Racine, Wisconsin — Towering sunflowers, dinosaur kale, black-eyed Susans, and purple coneflowers are among the plants visible in our backyard garden as August and the gardening season reach culmination for another...
Racine, Wisconsin — Daffodil (Narcissus) sprouts thrust out from the soil in my yard near the end of our extremely mild winter.
Racine, Wisconsin — An Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) nectars on the flower of a Pink Delight Butterfly Bush (Buddleja davidii). Butterfly bushes have been very effective in attracting several types of...
Racine, Wisconsin — The heirloom tomato beds that Amy dug and planted in late May, and mulched on June 1st now sport tomato plants over 6 feet tall, as well as basil and peppers. So far, we've only harvested a couple of ripe...
Racine, Wisconsin — Our backyard garden beds, nearing the halfway point of the growing season: Raised bed (based on a raised bed plan from Sunset magazine) with marigolds, English lavender, snapdragons, rosemary, parsley,...
Racine, Wisconsin — Dorsal view of a Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) as it feeds on a purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea). We saw an abundance of Red Admirals here in early July....
Racine, Wisconsin — A Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillar feeds on a Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) plant in our backyard flower bed. [includeme...
Racine, Wisconsin — A Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) rests on Black Elderberry (Sambucus nigra) flowers in our backyard.
Racine, Wisconsin — A Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillar feeds on buds of Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) in our backyard flower bed. [includeme...
Here's our forsythia bush this afternoon. Okay, it may not be breathtaking to you — but it is to us because we know how it looked last year, and the year before that. Last summer, we did a "renewal pruning" on this shrub. This...
Racine, Wisconsin — Our forsythia is finally blooming again — after just one year of a three-year renewal pruning plan.
These are our hoyas — Hoya obscura on the left, and Hoya obscura Major on the right. We have had them a little over ten months. Based on their comparative sizes, I'm going to venture that "Major" indicates "bigger." I am a fan of plants that serve some sort of extra...
Racine, Wisconsin — At Milaeger's garden center, a greenhouse full of red and pink geraniums just beginning to bloom.
Long story short: Since the experiment below back in 2007, we have decided that starting seedlings in windows is unwise. Because they bend toward the light, you have to constantly turn them, trying to keep them upright — and even then, they become too leggy and...
Kenosha, Wisconsin — A decorative planting tucked into the space between two buildings in the 5000 block of 7th Avenue.
Memphis, Tennessee — Invasive species: Kudzu vines covering things on President's Island.
Memphis, Tennessee — Kudzu, an invasive species known as "the vine that ate the South," growing on President's Island.