The Most Fun You Can Have With Your Bibs On!
Straw bale gardening gives you advantages over growing a garden in the conventional way. Straw, as it decomposes, often provides better nutrients, and a better growing medium than your soil. If you don’t have enough space, straw bales are an ideal way to grow in small spaces like on a patio, deck or balcony. Straw… Click here to read more…
How to can tomatoes from your garden. Canning is one of the most popular ways to preserve delicious, garden fresh tomatoes. Assemble the following tools: Large canning pot with jar rack (also called a canner). A very large stock pot that will allow room for the jars to be covered by at least 2 inches… Click here to read more…
Ground squirrels can damage many food-bearing and ornamental plants. They will enter gardens and devour vegetables in the seedling stage, gnaw on plastic sprinkler heads and irrigation lines, eat the eggs of ground-nesting birds and can be quite destructive. This humane DIY squirrel trap can help you eliminate those pesky little varmints! Step 1: Gather… Click here to read more…
How To Net Your Small Fruit Trees and Bushes If you want to keep more berries and fruits for yourself here’s an easy way to cover your fruiting plants. You can always leave one bush uncovered to feed the birds! You will find that this fruit tree netting helps protect the leaves on your plant… Click here to read more…
You can grow strawberries in a pot as long as they have the right soil and get enough sunlight. Strawberries have shallow roots, so it is easy to grow them in pots, both indoors and out. You can place your strawberry plants on a balcony, patio, or indoors in front of a sunny window. Anything… Click here to read more…
Daylilies come in a variety of colors and multiply quickly. When they are overcrowded they compete for water. Divide and transplant Daylilies to give them room to grow. The three parts of the daylily are the foliage which are the green tops, the crown which is white, and the roots. The best time to divide… Click here to read more…
Step 1: Obtain Pallets and Hardware You will need 4-6 pallets that are similar in size. Check the pallets for any nails that may be loose or sticking out. A power drill, screw driver, hammer, 4-6 L brackets, 2 heavy duty strap hinges, wood screws, one gate hook and latch, cupboard handle/utility pull, and for… Click here to read more…
Did you know that mums (chrysanthemums) don’t have to only last one season? With a little work, your hardy mums can survive the winter! Step #1: Prepare the Soil for Water Drainage A very important part of winterizing your mums begins when you plant them. Make sure that the soil drains well so puddled water… Click here to read more…
Butterfly bushes are a favorite among many gardeners. The showy, fragrant blooms attract all sorts of beneficial insects to your garden. You may even find a hummingbird or two stopping by to enjoy the nectar inside the tiny flowers. When and how to prune a butterfly bush is a topic that comes up quite a… Click here to read more…
My 4 year old daughter, Gabby, and I decided to tackle this project yesterday afternoon. We worked at a leisurely pace and from start to finish it took about two and half hours. Being plant enthusiasts, we already had some potted plants set aside that we wanted to make a permanent home for. Since I… Click here to read more…
When is the best time to prune shrubs in your landscape? The answer is: When it needs it. Some experts might tell you that you need to wait until winter or early spring to cut back your shrubs or trees. Here at Mike’s Plant Farm, we ignore the calendar and prune as needed. We prune… Click here to read more…
Remember back in grade school when your teacher gave you a dixie cup full of dirt? You planted a flower seed, kept the cup in the window and watered it each day. Your flower sprouted, grew and bloomed. Then you carefully brought it home for Mother’s Day. (For many of us, it didn’t survive the… Click here to read more…
Geraniums are often used as container plants or planted as annuals. They naturally grow in hot climates (zones 9-12), but that doesn’t mean they have to die off each winter in colder climates. Your geraniums will last for many years if follow this simple technique for overwintering them. Step 1 Dig your geranium. Dig your… Click here to read more…
Every ten years or so you might notice an abundance of tent caterpillar nests like the one pictured above. The eastern half of the U.S and Canada get hit hard, but I’m sure our readers along the pacific coast and in the U.K. can relate to this as well. Eastern tent caterpillars overwinter in a… Click here to read more…
Nothing can add more Pizazz to your yard than a beautiful flower and or perennial garden. As long as it is weed free and you can keep it that way. Here’s a step by step guide to making that happen. Step one. Site location. Unless you are creating a garden of shade loving flowers, you’ll… Click here to read more…
Powdery mildew is one of the most commonly found fungal problems affecting plants. This fungus typically appears as a white or grayish powder on the leaves and stems of affected plants. It affects a wide variety of deciduous plants. Beebalm and phlox have always been common to infection, but in recent years we’re seeing more… Click here to read more…
Obviously this article is about Roundup and whether or not it’s safe to use around your home or farm. But first . . . I am asking for your support because . . . I am about to be slammed to the ground, kicked, punched and pummeled with rocks just for writing this. I have… Click here to read more…
Urrrrrrrg! Japanese Beetles, what can we do about them? Okay kids, today we are going to talk about Japanese Beetles, how to control them and which methods of control really work. Like Japanese Beetle traps, do they really work? I’ll get to that, but first let’s cover some basics. In order to beat the enemy,… Click here to read more…
Growing plants in containers is a fairly easy as long as you have a Really Good Potting Mix and you have a means of controlling weeds in your nursery containers. In this version of “Mondays with Mike” I am going to show you what to put under your containers to keep the weeds down and… Click here to read more…
Meet Dave. Dave was a friendly stray who liked to hang out at a local restaurant and pester customers for their leftovers. Dave is actually a girl. She was named after the owner of the restaurant she frequented. (We knew she was female, but decided to call her Dave anyway.) Now days… Click here to read more…
