Gardening Tips Archives - Page 2 of 17

Gardening Tips

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Shrub That Pulls Songbirds In All Winter While Quietly Feeding The Bees In Spring

Most North Carolina homeowners walk right past yaupon holly at the nursery without giving it a second look.…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 2

Gardening Tips

If your pepper plants are dropping their blossoms before they set fruit in this August heat, one watering swing usually starts it

Pepper plants that flower all summer but drop every blossom before a single fruit forms can be genuinely…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 2

Gardening Tips

If your zucchini plants keep dropping their baby fruit before it grows this August, one hidden habit usually starts it

Watching tiny zucchini shrivel and rot before they ever get going is one of summer’s most frustrating garden…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When Fall Webworm Nests Show Up In Your North Carolina Trees, And Why Cutting Them Down Usually Backfires

Every late summer, North Carolina homeowners start noticing white silky webs draped over the tips of tree branches,…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your cucumber leaves are wilting by afternoon even in moist soil this August, one root problem usually starts it

Walking out to your garden on a hot August afternoon and finding your cucumber plants drooping can feel…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

The Invasive Host Tree Spotted Lanternfly Prefers in North Carolina Yards, and Why Planned Removal May Help

A fast-growing tree with a bad reputation has been quietly spreading through North Carolina roadsides, yard edges, and…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your cucumbers grow curled and hooked instead of straight, poor pollination and uneven watering are the two leading checks to make first

Pulling a hooked or curled cucumber off the vine is one of those gardening moments that makes you…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your tomatoes crack and split open right after you water in this August heat, one watering swing can trigger it

You walk out to the garden, hose in hand, and find the tomatoes you have been babying all…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your tomato leaves are curling upward and leathery in this August heat, one watering swing usually starts it

Walking out to your garden on a hot August morning and finding your tomato leaves curled up tight…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your cucumbers taste bitter this August, one watering habit usually starts it before you ever pick them

Biting into a homegrown cucumber and getting a mouthful of bitterness is one of August’s most frustrating garden…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Tree That Feeds Wildlife All Winter When the Yard Goes Bare

When the last leaves drop and the yard turns bare, most North Carolina homeowners assume wildlife has to…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your cucumber vines are loaded with blossoms but the fruit stays stubby and pale in this August heat, one watering habit usually starts it

Your cucumber vines are covered in flowers, yet every fruit that forms looks stubby, crooked, or faded before…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When Wild Turkeys Start Crossing Your North Carolina Yard, and Why They’re Quietly Clearing the Ticks Off Your Lawn

Spotting a flock of wild turkeys strutting through your North Carolina yard can stop you in your tracks.…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your carrots grow lush tops but the roots stay skinny, one feeding habit usually starts it underground

You pull a carrot expecting a plump, colorful root and find something closer to a pencil. Meanwhile, the…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your pepper plants are big and leafy but barely setting pods in this August heat, one hidden habit usually starts it

Your pepper plant looks healthy enough to win a prize – dark green leaves, thick stems, plenty of…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your pepper plants set flowers but the fruit stays tiny in this August heat, one feeding habit usually starts it

You water, you fertilize, and yet your pepper plants are covered in flowers or tiny little peppers that…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

Zucchini Flowers but No Fruit in August? Heat May Shift the Ratio, but Check These Causes First

Your zucchini plant is covered in yellow blossoms, yet not a single zucchini is forming. Before you assume…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

Your Summer Squash Is Huge and Leafy but Fruit Keeps Failing: Excess Nitrogen Is One Possible Cause, but Diagnose the Fruit First

Something feels wrong when your squash vines are sprawling and dark green but every young fruit shrivels, blackens,…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your tomato plants pump out leaves but stall on fruit in this August heat, one feeding habit usually starts it

Your tomato plant looks like a winner – deep green, bushy, and growing fast – but the fruit…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If Your Tomato Leaves Turn Purple Underneath, One Nutrient-Uptake Problem May Be Behind It

Walking out to your tomato plants and spotting purple or reddish-purple color on the undersides of leaves can…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Shrub That Owns the Backyard in September When Everything Else Is Fried and Fading

Walk past most North Carolina yards in late August or September and the color story has quieted down…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your zucchini sets tiny fruit that rots at the tip in this August heat, one feeding gap usually starts it

Walking out to your zucchini patch to find tiny fruits with dark, sunken tips can feel like the…

By Ethan Brooks · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When Paper Wasps Build a Nest on Your North Carolina Porch, and Why They’re Quietly Hauling Off the Caterpillars Chewing Your Garden

That gray, honeycomb-looking nest tucked under your porch eave is not a random accident. Paper wasps are deliberate…

By Jasmine Hughes · Aug 1

Gardening Tips

If your pepper plants keep dropping their blossoms in this August heat, one watering habit usually starts it

Watching pepper flowers dry up and fall off before a single fruit forms is one of the more…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your cucumber leaves turn white and dusty in this late-summer heat, one watering habit usually invites it

Walking out to your cucumber patch and finding the leaves coated in a white, dusty film is enough…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When a Black Rat Snake Turns Up at Your North Carolina Woodline, and Why It’s Quietly Thinning the Rodents That Carry Ticks In

