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Plant of the Week

What North Carolina Homeowners Should Actually Do the Moment a Fox Starts Crossing the Yard

Spotting a fox trotting across your yard can stop you in your tracks, especially when kids or pets are nearby. Most homeowners have no idea...

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 19, 2026

Field Notes

The One Thing North Carolina Hydrangeas Need Before September or They Skip Next Spring’s Blooms

The Florida Native Plants That Bring Pollinators Rushing In While Asking You for Almost Nothing All Summer

Gray Foxes Crossing Your Central Texas Yard at Dusk May Hunt Rodents, But Exclusion and Sanitation Are Your Real Rat Defense

What It Really Means When Mourning Doves Keep Settling In Your Florida Yard

From the Garden

If Your Cucumber Vines Grow Fast but the Fruit Turns Bitter Right at Harvest, Here’s the Watering Slip Behind It

7 Florida Native Plants That Bring Chimney Swifts In to Clear the Gnats and Midges Over Your Yard

The California Herb That Rats Won’t Go Near but Still Looks Beautiful in Any Front Border

7 Florida Native Plants That Turn Your Yard Into a Purple Martin Colony That Eats Mosquitoes All Summer

The Common California Yard Habits That Quietly Roll Out the Welcome Mat for Black Widows in a Heat Wave

In Bloom

7 Florida Native Plants That Bring Purple Martins Back and Put Them to Work on Your Mosquitoes

What It Really Means When Coyotes Start Slipping Into Your California Backyard, and the Reaction That Backfires

Your Hydrangeas Wilt Worse After You Water Them — Here’s the One Timing Mistake Behind It

Gardener's Selection

The One Thing North Carolina Fig Trees Need Now to Set a Full Second Flush of Fruit Before Fall

The Native Texas Corner That Brings Fireflies Back To Your Backyard On Warm Summer Nights

Your Roses Wilt and Fade in the Summer Heat – Here’s the Watering Rhythm That Firms Them Back Up

If Your Petunias Fizzle Out by Late Summer, One of These 9 Small Slips Is Usually Behind It

What North Carolina Homeowners Should Actually Do the Moment a Fox Starts Crossing the Yard

The Potting Shed

Why Rosemary Is Quietly One of the Riskiest Plants to Grow Right Next to a California Home in Fire Season

The Shade Tree Texans Are Planting Now To Cool Their Yards 20 Degrees Below the Open Lawn

Your Hydrangeas Grow Lush Leaves but Skip the Flowers – Here’s the Pruning Timing Slip Behind It

Why North Carolina Gardeners Should Leave the Healthy Eastern Box Turtle in Their Garden Beds Right Where It Is

What It Really Means When a Mediterranean Gecko Shows Up on Your Texas Porch Every Night

Your Geraniums Bloom Thin and Sparse – Here’s the One Adjustment That Fills Them With Color Again

Your Hydrangeas Wilt and Flop in the Afternoon Heat – Here’s the Watering Rhythm That Firms Them Back Up

The Native Texas Plant Along Your Fence That Can Help Bring Hummingbirds to Your Central Texas Yard Every Summer

Your Christmas Cactus Fades Pale and Weak by Late Summer – Here’s the August Reset That Wakes It Back Up

Your Christmas Cactus Segments Go Soft and Limp – Here’s the Root-Zone Problem Often Behind It When the Soil Stays Wet

How To Support the California Assassin Bugs That Quietly Hunt the Caterpillars and Aphids Wrecking Your Vegetable Beds

Your Zucchini Flowers but the Fruit Rots at the Tip in the Heat – Here’s the Watering Slip Behind It

The Best California Seed Libraries Where Gardeners Quietly Get Free Native Seeds Near Them

Your Hydrangeas Bloom Sparse and Small – Here’s the Feeding Change That Pushes Stronger Flowers

Your Hollyhocks Grow Tall and Leafy but the Blooms Never Come – Here’s the Basic You’re Missing

The Garden Almanac

Field Notes

Your Petunias Fry in the Hottest Spots – Here Are 9 Heat-Loving Flowers That Thrive There Instead

Your Hydrangeas Keep Disappointing You — Here Are 9 Easier Flowering Shrubs to Plant Instead

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Vine That Buries an Ugly Retaining Wall While Feeding Fall Butterflies

Switchgrass at Your Central Texas Pond Edge: What It Can and Cannot Do for Dragonflies and Mosquitoes

Those White Mushrooms Popping Up in Your Lawn Are Telling You Something About the Soil Below

The One Thing North Carolina Crape Myrtles Need Now or You Lose Half of Next Summer’s Blooms