Controlling Fire Ants Safely If it weren’t for their dangerous and destructive side, you could almost think of fire ants as beneficial insects. After all, they can move and loosen more earth than earthworms, and they help keep several species of pest insects under control. But it would be hard to convince most people that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. As if the painful bites weren’t enough, they also chew on electrical wires and build nests in inappropriate places where they damage homes and other structures....

What is Camouflage Gardening? Camouflage gardening is an effective way to deter pesky animals from overtaking and consuming your garden plants. Camouflage gardening is simply the process of using plants that contain natural chemicals and characteristics that deter these garden crashers from wanting to eat them. Some animals, such as deer, are curious and will try any new plant once, especially in drought conditions when other food sources are scarce. Placing highly susceptible plants closer to the house or inside a fenced-in area is a good idea....

Sweet Bell Pepper Varieties The pepper that gets used most often is undoubtedly the green bell pepper. It is a common fixture in many dishes and can be found at every supermarket. Mounded near the green bell peppers are the sunrise-hued red, yellow, and orange bell peppers. And, if you are really lucky, sometimes you will see purple, adding to the cacophony of color in the produce aisle. So is there a difference between these colored beauties?...

What are Organic Fertilizers? Unlike commercial chemical fertilizers, organic fertilizer for gardens is typically made up of single ingredients and can be matched to your garden’s particular nutritional needs. The various types of organic fertilizer can come from the plant, animal, or mineral sources, depending on what chemicals your garden requires. In order to qualify as an organic fertilizer, the materials must naturally occur in nature. Fertilizer for organic gardening isn’t the quick and instant fix that chemical fertilizers can be....

Pine Tip Blight Overview Pine tip blight is a fungus that frequently attacks trees that are planted outside their natural range. The disease travels by spores, which require water as an activating substance. Tip blight of pine overwinters on needles, cankers, and two-year-old cones, which is the reason older trees are more frequently infected. Tip blight fungus can become active in a wide range of temperatures and will begin producing spores within a year of infection....

Preventing Leyland Cypress Diseases Prevention is easier than cure when it comes to diseases of Leyland cypress trees. Your first, best step toward keeping these attractive evergreens healthy is planting them in appropriate sites. The second step is giving them the best care. A healthy, vigorous plant shakes off problems with more ease than a stressed plant. And Leyland cypress disease treatment is often impossible or ineffective. So save yourself the time and effort involved in treating disease in Leyland cypress....

DIY Coffee Table Terrarium The first step in creating a succulent coffee table is to buy or build a terrarium table. You can purchase a terrarium table online or find detailed instructions for building your own DIY coffee table terrarium. The latter does require some carpentry and woodworking skills. If you’re crafty, you could also repurpose a garage sale find into a beautiful succulent coffee table. If you’re wondering how to make a terrarium table from scratch or an old glass top table, here are a few must-haves to include in your design:...

Decorating with Pinecones Wreaths – This classic pinecone décor is sure to add a touch of wintry warmth to the house or office. Try wiring pinecones together to form a wreath or simply add them to a prefab one. Dust the pinecones with craft snow for a rustic design or use metallic spray paint for a fashionable look. Holiday centerpiece – Pinecone decorating ideas for the tabletop are endless. Use a mix of candles, ornaments, pinecones, and branches to create a unique centerpiece....

Trellis Made of Branches A trellis is a great way to hold up a pea or bean vine, but it can also serve to tidy up the garden. Arranging plants, like zucchini and melons, so that they spread vertically instead of horizontally frees up a lot of garden space. Both tall ornamentals and climbing edibles are healthier with a trellis to prop themselves up on than floundering on the ground. However, if you head to the garden store, a trellis might run more than you want to pay and a lot of commercial trellises may not give the rustic look that works particularly well in a garden....

What is Uplighting? When you install ground lights that shine on higher objects or plants, you have accomplished DIY uplighting. Uplighting means that you are illuminating objects from below. It simply refers to the angle of the light. Most types of uplighting are installed at ground level or even below ground level. Uplighting allows you to spotlight your most beautiful garden features, like your favorite shrubs or the architectural elements of your hardscaping....

