​September may be the most difficult month for gardeners.   Not fully summer, but not the coolness of a real autumn month. The good news is that we are over the worst of the summer heat and by the end of the month, night temperatures are getting down into the 60’s.  Plants, like other living things, breathe.  They go through transpiration where they expel moisture to keep cool.  Think of how you would feel if you were panting all night long in the hot evening air! To say that our plants are exhausted by the time that September arrives is an understatement. Many of my p ..read more

​In our humid subtropical climate, a quick frost is not big deal.  When the temperatures go below 25 degrees Fahrenheit, that is when the problems begin in our yards. The good news is that last weekend’s freeze was not for an extended time so the roots of plants and shrubs were not seriously affected. What to do with those sad looking plants and shrubs?  Each variety is a little different. Split Leaf philodendron—These are the most pathetic looking plants right now.  They will come back.  You can cut the dead leaves off at any time. They make great compost.   It w ..read more

​I recently gave a mini workshop for new Butterfly Garden volunteers and invited newcomers to Lowcountry gardening.  I kept it short and simple and talked about four things: It went well so I decided to repeat it as a blog. First of all – what plants attract pollinators?  Well, believe it or not, anything that blooms is a big hit.  A study was recently done at Great Dixter, an amazing garden in Kent, England.   Insect life was measured in a native wildflower meadow and then again in the Great Border – a mixed herbaceous border of plants and shrubs, but not containing m ..read more

This past summer was one for the books:  heat, humidity, tiger mosquitos, too many Armadillos, and then three solid weeks of rain.  Usually my garden is dried out and dead looking about now, but I have things blooming that typically bloom in May.  My (Mexican Sunflower) is so late this year.  I planted the seeds at the normal time in the early spring, but they took forever to get going.  Well, so did the pollinators this year. I had a whole summer without butterflies (other than our local Gulf Fritillaries), and now everyone is joining the party.  ​With all of the ..read more

Where have the butterflies been this summer?  I have been hearing that from everyone and witnessing their absence myself.  No one seems to know.   It could be a different migration pattern or those crazy thunderstorms in June.  Was it the late hard freeze in March that fouled up their trip to our gardens?   If the experts don’t know, I doubt if we will.  Take heart though.  I just went to our Island’s Butterfly Garden to weed (Chamber Bitter of course) and found what was left of a giant Bronze Fennel plant ( ) covered by caterpillars.  I found ..read more

​I was fortunate enough to spend nearly two weeks in England visiting gardens and attending the Chelsea Flower Show. Chelsea is the largest flower show in the world.  Gardening is a huge pastime in the U.K.  No matter how small a plot people have, most have a garden and many grow their own vegetables.  Their houses may be smaller than ours, but nearly everyone has a small greenhouse in the back garden.  It is a very different world over there.  And speaking of world, the most popular TV show is “Gardener’s World” on the BBC.  Every Friday night, people are glued t ..read more

​It has been a very dry spring despite warnings of severe storms, hail, locusts, tornados, and falling toads.  It just seems too early to be using irrigation and our very expensive water down here.  Bring on the April showers,  You have two weeks to produce! My roses are looking good and about to burst into full bloom.  I order my roses from David Austin, USA.  David Austin was an English rosarian who passed away two years ago after having introduced the world to some amazing roses.  Best of all, they all have scent unlike the new Hybrids.   He named his ..read more

​If you read Southern Living” magazine, you will hear the Grumpy Gardener constantly gripe, grump, grouch, and groan about the way landscapers prune Crepe Myrtles ( ).  Crepe Myrtles are not native to the South, but instead are indigenous to the India subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and northern Australia.  Like Camellias, Azaleas, and Gardenias, despite their Asian origins, they have been adopted by the American South as their own special shrubs and trees. What would the Masters be like without the beautiful Azaleas at Augusta National? (Actually with climate change, they are blooming ..read more

Shrubs are really not my thing, but they do need to be talked about.   They are the structural element in any landscaping and most Property Owner’s Associations require them around the foundation of our houses, to hide utilities,  and/or act as buffers between properties.  And therein, lies the issue. I blame POA’s or HOA’s for a number of problems.  In their quest to make certain that very exacting regulations are met, they encourage landscapers to plant things that are a certain height and often totally inappropriate.    Landscapers, for their part, want to ..read more

The year is 1956 and I am ten years old,  My parents have moved to a new house in the suburbs.   We are landscaping as everyone did in the 1950’s – a few shrubs along the front of the house and that is about it.  I go along for the ride out to a nursery in Chesterland, Ohio, owned by a  nurseryman named Julian Potts.   While my parents are looking at Yews and Japanese Boxwood, Mr. Potts notices me eyeing some plants on a stand.  He asks me if I like to garden and I say “I would if I had a plant.”  He hands me a plant as a gift that he called a “Cup ..read more