Spotting a large dark snake at the edge of your North Carolina yard can stop you cold, but…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your tomato leaves roll and curl upward in this late-summer heat, one watering habit usually starts it before the twist shows

Walking out to your tomato plants on a hot August morning and finding the leaves rolled tight like…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your cucumber leaves show yellow blotches between the veins in this late-summer heat, one feeding gap usually starts it

Yellow patches showing up between the veins of your cucumber leaves can stop a gardener cold, especially when…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your cucumbers turn bitter and shriveled at the ends in this heat, one watering habit usually starts it

Pulling a cucumber off the vine only to find one end looks perfect while the other is pinched,…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

Before You Reach for a Spray Can on Those August Webworm Tents, the North Carolina Native Tree That Feeds the Birds That Clear Them

Every August, silken tents start appearing on tree branches across North Carolina yards, and the first instinct for…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your cucumber vines pump out flowers but almost no cukes in this heat, poor pollination usually isn’t the whole story

Your cucumber vines are loaded with bright yellow flowers, yet the harvest bucket stays nearly empty. That gap…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

Cucumber Vines Wilting by Mid-Afternoon: Heat Stress, Watering Habits, and When to Worry

Watching your cucumber vines go limp in the middle of a hot afternoon is unsettling, especially when you…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When Brown Thrashers Start Working Your North Carolina Garden Beds and How They Quietly Clear the Grubs and Ticks

Spotting a brown thrasher tossing leaf litter in your garden bed is one of those yard moments that…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your squash keeps getting powdery-white leaves in this late-summer humidity, one watering habit usually invites it

White powder creeping across your squash leaves is one of the most frustrating sights in a late-summer garden.…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your eggplants flower nonstop but never set fruit in this heat, one hidden habit is usually behind it

Watching your eggplant push out flower after flower while not a single fruit develops is genuinely frustrating, especially…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When an Opossum Wanders Through Your North Carolina Yard and Why It’s Quietly Clearing the Ticks

Spotting a slow-moving opossum crossing your yard at night can feel surprising, but this animal is one of…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your zucchini plants pump out huge leaves but almost no fruit in this heat, one hidden habit is stalling them

Your zucchini plant looks like it could swallow the whole garden bed, but the harvest basket stays empty.…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

Rip Out That Nandina Hedge This Fall in North Carolina and Plant the Native Shrub That Feeds Birds Instead of Poisoning Them

That thick row of nandina lining your fence may look tidy, but fruiting plants are listed as invasive…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your zucchini flowers open every morning but never set fruit in this heat, the trouble starts before the bloom

Watching zucchini flowers open day after day without a single fruit forming is one of the more frustrating…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native That Owns Your Garden In September When The Summer Show Is Over

By late August, a lot of North Carolina gardens hit a wall. The zinnias are looking ragged, the…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your peppers set only tiny, thin-walled fruit in this heat, one feeding mistake is usually behind it

Pulling a pepper off the vine and finding it small, soft-walled, and disappointing is genuinely frustrating, especially after…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your tomato plants grow tall and bushy but barely set fruit, one feeding habit is usually the reason

Few things are more frustrating than watching a tomato plant shoot up lush and green all summer while…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your tomato leaves are still green but not one flower sets in this heat, the trouble starts before the buds form

Your tomato plant looks perfectly healthy, all dark green leaves and sturdy stems, yet not a single tomato…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 31

Gardening Tips

If your pepper leaves suddenly curl and cup upward in this heat, the trouble usually starts before the leaves twist

Walking out to your pepper plants on a scorching afternoon and finding their leaves curled tight like little…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 30

Gardening Tips

If your ripening tomatoes keep cracking open after you water in this heat, one moisture swing is usually behind it

Watching a nearly perfect tomato split open right before you pick it is one of the most frustrating…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 30

Gardening Tips

Plant Your Tick-Barrier Native Shrub This Fall in North Carolina or It Won’t Be a Dense Border by Next Spring

American beautyberry is a native North Carolina shrub that produces clusters of brilliant purple fruit every fall, drawing…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 30

Gardening Tips

If your tomatoes hang green and refuse to ripen in this heat, one care habit is usually stalling them

Walking out to your garden and finding tomatoes that have been full-sized and green for weeks is genuinely…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 30

Gardening Tips

If your cucumbers turn bitter and taste off in this heat, one steady watering habit sweetens them back up

Biting into a cucumber you grew yourself and getting a mouthful of bitterness is genuinely frustrating, especially after…

By Ethan Brooks · Jul 30

Gardening Tips

What It Really Means When Box Turtles Keep Showing Up in Your North Carolina Garden Beds and Why You Want Them Eating the Pests There

Spotting a box turtle slowly making its way through your garden bed is one of those moments that…

By Jasmine Hughes · Jul 30

Gardening Tips

If your squash plants look fine at dawn but wilt flat by afternoon this August, the trouble usually starts at the base

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Shrub That Pulls Songbirds In All Winter While Quietly Feeding The Bees In Spring

