South Carolina Apples
The Upstate is one of the few places in South Carolina with the right climate and soil conditions to grow productive apples trees. While the actual trees can be grown in most any part of the state,...
Category: In the Garden
Tromboncino Squash
Like most home vegetable gardeners, I have fought squash vine borers for years. These frustrating pests of summer squash (Cucurbita pepo) often knock out yellow squash and zucchini in my Upstate...
Fall Webworm Management
There are two web-spinning caterpillars in our region, the eastern tent caterpillar and the fall webworm. The placement of the webbing on the tree will help identify which caterpillar is present....
Nature-Based Activities for Children
Summer at the South Carolina Botanical Garden (SCBG) that is a fun time filled with summer camps and children laughing and learning. Below are some of the simple, low cost ideas we used in our...
Weed of The Month – Virginia Creeper
Virginia creeper is a native North American, deciduous vine, which can easily climb 30 feet or higher. Its tendrils end in oval shaped disks that adhere to surfaces and can damage stucco, the mortar...
Muhly Grass Mealybug
Muhly grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris), sometimes known as sweetgrass, is a beautiful ornamental grass celebrated for its displays of pink, purple or white flowers in the late-summer and fall. Native...
If You Build It, They Will Come: Attracting Butterflies To Your Yard
Butterflies have this unexplainable allure that seems to appeal to people of all ages. The key to enticing these winged beauties to your yard, is utilizing adult nectar sources and larval...
Getting More Bang for Your Buck By Ratooning Spring Vegetables
It’s the end of June, and my vegetable garden looks rough. The heat and the insects have wreaked havoc on my once beautiful Garden of Eden. This is the perfect time to rejuvenate some of the crops...
Moss is Not the Boss
If you have large trees around your home, no doubt you have encountered the challenges of growing turfgrasses in the shade. Most of our southern warm-season turfgrasses, such as centipedegrass, need...
Why Did My Tomatoes Stop Producing Fruit?
At this point in the growing season many tomato plants have started dropping flowers and not producing fruit. Before removing these plants from the vegetable garden, read this! Blossom drop can be...
Buttonbush
Want a native shrub that is a butterfly, bee, hummingbird, and waterfowl magnet that will grow in full sun to part shade and grows best in moist to wet soils? Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)...
Grow Tomatoes Vertically
If you have tried growing tomatoes in cages that often fall over when the plant gets large, or you are tired of keeping up with staking and tying tomatoes, then this might be a tip for you. I have...