Category: In the Garden

This Month in Your Garden September 2023

Sep 4, 2023 | In the Garden

Coastal Region – Christopher Burtt Continue mowing the turf at a normal height until the nighttime temperatures begin to cool. Once it begins to cool, raise the mower height to allow more...

A Lazy Gardener Grows

Aug 31, 2023 | In the Garden

Growth is vital for healthy people and plants alike. Writing blogs helps me grow as a writer. Some days, the words pour out onto the page in just the right order. On other days, they come in fits...

What Is It? Wednesday – Squash Beetles

Aug 30, 2023 | In the Garden

What is this critter that was found? This spiky-looking thing on the underside of a cucumber leaf is a squash beetle larva. This is one of two species in the lady beetle family that feed on...

SC Fruit and Vegetable Field Report – August 28, 2023

Aug 29, 2023 | In the Garden

Midlands Region Rob Last After another hot, dry week, a welcome break is being seen with a forecast of cooler temperatures and welcome rainfall. Keeping an eye on the tropical disturbance in the...

Prairie dock, prairie rosinweed

Aug 28, 2023 | In the Garden

Prairie dock (Silphium terebinthinaceum) lines the roadside edge of our Piedmont Prairie Exhibit at the South Carolina Botanical Garden. This plant is towering over the grasses and other prairie...

Hidden Ginger

Aug 24, 2023 | In the Garden

Don’t you love pass-a-long plants? A good friend shared some Hidden Ginger, aka Queen Lily (Curcuma petiolata) rhizomes with me early last fall. I immediately potted them up in containers to grow...

What Is It? Wednesday – Pickleworm

Aug 23, 2023 | In the Garden

What caused the hole in the side of this cucumber? (Nothing is wrong with the color. This cultivar is called Silver Slicer.) This week’s question is a review from a post Tom Bilbo wrote recently...

SC Fruit and Vegetable Field Report- August 21, 2023

Aug 22, 2023 | In the Garden

Recently, the results of the 2022 Farm Gate survey were posted, showing data for several crops grown in SC. In the coming weeks, we will be collecting data for 2023 on a new set of crops. Extension...

Vinca: The Trouble with Common Names

Aug 21, 2023 | In the Garden

Latin scientific names can be challenging to pronounce but are tremendously important. We can communicate without ambiguity because each plant has only one scientific name. In contrast, a plant may...

Italian Stone Pine Likes My Stingy Approach to Watering

Aug 17, 2023 | In the Garden

Because I value potable water, I prioritize its use. Edibles and newly planted shrubs and trees, which are highly vulnerable to drought stress, earn the right to receive water from my spigot. When...

What Is It? Wednesday – August 16, 2023

Aug 16, 2023 | In the Garden

Here we see an assassin bug that has caught and is feeding on a lady beetle. Normally, both of these insects are good guys, though when assassin bugs get hungry, they will eat just about anything...

SC Fruit and Vegetable Field Report  – August 14, 2023

Aug 15, 2023 | In the Garden

Coastal Region Zack Snipes It has been a brutally hot and humid week in the Lowcountry. Hot peppers are loving this heat and coming in at great volumes. I have seen some sun scalding on fruit due to...