If your pepper plants are dropping their blossoms before they set fruit in this August heat, one watering swing usually starts it

If your zucchini plants keep dropping their baby fruit before it grows this August, one hidden habit usually starts it

What It Really Means When Fall Webworm Nests Show Up In Your North Carolina Trees, And Why Cutting Them Down Usually Backfires

If your cucumber leaves are wilting by afternoon even in moist soil this August, one root problem usually starts it

The Invasive Host Tree Spotted Lanternfly Prefers in North Carolina Yards, and Why Planned Removal May Help

If your cucumbers grow curled and hooked instead of straight, poor pollination and uneven watering are the two leading checks to make first

If your tomatoes crack and split open right after you water in this August heat, one watering swing can trigger it

If your tomato leaves are curling upward and leathery in this August heat, one watering swing usually starts it

If your cucumbers taste bitter this August, one watering habit usually starts it before you ever pick them

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Tree That Feeds Wildlife All Winter When the Yard Goes Bare

If your cucumber vines are loaded with blossoms but the fruit stays stubby and pale in this August heat, one watering habit usually starts it

What It Really Means When Wild Turkeys Start Crossing Your North Carolina Yard, and Why They’re Quietly Clearing the Ticks Off Your Lawn

If your carrots grow lush tops but the roots stay skinny, one feeding habit usually starts it underground

If your pepper plants are big and leafy but barely setting pods in this August heat, one hidden habit usually starts it

If your pepper plants set flowers but the fruit stays tiny in this August heat, one feeding habit usually starts it

Zucchini Flowers but No Fruit in August? Heat May Shift the Ratio, but Check These Causes First

Your Summer Squash Is Huge and Leafy but Fruit Keeps Failing: Excess Nitrogen Is One Possible Cause, but Diagnose the Fruit First

If your tomato plants pump out leaves but stall on fruit in this August heat, one feeding habit usually starts it

If Your Tomato Leaves Turn Purple Underneath, One Nutrient-Uptake Problem May Be Behind It

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native Shrub That Owns the Backyard in September When Everything Else Is Fried and Fading

If your zucchini sets tiny fruit that rots at the tip in this August heat, one feeding gap usually starts it

What It Really Means When Paper Wasps Build a Nest on Your North Carolina Porch, and Why They’re Quietly Hauling Off the Caterpillars Chewing Your Garden

If your pepper plants keep dropping their blossoms in this August heat, one watering habit usually starts it

If your cucumber leaves turn white and dusty in this late-summer heat, one watering habit usually invites it

What It Really Means When a Black Rat Snake Turns Up at Your North Carolina Woodline, and Why It’s Quietly Thinning the Rodents That Carry Ticks In

If your tomato leaves roll and curl upward in this late-summer heat, one watering habit usually starts it before the twist shows

If your cucumber leaves show yellow blotches between the veins in this late-summer heat, one feeding gap usually starts it

If your cucumbers turn bitter and shriveled at the ends in this heat, one watering habit usually starts it

Before You Reach for a Spray Can on Those August Webworm Tents, the North Carolina Native Tree That Feeds the Birds That Clear Them

If your cucumber vines pump out flowers but almost no cukes in this heat, poor pollination usually isn’t the whole story

Cucumber Vines Wilting by Mid-Afternoon: Heat Stress, Watering Habits, and When to Worry

What It Really Means When Brown Thrashers Start Working Your North Carolina Garden Beds and How They Quietly Clear the Grubs and Ticks

If your squash keeps getting powdery-white leaves in this late-summer humidity, one watering habit usually invites it

If your eggplants flower nonstop but never set fruit in this heat, one hidden habit is usually behind it

What It Really Means When an Opossum Wanders Through Your North Carolina Yard and Why It’s Quietly Clearing the Ticks

If your zucchini plants pump out huge leaves but almost no fruit in this heat, one hidden habit is stalling them

Rip Out That Nandina Hedge This Fall in North Carolina and Plant the Native Shrub That Feeds Birds Instead of Poisoning Them

If your zucchini flowers open every morning but never set fruit in this heat, the trouble starts before the bloom

The Most Underrated North Carolina Native That Owns Your Garden In September When The Summer Show Is Over

If your peppers set only tiny, thin-walled fruit in this heat, one feeding mistake is usually behind it

If your tomato plants grow tall and bushy but barely set fruit, one feeding habit is usually the reason

If your tomato leaves are still green but not one flower sets in this heat, the trouble starts before the buds form

If your pepper leaves suddenly curl and cup upward in this heat, the trouble usually starts before the leaves twist

If your ripening tomatoes keep cracking open after you water in this heat, one moisture swing is usually behind it

Plant Your Tick-Barrier Native Shrub This Fall in North Carolina or It Won’t Be a Dense Border by Next Spring

If your tomatoes hang green and refuse to ripen in this heat, one care habit is usually stalling them

If your cucumbers turn bitter and taste off in this heat, one steady watering habit sweetens them back up

What It Really Means When Box Turtles Keep Showing Up in Your North Carolina Garden Beds and Why You Want Them Eating the Pests There