I like to frequent the “distressed plant shelf” at my local home and garden center. This is where all the wilted, neglected plants are put when they no longer appear well enough to sell at full price. House plants can be expensive. I usually try to clone mine in order to propagate them, but sometimes [...]
I know all of you who have a love of gardening also love the wild and natural world. I went hiking recently in the Hocking Hills region of Southern Ohio, and I want to share some pictures of a little critter I met, and a beautiful example of a flower. It is important to know [...]
I was lucky enough to be visited by my favorite exo-skeletal, ectotherm a few days ago! I found him sitting in my sweet potato plants in my back yard garden (Or, as I like to call it, my Yarden…)
A praying mantis!
These are probably my favorite bugs of all time. So cool looking, so [...]
Dear Ivy,
I have two ivy plants from a family member’s funeral. They are turning brown and dying. What do I do? Please help!
Thank You
Dear Reader,
Let me start off by saying I am so very sorry for your loss. I know many people that have “funeral plants”. I personally have one. These are living plants used [...]
One of the things I love about Summer is the influx of life into my little world. Spiders and bugs and their whole miniature food chain, acting out their life cycles right in front of my eyes! Birds swooping in and out, rodents scuttling under the fence to look for shoots and leaves to eat. [...]
Dear Ivy,
When you dead-head a petunia, can you just pluck the dead flower or should you snip it a little lower? What about those little mini petunias, do you have to deadhead those too?
Thanks very much,
Evary
Dear Evary,
This is a great question! A good opportunity to explain to my readers the practice of “Dead [...]
I’d like to introduce you to some of your best friends
This is a Flat-Backed Millipede, from the order Polydesmida. This little guy is an integral part of the food chain and the Chairmen-of-the Board of the Decomposition Committee. These arthropods do not bite or sting, and are a big help to have in [...]
When the heat gets to be too much, set your plants in a few inches of water. This will allow them to fully absorb all the liquid they can hold, without you having to worry about over or under watering. You can spray or mist the top of the plant and get all the dust [...]
I’ve been harvesting quarts and quarts of raspberries over the last few weeks! A couple times a week, I go out in the back garden and pluck a few quarts of the delicious fruits. The plants I have are called “Everbearing”, and they should produce all Summer. I pruned them back really heavily at first. [...]
I’m so happy! I just found an itty bitty baby praying mantis!
The picture is a little blurry because he’s soooo small, (he was less than a centimeter long) but when this little guy grows up, he’ll be a ferocious predator that will help protect my plants! These helpful bugs are the reason I refuse to [...]