Do Cicadas Damage Trees? Cicadas can damage trees, but not in the ways you might think. The adults might feed on leaves, but not enough to cause any serious or lasting damage. The larvae drop to the ground and dig down to the roots where they feed until it’s time to pupate. While root-feeding robs the tree of nutrients that would otherwise help it grow, arborists have never documented any damage to the tree from this type of feeding....

Removing wildflowers from their natural setting isn’t beneficial to the environment and usually isn’t successful. If you’re thinking about growing dogtooth violets in your garden, look for the bulbs or plants at nurseries that specialize in native plants. Once the plant is established in your garden, it is easily propagated by digging and replanting the offsets in late summer. What Does a Dogtooth Violet Look Like? Dogtooth violet isn’t a violet and the drooping, lily-like blooms are actually white with a subtle, violet tint....

Drake Elm Tree Information When you read up on drake elm tree information, you’ll learn all about the tree’s exceptionally beautiful bark. It is green, gray, orange, and brown, and it exfoliates in small thin plates. The trunk often forks, producing the same vase shape that American elms display. Drake elms (Ulmus parvifolia ‘Drake’) are relatively small trees, generally staying under 50 feet (15 m.) tall. They are deciduous, but they shed leaves late and almost act like evergreens in warmer climates....

What are Floral Ice Cubes? As the name suggests, floral ice cubes are made by freezing various types of edible flowers inside the cubes. This results in a stunning and colorful addition to drinks. Ice cube flowers can also add visual interest to ice buckets. What flowers can I use, you ask? The most important aspect of making these gorgeous ice cubes is to harvest only flowers which are edible. Flowers like pansies, nasturtiums, and rose petals are all excellent options....

Evergreen Climbing Hydrangea Information The Hydrangea seemanii is a climbing hydrangea vine that can get 30 feet (9 m.) tall. It has big, thick, rounded leaves that look more like they belong on an evergreen magnolia than a hydrangea. They contrast beautifully with the creamy blossoms. The glossy leaves stay on the hydrangea vine year-round, while the flowers appear in summer, attracting butterflies and bees. The copious amounts of ivory white flowers emerge as tight ivory buds that look like duck eggs....

What are Exfoliating Bark Trees? Exfoliating bark trees are trees whose bark naturally peels away from the trunk. Some trees with exfoliated bark have exfoliating bark as soon as they grow. Other trees may not develop their exfoliating bark until they have reached full maturity after many years. Trees with Interesting, Exfoliating Bark Some exfoliating trees include: Amur Chokecherry Chinese Dogwood Common Bald Cypress Cornelian Cherry Crepe Myrtle Drake Elm Eastern Arborvitae Eastern Red Cedar Japanese Stewartia Lacebark Elm Lacebark Pine Paper Birch Paperbark Maple Paper Mulberry Persian Parrotia Red Maple River Birch Shagbark Hickory Silver Maple Sitka Spruce White Birch Wax Myrtles Yellow Birch Yellow Buckeye...

Popular Cut Flowers for Fall

Facts About the Monkey Flower Monkey flowers (Mimulus ringens) are native North American wildflowers that thrive in USDA plant hardiness zones 3 through 9. The 1 ½ inch (4 cm.) flowers have an upper petal with two lobes and a lower petal with three lobes. The blossoms are often spotted and multicolored and the overall appearance resembles a monkey’s face. Taking care of monkey flowers is easy as long as they get plenty of moisture....

What is Tree Ivy? Fatshedera lizei tree ivy, also known as bush ivy, is a rapid grower attaining heights of up to 8 to 10 feet (2-3 m.). So what is tree ivy anyway? Tree ivy is a hybrid of Fatsia japonica (Japanese aralia) and Hedera helix (English ivy) and was discovered in France. From the family Araliaceae, this plant has large, 4 to 8 inch (10-20 cm.), five-fingered lobed leaves and, like other ivies, has a vine-like growth habit....

Elderberry Fertilizer Info While elderberries are generally grown for the tasty berry, they are weather hardy (to USDA plant hardiness zone 4) and have aromatic flower clusters which render the plant suitable to grow as an ornamental. Fertilizing elderberries will ensure a healthy shrub and plump, abundant berry production. The berries are rich in vitamin C and contain more phosphorus and potassium than any other temperate fruit crop. As with most fruiting plants, elderberries need well-drained soil with a pH between 5....