And on the fourth day.....

a dear old friend of mine came to visit. I think he felt a little sorry for me and my lack of knowledge and experience, but strong desire to create something beautiful in my outside surroundings.

Bless his heart, he ordered a truck load of cypress mulch and then distributed it in every area that resembled a garden bed. He put it in thick, over 6 inches deep, further discouraging the weeds that were recently removed. It was so thick that I can still see remnants of it today, nine years later.

Today, I primarily use pine straw and oak leaves as mulch. However, the cypress was excellent as a base and also good in preventing weeds from reappearing.

Much concern has been expressed over the harvesting of cypress forests to provide mulch. In the southeast, pine straw and oak leaves are abundant, inexpensive and many times free! My neighbor's pine tree drops plenty of needles into my yard. I am amazed at the bags full of pine straw sitting on curbs waiting for disposal. It is attractive and provides excellent nutrients, especially for acid loving plants such as azaleas and hydrangeas.

The synthetic and artificially colored mulches make me want to barf.......why not just plant plastic flowers along with them?

Do as I Say, Not as I Do

This was a favorite expression of my Mother's - and one that I like when it's coming from me.

Below are a few hints from my lessons learned. I am sure this list will continue to grow as I recall past experiences and continue to learn (the hard way).

1. Don't just buy what looks pretty in the garden center. Take a piece of paper and pen with you. Write down the name of the plant. Go home and research it. It will still be there when you go back.
2. If you buy a plant and learn that it can be "invasive", plant it in a pot - not the ground. Otherwise, one morning you will wake up and realize it has taken over your entire yard.
3. If someone offers to share their plants with you and then proceeds to pull out big clumps of them, graciously accept and then plant them in a pot. (see Hint # 2)
4. Don't be a pessimist. Plan for your plant or tree to get as big as stated on the product description that comes with it. Otherwise, you will spend the rest of your life pruning limbs from the sides and top of your house.
5. Just because the plants look great in the garden center, it does not mean that they will grow where you live or, even if it does, that it is the time of the year to plant them. Do not plant impatiens in Florida in September. Do not plant petunias in Florida in April. Do not plant lavender at any time - it's just too humid.
6. Reference local resources. Most newspapers publish an annual garden calendar and weekly gardening section. These will provide information that is specific to your location and will prevent you from planting petunias in April.
7. If a plant looks unhappy, first determine if it is getting enough water, is diseased or is infected with insects. If not, move it. It obviously needs something it is not getting.
8. Experiment with the unknown. You might be pleased. Otherwise, the plant will die and you will forget it was ever there. Or, you can always pull out big clumps and share with your neighbors.
9. If you want it to rain, water.
10. Try to tackle disease or insect problems early on - otherwise they will tackle you.
11. Things that attract birds (seed, water) also attract squirrels, raccoons and possums.
12. You will see snakes. Learn about them and make an agreement with them to stay out of your way in exchange for keeping their head attached to their body.
13. Unless you are in a hurry or have absolutely no friends, there are some plants you should never have to buy. In my area, these include: liriope, yarrow, sago palms, society garlic, African iris, Mexican petunia, salvia, Boston fern, elephant ears, Mexican bush sage.
14. If you have no idea where to start, take a walk or ride your bike around the neighborhood and take note of what grows well. If you see someone out working in their yard, ask them what they have planted. Most gardeners are proud and happy to share their knowledge - a maybe even a few plants. (See #3 - be appreciative but leery if they are too happy to share).
15. On the same note, if you plant something and it is "too happy", watch it for a year of two before you divide it spread it all over your yard.
16. If you do spread it all over your yard, you can always pull up big clumps and share with your friends.
17. Round-up is your friend. I wish I had bought stock. I could probably go organic if not for my addiction to Round-up.
18. Google is also your friend. The wealth of information that is available at your fingertips is priceless.
19. When you buy a plant, save the little plastic ID tag that comes with it. Date it. Throw it in a drawer. A year from now, when the plant is struggling or going berserk, you will want to know what it is so you can research appropriate needs or propagation techniques .
20. Share -whether it be fruits, vegetables, cut flowers or off-springs of what you have growing.
21. Take time to appreciate the fruits of your labor. It's not as easy as it sounds. Too often I take a walk and take mental note of just what needs to be done. Then I take a step back and look at what progress has been made and how beautiful it all is.

Rain Down On Me

As I am winding up this week, we received a nice little rain shower. It was a welcomed and pleasant surprise. This morning, the forecast called for an 80% of heavy rain. When I looked at the radar, there it was - a band of dark green moving across the Gulf Coast region and headed in our direction. But, as happens so frequently and sometimes to our advantage, the fronts often fall apart before they reach Northeast Florida.

By this afternoon, the forecast was for only a few scattered showers.Our region, as is much of the country, continues to suffer drought conditions. There are fires popping up all over the region. Watering restrictions - even water restrictions - are now commonplace throughout the country.At the same time, how many times do I see neighbors watering their lawn when we have a very good change of rain within 24 hours? I even see the sprinklers going during and right after rain. It just does not make sense to me.I grew up in a farming community and I so well remember everybody having a rain gauge. They were always a promotional give-away.

When livelihoods take a gamble on the climate, it was important to keep track of what Mother Nature poured upon us. This was a time well before irrigation and the best forecast came from the Old Farmers Almanac.I see many advertisements and articles attempting to educate the population on how much water a lawn needs and how often. It is often to the benefit of your plants and your lawn to let them get a little dry between their showers.....not to mention, it conserves our most valuable resource that we so often take for granted.Perhaps it is not a bad idea to bring back those rain gauges.