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| Now's the time for end-of-season garden bargains |
Labor Day is the official start of our fall planting season. If you have been considering a landscape addition to create more seasonal excitement in your garden, this is the time to watch local garden centers for end-of-season sales.
Friday, August 27, 2010
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| Column: Mountain planting done the right way
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This is the best time of year to visit your garden center to experience summer plants in full bloom. Choosing a flowering plant when it's in bloom is better than depending on the microscopic photo on a plant tag. You actually can see, smell and touch what you will be adding to your landscape.
New plants are living, breathing items presenting many of the same challenges as bringing a new dog or cat to live with you.
Friday, August 13, 2010
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| Make the great outdoors even greater with these recipes |
Since camping is such a popular way to enjoy summer and the outdoors, here are some recipes to add to your favorites. All are easy to prepare and should satisfy those appetites worked up by fishing, hiking, etc.!
Friday, August 06, 2010
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| Easily avoided landscape mistakes |
I believe the closest to true peace in my life is when I'm in the garden. My best gardens have been in my mind's eye, before whims of change, funky soil and various predators had their say. Still, I find peace as I happily put my brand on what once had been an open expanse of mud, rock and monsoonal goo.
Friday, August 06, 2010
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| Overwatering plants kills them with kindness |
We're experiencing rain, sunshine, rain, then more sunshine, then more rain. Is it the monsoon season or not? It doesn't matter; humidity, which has tripled, has a greater impact than rain on local plants, especially for landscapes on irrigation systems.
Friday, July 30, 2010
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| Right and wrong containers for mountain garden use
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I like to have fun in a garden, both in our family garden and at our garden center, and I encourage those around me to do the same. This week's photo is an example of just how much fun can be had. In my book, you can never have a container too large. I even grow very large trees in very large pots, which are hard to find. I have to go directly to the factory to get resort-sized pots and then order them by the semi-truck load.
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Friday, July 23, 2010
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| Quick and delicious summer dishes |
There is nothing quite like the unique taste of fresh summer seasonal foods. We like cooking to be minimal and quick, but brimming with good taste. We just can't seem to get enough of corn, tomatoes, and yummy fruits at their delicious peak of flavor. Here are some that are easy, tasty and use all of the good of the season!
Friday, July 23, 2010
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| Trees for the best shade
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Trees have tremendous influences on our communities. I can't think of many things that affect us so completely as trees. They improve our environment by providing protection from wind and dust, shading us from our high mountain sun, and decreasing summer energy costs. Trees also enhance our quality of life and contribute to our good health. It's the first place I start with any landscape design.
(3 comments)
Friday, July 16, 2010
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| Column: Garden designs that attract butterflies |
I have watched thousands of butterflies over the years and they never cease to delight and amaze me. That's why this week's picture is the great shot I got of a butterfly enjoying a little sip from the nectar of a butterfly bush at the garden center.
Flowers and butterflies naturally go together, so garden centers are like a butterfly's nirvana or day spa. However, butterflies are equally easy to attract to your own yard.
Friday, July 09, 2010
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| Beat the heat with frozen treats |
These hot days call for cool treats. These nutritious snacks should please kids of all ages. You may experiment with other fruits than those listed and freeze in popsicle molds or small paper cups. Kids can help prepare these as well as enjoy eating them.
Friday, July 09, 2010
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| Earthy advice to fill containers |
Have you noticed that with the state of the economy retailers have reduced inventory choices? At the garden center we, too, must be extremely careful with inventory cost, but over the past couple of years two of our departments have seen dramatic increases in demand.
Friday, July 02, 2010
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| Column: It's time for summer blooming sensations |
The mountains of Arizona have four distinct seasons and four distinctly differing garden stages. Now is when the summer blooming plants take center stage.
Novice gardeners often overlook these incredible summer bloomers because they are not available at garden centers during the spring planting rush. To create a balanced landscape that looks great year-round, visit your garden center during each of the four growing seasons.
Friday, June 25, 2010
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| Portable and make-ahead dishes for the summer |
Since summer is a time when outdoor potlucks and other gatherings require some good portable and some make-ahead meal additions, here are two salads that do both. Also, a tasty pizza and a showy shortbread favorite to serve with delicious summer fruits. The salads are good accompaniments for barbecues, etc.
Friday, June 25, 2010
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| Column: Get beautiful landscapes with less water
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GARDEN ALERT! I just noticed the first grasshopper hatch in my yard. If left unchecked, I have heard stories of the ground "moving" because so many grasshoppers were devouring the landscape, and with this spring's moisture I'm afraid this year's crop of grasshoppers could be a problem.
Friday, June 18, 2010
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| Warm-weather gardening: Give late-bloomers a boost |
The snow, bitter winds and frozen nights of early May have delayed the development of most landscape plants by 20-30 days.
Friday, June 11, 2010
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| Kabobs have something to please everyone's palate |
Friday, June 11, 2010
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| The art of low-care landscapes |
Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could enjoy an attractive, colorful garden without spending all of your free time working at it? Well, it can be done - all it takes is a bit of homework before you plant and some knowledge about the right plants.
Friday, June 04, 2010
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| Tempt your sweetie with chocolate treats |
For many people, chocolate is always in season and they don't need a reason to buy it or bake it! But since Valentine's Day is approaching, here are several recipes from the delightful bean.
Friday, February 05, 2010
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| Fruitful hints for tree-planting |
The definition of a bare-root plant is one that has been grown in a field, lifted from the field with no dirt left clinging to its roots, and shipped to market in that condition. Hence the name bare-root.
Friday, February 05, 2010
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| Gardening tips for newcomers to the area
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Most of us have had gardens in places where the soil is rich, its pH perfectly balanced, where the climate is blessed with consistent rainfall, gentle sun, and plant-coddling humidity. Mountain soil and climate present the opposite of such ideal gardening conditions.
Friday, January 29, 2010
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