Share my passion for all things gardening!
Do you bring in plants that were outdoors during the spring and summer months? And do suddenly end up with tiny flies indoors that drive you insane? Well, those are fungus gnats. And yes, they used to drive us nuts… that is, until I discovered a simple, organic solution to the problem. Last winter, I had brought my hanging baskets […]
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For this week’s garden column, I wrote about tomato care. You’ll learn what we gardeners need to be doing for our tomato plants this time of year. Then they’ll grow their very best. You can read it in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Proper staking, consistent watering key to best tomatoes. (or you can read my column lower in this […]
Read moreAs you probably know, we get plenty of critters in our garden. Many of them are certain the garden was planted specifically for them. Sometimes, dealing with them means you need to get creative. This year, Bill and I have found some new methods that are working pretty well. That’s the topic of my column today, which you can find […]
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I hereby declare the garden tour season officially open! Or at least, it will be on Saturday (June 15) when the Spokane in Bloom garden tour takes place. Learn all about it in my garden column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Spokane in Bloom kicks off garden tour season. Or you can read it below (don’t miss this week’s […]
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For today’s garden column, I’ve focused on something that we probably all know, but tend to forget about. That is observing good cultural practices in the garden so our plants thrive. Here’s a link to it in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Follow best practices to keep plants thriving. Or you can read it below (don’t miss this week’s video […]
Read moreYes, that’s a long title for this blog post, but it really sums things up! I’ve been meaning to write about this topic for a few weeks but just haven’t had the time. But now that I’ve seen TV and newspaper accounts of the return of black flies to the Inland Northwest, it’s definitely important to address this subject. I’ve […]
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My husband, Bill, is a genius! He’s come up with a great method for controlling slugs. I place rings of copper tape around the base of my cabbage family seedlings to keep the slugs away. Here’s the amazing thing. The skin and antennae of slugs reacts electrically with copper. That means you can use it as a deterrent. I’ve been […]
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I’ve been really excited about writing this week’s column and even more so about making our very own pollinator garden. It’s something we’ve been thinking about for the past few years and are finally doing this spring. Here’s a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Create an oasis for pollinators. Or you can read my column […]
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I’m feeling a little down in the dumps today. That’s because I just made a painful decision. It was time to wave the white flag in the battle a most wonderful rose. Who was the enemy? Rose stem girdlers. ‘Therese Bugnet’ rose The rose in question is ‘Therese Bugnet’ which is a rugosa, or shrub, rose. I planted her about […]
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This morning, I posted this photo on my Facebook page and Instagram feeds. I wanted to post it here in case you don’t follow those accounts. As you can see, my insect hotel has a bit of snow on it. I hope my little solitary bee buddies are tucked in for the winter. I built this insect hotel last April, […]
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