useful in IPM. IPM is integrated pest management. Integrated pest management is the practice of using biological controls, cultural practices and chemicals to...
Shrub Planting
Last week I wrote about pruning but didn’t have enough space to address all the aspects of pruning that gardeners need to know about. This week we will finish the discussion about pruning. Shrubs are another category of pruning that takes a little more time to write...
Gardening Mistakes
Let’s talk about some mistakes that can be made in the garden and lawn. Now that its June and we are all going to be doing a lot of lawn mowing, we need to consider the height at which you cut your grass. The healthiest height to keep your lawn during the summer 2...
Rain Rain Everywhere
We have all heard the nursery rhyme, April showers bring May flowers, what do Mayflowers bring? Pilgrims of course. This year we did not get much rain in April to bring out our May flowers (even though a lot of them were beautiful this year) and we are not getting...
Moles Moles Moles
I once was involved with a television program called “Ask the Professional”. It appeared on public television through Delta College. My husband Chuck, a horticulturist at Dow Gardens, was one of the moderators and I was behind the scenes answering the phone....
What’s Buggin You?
We’ve been attacked!! Not by aliens but by bugs! This winter has been simply horrendous for white grubs. Our lawns have been decimated by the little beasts chewing on the roots and crowns of our grass plants. Homeowner’s have until May 15th, according to Michigan...
Spring Update
Spring has sprung, finally! What’s in bloom? All the Maples, take a look at the beautiful red flowers on the Red Maples- Acer rubrum. Corneliancherry Dogwood-Cornus mas, Border forsythia- Forsythia intermedia, numerous bulbs including scilla, daffodills, grape...