Principles & Practices for Pruning Trees
Proper pruning can offer trees several benefits. It can increase flowering, fruit production, promote healthy new growth, increase sun light and air circulation, and maintain a desired shape and/or...
Author: Bob Polomski
Growing Perennials
Herbaceous perennials generally live for three or more seasons, but usually the tops die back to the ground each fall. The crown and roots of the plant resume growth in spring. A few perennials are...
Dividing Perennials
The three main reasons for dividing perennials are to control the size of the plants, to help rejuvenate them, and to increase their number. Dividing and replanting keeps rapidly spreading...
Overseeding With Ryegrass
It is not generally recommended to overseed home lawns, but if it is performed, it should only be on a bermudagrass lawn. The extra irrigation, fertilization, and shading effects of the overseeding...
Azalea Care
Azaleas are Southern signature plants in South Carolina landscapes. Numerous azalea species, hybrids and cultivars, either native to this area or hailing from the Orient, can be grown here, with...
Liriope
Liriope, sometimes called lilyturf, is among our best evergreen ground covers. It multiplies rapidly and requires very little care. It grows well throughout South Carolina. There are two major...
Spirea
Spireas (Spiraea species) are among the easiest flowering shrubs to grow. These attractive shrubs are fast growing and should be grown in full sun for best flowering. They can, however, tolerate...
Ornamental Cherry, Plum, Apricot & Almond
Ornamental flowering fruit trees (Prunus species) are closely related to the orchard fruit trees that are grown primarily for their fruit. Although many of the ornamental flowering trees bear edible...
Gardenia
Gardenias have been popular shrubs in South Carolina since the 18th Century and have been grown by the Chinese for over a thousand years. They were named after the Scottish naturalist Alexander...
Clematis
Clematis are among the most decorative and spectacular of all the flowering vines. They are a group of mostly woody, deciduous vines, though Armand clematis (Clematis armandii) is evergreen, and a...
Poison Ivy
Eastern poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is a woody, perennial vine or small shrub that can be found in fields, pastures, woodlands, farms and home landscapes. As a vine, it attaches itself to...
Pruning & Training Apple & Pear Trees
Training and pruning are essential for growing fruit successfully. Fruit size, quality and pest management are influenced by training and pruning. Untrained and unpruned trees become entangled...