5 Tips for Setting Up an Entertainment System in Your Garden

Deter Garden Pests with Thorny Rose Canes Do you deal with critters tracking through your winter garden? Try this smart reader tip that utilizes rose canes to keep them out. Use thorny rose canes to deter pests in the garden

Mums are a popular fall flower—they come in beautiful fall-inspired hues from rusted orange to sunset red. They also start to bloom in fall, when all the summer flowers disappear.

Want to make hummingbirds see red? Plant a firebush in your garden. Also called scarlet bush, it is not only among the easiest of plants to grow, but it also stays in bloom throughout the growing season with clusters of tubular red buds and flowers. Because the Southern growing season overlaps the spring and fall migration times of the ruby-throated hummingbird, and red is by far their favorite color, these blossoms will summon them to your garden.

Whether you travel often, are convinced that you don't have a green thumb, or simply do not want to worry about maintaining live plants day after day, you may wish to incorporate some faux green friends into your home. Today, there are so many incredible, realistic-looking fake plants on the market, making it easy to enjoy a natural feel in your space without having to worry about a watering schedule.

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Green leaves are the energy engines that fuel our gardens. Without them there would be no flowers, no sugars for summer tomatoes, and no cooling or oxygenating the air while growing the mighty trees that give landscapes a sense of time and permanence. A gardener’s admiration of leaves can quickly fade, however, when faced with brown leaves blanketing everything from azaleas to annuals, and patios to pools. Leaves are suddenly a problem, something to manage—in other words, work.

Happy Monday GPODers!

Have you ever thought about installing a pond in your garden? A pond can offer numerous advantages and serves more purposes than just being a decorative feature. Whether you have a spacious garden or a modest area, a pond can be a valuable addition. Here are five reasons why your garden might benefit from having a pond:

Even if you aren't fortunate enough to live next to a meadow of wildflowers, you can still capture their untamed beauty in a container or garden this summer by planting cosmos. Cosmos come in various colors, from burgundy to pink to white. Mix them up for a more natural look, like a wildflower meadow. Bonus: this colorful flower, native to tropical America, attracts birds and butterflies with its cheery blooms. Because of their wildflower characteristics, cosmo flowers are considered invasive in some environments. Cosmos are prime not only for containers but for creating a mass of color in borders or backgrounds or as a filler among shrubs.

Whether you call them woodchucks, whistle pigs, ground pigs, or groundhogs, these large ground squirrels can be a real nuisance in your yard and garden. “Groundhogs eat whatever is available and most nutritious,” says Sheldon Owen, PhD, wildlife extension specialist at West Virginia University. “They consume large quantities of herbaceous vegetation, especially fruits and vegetables. But they’ll also eat clover, bark, and landscape plants.”

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Looking for something unusual to grow in the garden? Look no further than chocolate cosmos, a tuberous perennial with velvety blooms and a decadent fragrance. With showy wine-red blossoms that perfume the garden with the distinctive aromas of chocolate and vanilla from mid-summer through fall, chocolate cosmos entices butterflies and curious gardeners alike. The blooms make fragrant cutting for the vase and plants perform beautifully in containers, where their scent can be enjoyed on patios and balconies. Bring the beauty and aroma of chocolate cosmos to your own garden by learning how to grow and care for these unique bloomers.