In the Garden

Before You Rip Out That Boxwood Hedge, Try These California Natives That Stay Green on Half the Water

Before You Rip Out That Boxwood Hedge, Try These California Natives That Stay Green on Half the Water

Boxwood hedges look tidy, but in a California summer they can drink a lot of water and still turn bronze, patchy, or blighted. Many homeowners…

By John Miller CA · Nov 2, 2026

Your Christmas cactus blooms right on time for the holidays when you give it these 8 conditions starting this week

Ethan Brooks · Nov 2

Could a Red-Tailed Hawk Be Hunting Gophers in Your California Yard This Winter?

John Miller CA · Nov 2

Why Your Potted Meyer Lemon Drops Tiny Fruit When the Heater Starts: Clues to Check

Ethan Brooks · Nov 2

From the Garden

Growing notes from every corner of the plot.

Garden Spiders Strung Across Your California Yard This Fall Are Catching the Pests Chewing Your Winter Greens

Garden Spiders Strung Across Your California Yard This Fall Are Catching the Pests Chewing Your Winter Greens

Every fall, big round webs show up between fence posts, porch rails, and garden stakes across California. Many homeowners sweep them away without a second…

By John Miller CA · Nov 2

Carrots left in the ground under a thick leaf blanket taste sweeter after every frost, so stop rushing to dig them

By Ethan Brooks · Nov 2

Deer start stripping your shrubs and fall greens in November, and a few strong scents near the beds send them elsewhere

By Ethan Brooks · Nov 2

Blue Mistflower: A North Carolina Native That Brings Blue-Violet Color to Late-Season Beds

By Jasmine Hughes · Nov 2

Florida Gardening

Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnakes in Florida Yards: How to Spot Them and Garden Safely

By Aria Moore F · Nov 2

In Bloom

What's thriving right now.

These California Vines Cover Your Fence in Green Without Cracking Wood or Pulling Off Stucco

These California Vines Cover Your Fence in Green Without Cracking Wood or Pulling Off Stucco

By John Miller CA

Pecan Weevil in Central Texas: How Some Pecans Get Damaged From the Inside

Texas Gardening

Pecan Weevil in Central Texas: How Some Pecans Get Damaged From the Inside

By Ella Brown T

These 7 November lawn habits quietly leave your grass thin and patchy come spring

These 7 November lawn habits quietly leave your grass thin and patchy come spring

By Ethan Brooks

Gardener's Selection

The guides worth your time — handpicked by our gardeners.

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Peace lilies brought in from the porch droop every afternoon indoors because the pot stays cold and wet

Peace lilies brought in from the porch droop every afternoon indoors because the pot stays cold and wet

By Ethan Brooks

Why North Carolina Gardeners Who Lime Their Clay Now Get Greener Lawns and Gardens by Spring

Why North Carolina Gardeners Who Lime Their Clay Now Get Greener Lawns and Gardens by Spring

By Jasmine Hughes

Creeping Snowberry: The California Native Groundcover With Branches That Can Root as They Spread

Creeping Snowberry: The California Native Groundcover With Branches That Can Root as They Spread

By John Miller CA

Texas Vines That May Regrow After Cutting: Identify First, Then Choose a Control Plan

Texas Gardening

Texas Vines That May Regrow After Cutting: Identify First, Then Choose a Control Plan

By Ella Brown T

Daily checks and the right care may help your potted mum look good longer into the holiday season

Plant of the Week

Daily checks and the right care may help your potted mum look good longer into the holiday season

Those bright pots of mums on porches and store shelves look great the day you bring them home. Keeping them pretty into late fall takes...

By Ethan Brooks · Nov 2, 2026

The Potting Shed

The One Thing North Carolina Gardeners Do This Fall to Revive a Struggling Clematis by Spring

The One Thing North Carolina Gardeners Do This Fall to Revive a Struggling Clematis by Spring

Fall Strawberry Runners: When to Cut Them and When to Keep Them

Texas Gardening

Frostweed: A Shade-Loving Texas Native That Flowers as Fall Arrives

Why Stored Garlic and Onions Sprout or Soften: Is Your Warm Counter a Factor?

Why Stored Garlic and Onions Sprout or Soften: Is Your Warm Counter a Factor?

When North Carolina Gardeners Should Really Fill the Bird Feeders for Winter, and Why Early Matters

Texas Gardening

Could Tarantulas Prey on Scorpions? What One Mexico Study Means for Central Texas Yards

When Garlic Needs Straw Cover to Stop Freeze-Thaw Heaving

When Garlic Needs Straw Cover to Stop Freeze-Thaw Heaving

Crimson Clover as a Winter Cover Crop for Southern Vegetable Beds

Forsythia Suits Dormant Hardwood Cuttings in North Carolina, but Timing and Care Shape Success

This Texas Border Plant Keeps Squirrels Out of Your Central Texas Beds All Fall and Winter

Texas Gardening

This Texas Border Plant Keeps Squirrels Out of Your Central Texas Beds All Fall and Winter

Leaving your tomato cages and stakes out all winter carries blight spores straight into next year’s plants, so scrub them now

Florida Gardening

Butterflies Keep Flying Through Florida Winters, and These 7 Native Plants Keep Them Fed

Cold Snaps Are Coming, and These 7 Florida Natives Shrug Off Frost While Tropicals Turn to Mush

Florida Gardening

Cold Snaps Are Coming, and These 7 Florida Natives Shrug Off Frost While Tropicals Turn to Mush

Check the Soil First: How Smart Watering Helps Protect Your Christmas Cactus Buds

Florida Gardening

Firespike in Florida Gardens: Red Flowers and a Possible Nectar Source for Hummingbirds

Field Notes

Swap Your Florida Pampas Grass for These 7 Native Grasses That Never Turn Invasive

Florida Gardening

Swap Your Florida Pampas Grass for These 7 Native Grasses That Never Turn Invasive

Big plumes look great until a grass outgrows the space you gave it. Florida has native grasses that bring color,...

By Aria Moore F on Nov 1

Blue Plumbago Brings Recurring Blue Blooms to Florida Yards With a Relaxed, Romantic Feel

Florida Gardening

Blue Plumbago Brings Recurring Blue Blooms to Florida Yards With a Relaxed, Romantic Feel

Many Florida gardeners dream of soft blue flowers that keep coming back. Hydrangeas get most of the attention, but they...

By Aria Moore F on Nov 1

Barn Owls and Gophers in California Yards: What a Nest Box Can and Cannot Do

Barn Owls and Gophers in California Yards: What a Nest Box Can and Cannot Do

A barn owl gliding over a dark California yard looks like the perfect pest control crew. Barn owls do eat...

By John Miller CA on Nov 1

Why Are My Potted Mums Turning Brown? Check the Soil Before You Water

Why Are My Potted Mums Turning Brown? Check the Soil Before You Water

That pot of mums looked perfect on the porch a few weeks ago, and now it is brown and crunchy....

By Ethan Brooks on Nov 1

Some California Dragonflies Show Up in Fall, but They Are Not a Mosquito-Control Plan

Some California Dragonflies Show Up in Fall, but They Are Not a Mosquito-Control Plan

Dragonflies zipping over a California yard in autumn feel like a gift, and it is tempting to believe they are...

By John Miller CA on Nov 1

Cutting healthy green asparagus ferns too early this fall can reduce stored reserves and may weaken next spring’s crop

Cutting healthy green asparagus ferns too early this fall can reduce stored reserves and may weaken next spring’s crop

That tall, feathery asparagus patch looks messy by fall, and it is tempting to trim it flat. But those green...

By Ethan Brooks on Nov 1