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During the hot summer months, mulch can be especially useful for conserving water. Consider mulching your vegetable garden as well as your ornamentals. The mulch not only helps conserve moisture,…

Just because it’s almost summer doesn’t mean it is too late to plant annuals. I often don’t get my annuals at home into the ground until late June. Plants such…

Kerria japonica, known as Japanese kerria or yellow rose of Texas, often develop dead branches. Follow them to the base to cut them. Older branches should be removed the same…

A good option for Loropetalums that have outgrown their space is to prune them into a tree-form. They easily can be limbed up by removing lower branches.

Prune spring-flowering shrubs (azaleas, flowering quince, Forsythia and Loropetalum) soon after they finish flowering, but only if they need it. To keep them from looking like a meatball, follow the…

Early May is a good time to cut back any woody perennials that need it, such as rosemary, rue, lavender, Santolina and Artemisia. If done before the danger of frost…

Remove the flowering stalks on yucca as they begin to form if you dislike the look of the bloom. Cut them off down in the foliage at the source, and…

Old flower stems can be removed from lungwort so as not to detract from the lovely foliage.

Caladiums and vinca need warm soil. Caladium tubers will rot in cool soil, and vinca will be disease-prone, or exhibit stunted growth. Night temperatures should regularly be above 60 degrees…