Gardening Tips

North Carolina Bluebirds Come Back Every Spring – Here’s How to Get Them Nesting in Your Yard

Eastern Bluebirds are one of the most recognizable birds in North Carolina, with their brilliant blue backs and rusty-orange chests showing up in open yards…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 23, 2026

Field Notes

North Carolina Bluebirds Come Back Every Spring – Here’s How to Get Them Nesting in Your Yard

What Seeing More Fireflies Than Usual Is Really Telling You About Your Texas Garden

If Your Cucumber Plants Grow Huge Vines but Barely Any Cucumbers in the Heat, One Feeding Habit Is Usually to Blame

If Your Zucchini Flowers but Never Sets Fruit in the Heat, One Pollination Habit Is Usually to Blame

From the Garden

9 Native North Carolina Plants That Bring Fireflies Back to Your Backyard This Summer

The Backyard Habits That Turn Your Texas Garden Into a Painted Bunting’s Regular Summer Stop

If Your Cucumber Vines Wilt at Midday Even in Damp Soil, One Hidden Culprit Is Usually to Blame

If Your Tomatoes Stall Out in the Late-July Heat, One Feeding Fix Usually Gets Them Moving Again

The Native North Carolina Alternatives That Belong Along Your Walkway Instead of Liriope

In Bloom

What It Really Means When Blue Jays Keep Turning Up in Your Texas Yard All Summer

Sudden Squash Wilt Could Signal a Vine Borer – Here Is How to Tell

The One Thing Your North Carolina Tomatoes Need Right Now or Blossom End Rot Wrecks the Harvest

Gardener's Selection

The Native Florida Plants Worth Getting in the Ground This Week While the Rain Waters Them

Do This to Your Texas Esperanza in Late July and It May Help Keep Blooms Coming Into November

If Your Cucumber Leaves Turn Silvery and Speckled in the Heat, One Sneaky Pest Is Usually Feeding Underneath

Big Cucumber Harvests Can Start With One Ingredient You Already Have in the Kitchen

If Your Peppers Stay Green and Never Ripen in the Heat, the Trouble Starts Before the Fruit Even Colors

The Potting Shed

If Your Potted Tomatoes Stay Small and Slow in the Heat, One Container Mistake Is Usually to Blame

If Your Zucchini Rots at the Blossom End Before It Ripens in the Heat, One Watering Habit Is Usually to Blame

If Your Pepper Leaves Curl and Cup Upward in the Heat but Pests Are Nowhere in Sight, the Cause Is Usually How You Water

Bitter Cucumbers and Tough Ends in the Heat: How Uneven Watering May Be Contributing

If You Spot This Bug in Your North Carolina Yard, Don’t Touch It – Here’s Why

The Native Texas Plants That Shrug Off Our Weather Because They Already Know How Texas Behaves

If Your Tomatoes Get Pale Sunken Patches on the Sunny Side in the Heat, Aggressive Foliage Removal Can Raise the Risk

More Bats in Your North Carolina Yard Means Fewer Mosquitoes – Here’s How to Bring Them In

This Is How Florida Gardeners Keep Their Plumeria Blooming From Summer Straight Into Fall

What a Yard Full of Green Anoles Is Really Telling You About Your Texas Garden This Summer

What To Do With Your Florida Bougainvillea Now So It Blooms Nonstop All Summer

If Your Pepper Plants Grow Bushy but Set No Pods in the Heat, One Feeding Swing Is Usually to Blame

How Florida Gardeners Actually Get Desert Rose Cuttings to Root When Most Guides Fail Them

The Native Florida Privacy Plants That Screen Your Yard Without Bamboo Taking Over

The Native Florida Plants Fueling the 2026 Pollinator Garden Trend – and Why the Old Nectar Beds Are Fading

The Garden Almanac

Field Notes

If Your Cucumbers Turn Yellow and Mushy on the Vine in Midsummer Heat, One Watering Habit Is Usually to Blame

Here’s What It Means When Hawks Keep Circling Back to Your North Carolina Yard

The Texas Plants That Keep Roaches From Ever Reaching Your House and Look Good Doing It

If Your Cucumber Plants Look Lush but Never Fill Out Their Fruit, One Feeding Swing Is Usually to Blame

If Your Tomatoes Keep Splitting Their Skins After a Hot Spell, One Watering Habit Is Usually to Blame

Pawpaws and Persimmons Are North Carolina Natives Almost Nobody Grows but Every Yard Should Have