It’s easy to appreciate your yard being blanketed in snow during winter. The air is fresh and chilly, and you can take a break from high-maintenance tasks that some of your plants require, until spring. 

It’s the perfect time to relax by a fire with warm cider or cocoa and enjoy your hardscaping and birds visiting your feeders. But before you completely clock out for the winter, keep in mind there are still a few outdoor shrubs and trees that can benefit from winter pruning.

To Prune, or Not to Prune?

You should prune most shrubs in winter. Pruning helps remove dead or unhealthy branches, and removing them during a dormant period will help the tree thrive whe

The autumn Equinox has arrived! With it, you’re experiencing the burst of color decorating shopping plazas, neighborhoods, and mountainsides. Don’t feel like you’re missing out, while taking in the sweet smell of leaves. 

There are five trees that you can plant that will bring a colorful view to your home.

Maple Trees 

Maple trees have beautiful burgundy, gold, or orange leaves. They take 10 to 30 years to reach full maturity and they’re easy to care for! Maples grow at medium speed, so you can expect to see it grow 12-18 inches per year. 

Maples also spread easily, so once you get one going, you’re likely to see sproutlings start to take root nearby.

This tree is well worth the wait.

Bulbs, corns, and rhizomes. Oh my! It’s that time of year when you invest in your garden by planting bulbs that will pop up and light up your spring. 

If you’ve always envied your neighbor’s tulips, iris, daffodils, this article is for you. We’ll go over everything you need to prep your garden for the perfect display of spring and summer flower bulbs.

How & When To Plant Your Bulbs This Fall

Bulbs are some of the easiest plants to plant! They also require little-to-no maintenance from year to year. If you’re new to the beautiful world of bulbs, here’s how to get started on the right root.

Spring and summer bulbs need to be planted in the fall

The heat of summer is sliding away and soon fall colors will decorate the valleys and mountain sides of your hometown. If you want additional fall foliage in your life, then you can plant shrubs that fit your garden and fill your afternoons with the excitement of changing leaves. 

But which shrubs will give you the most dazzling display of fall color? We’ve picked out our top five favorites!

Which Shrubs Give You the Brightest Fall Color?

Sumacs 

Bright and bold and difficult to kill, sumacs can be the perfect addition to your garden. These are one of the first plants to change in fall and they get wrapped in a beautiful maroon shield of color. The seeds of this plant are often spread by birds, so you typically find them scattered in forests and along t

With autumn approaching as quickly as ads for pumpkin lattes, you’re gearing up to get your garden in shape. Fall leaves are a beautiful sight to behold, but they are ruinous for your garden. 

All that foliage blocks your plants from getting the light that they need while driving your dog wild with excitement as they hop through the leaves. 

So, get ready to retool your garden with a few tools and an abundance of patience.

Gloves

Shield your hands while handling branches, brushes, and piles of yard debris. Gloves help protect you from poison ivy, oak, or sumac if you’re fixing to pull out handfuls or if you accidentally come into contact with a sneaky stem. 

If you’re looking for a little more privacy, a living fence is a beautiful and effective way to do so. Not only is a natural fence a softer, more eco-friendly approach to marking your property line and keeping your kids and pets within those lines, but shrubs and hedges improve your curb appeal. 

So, what do you need to know about using plants to create a fence? Read on and get ready to break ground to grow your own natural fence.

What Is a Natural or Living Fence?

A natural fence is a boundary made from trees, vines, or shrubs. With the right selection of plants, a living fence will provide a dense screen of leaves and branches to provide your yard with privacy and security. 

What Are the Benefits of a Privacy Hedge vs. a Fence?

Summer is here, and so are those luxurious summer afternoons. Put your lawn chair or hang your hammock in the shade, with a soft summer breeze--it doesn’t get much better than that. Unless you don’t have any shade trees to relax under. 

If you’re looking for a tree that will flood your yard with shade, look no further. We have what you need to decide which shade tree is best for your needs.

Why Invest in a Shade Tree?

Besides giving you a place to take a nap, shade trees do more wonderful things than you can imagine. They will:

• Filter the air
• Store carbon 

When it comes to keeping your plants alive, happy, and healthy, summer can be the most daunting month. Why? It’s hot, often dry or oppressively humid, and pests are at an all-year high. 

So, before you fret and decide that your garden is a lost cause and xeriscaping is the only option, use this guide to keep your plants green and avoid some of the most common summer gardening pitfalls. 

Understanding the Difficulties of Summer Gardening

Summer is often regarded as the brightest season of the year in the garden. Coneflowers, dahlias, crape myrtles, and so many other flowers are glowing. However, summer is also one of the most difficult times to keep plants hydrated. 

This is the time of year when your plants can b

Pets and plants: so many gardeners love their four-legged friends and their botanical buddies, but at times, the two struggle to get along. 

Between plants that are potentially dangerous to pets and sharp gardening tools, it can seem difficult to maintain a pet-friendly yard. However, with a bit of insight, pet-safe plants, and pet-smart garden design, your yard can be a paradise for you and your pets.

Designing Your Garden Layout with Your Pets In Mind

When establishing your gardens, you want to plan ahead and create a pet-smart layout. If you don’t plan ahead, you may find that your dog doesn’t have enough room to run and play or your cat has made it a habit to scale a tree up and over your fence. 

To avoid these pitfalls and to pre

So you have just closed on the house of your dreams, moved in, and unpacked. Can it truly be the house of your dreams, if you haven’t put your personal touch on the yard yet? 

Making the yard your own can seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. With a little planning and research, you can have a yard that reflects your personality before the year is out.

Scope Out What the Neighbors Have Going On

While we’d never advise you to try to “keep up with the Joneses,” looking at your neighbors’ landscaping can spark ideas for your own. So, before you do anything else, drive around your area looking for landscaping ideas that appeal to you. 

Ask yourself the following: 

• Do you want something that requires little maintenance or a bit more time? 
• Would you enjoy some landscaping that includ