My, What Beautiful Bracts You Have
Plants are often prized for their flowers, but that isn’t the case for the Poinsettia. The showy portions of this popular holiday plant aren’t petals or even flowers at all. Instead, they are...
Category: In the Garden
A Lazy Gardener Wishes You Peace and Healthy Soil
The holidays are a sacred time to spend with family and friends and manifest peace on Earth, good will toward men. I wish you all peace and meaningful celebrations. May you extend grace to...
Holiday Cactus
The Poinsettia may be the most iconic holiday plant, but the Thanksgiving cactus is my favorite because of its sentimental value. About 18 years ago, I purchased what I thought was a Christmas...
Botanically Themed Christmas Tree
Add a botanical flair to your Christmas tree this year by decorating with air plants (Tillandsia spp.), gilded palmetto fronds, and rosettes made from palmetto leaves. Air plants are epiphytes in...
Holiday Garden Gnome
Want to spice up your holiday decorations this year? Creating a holiday garden gnome from a tomato cage is an activity that can include all ages and become a family tradition. All you need is a...
Formosan Termites Increase Distribution in SC
Over the last few years, Formosan subterranean termites have increased their distribution in South Carolina. Where Are They, And What Should I Know About Them? There are eight species of termites in...
This Month in Your Garden – December 2022
Coastal Region- Brad Fowler Late December is a good time to plant many spring flowering bulbs. In certain situations, it may be beneficial to use a selective postemergence herbicide to help control...
What Is It? Wednesday – Cudweed
This is a species of cudweed (Gnaphalium sp.). Cudweed grows in a rosette form through most of the winter until the weather warms up, allowing it to produce inflorescence. Inflorescence may appear...
SC Fruit and Vegetable Field Report – November 28, 2022
Today’s update will be our final update of 2022. With things slowing down in the field, we will take some time to focus on other projects, and the Weekly Field Updates will resume in January. We...
Recycle, Reduce, and Reuse: Cucurbit-Style Birdfeeders
We’ve set our clocks back an hour with the end of day-light-savings time. Thanksgiving is a recent memory, and the day length continues to shorten as the winter solstice (December 21st) approaches....
SC Fruit and Vegetable Field Report – November 21, 2022
The effect of row covers on spider mite pest problems is not entirely clear. Studies in NC found that row covers did not influence spider mites during cold winters and when transplants were NOT...
What is It? Wednesday – Florida Predatory Stink Bug
This is a Florida predatory stink bug (Euthyrhynchus floridanus) feeding on a species of plant-feeding stink bug. The photo shows the predator’s piercing/sucking mouthparts inserted into its prey....