The idea behind a mailbox garden is to bring eye-catching color to the base of your mailbox, lamp post, or a bird house pole. If planned properly, this garden should be able to greet visitors cheerfully season after season. For a truly spectacular garden, make sure to include plants with flowers that bloom at different seasons, cover the entire color spectrum and/or have interesting foliage or year-round interest.

It takes some pretty tough plants to put up with the harsh growing conditions surrounding a street-side mailbox. Because most mailbox locations are surrounded by pavement it takes plants that thrive in full sun and can tolerate heat and drought.

With the exception of perhaps one taller focal plant or a vine that wraps around the post, most plants in a mailbox garden should be varieties that stay under 2' in height. This way you don’t block the view of your home or when backing out of the driveway.

Before planting, prepare the area. Shape the bed, remove any existing weeds or sod, then dig down at least 6-8 inches and turn over the soil, mixing in a soil amendment 50/50 with the existing soil. Add a starter fertilizer to the entire area. This will mix into the soil when you plant your plants.

Remember, it takes 3-4 months for most plants to get established. For best results, water regularly and feed every few months during the growing season with a good flower food, and your plants will reward you with long-lasting beauty.

We have a great selection of plants perfect for mailbox gardens. Stop by for a visit and one of our staff of nursery professionals will be happy to help you make your selections.

In the summertime, when the weather is hot, heat-loving annuals will dazzle your gardens with vibrant colors. They are the sunbathing beauties of any garden. There are so many different flower forms, colors, sizes and foliage shapes that every gardener will have a dozen or two favorite annuals blooming in the garden to brag about.

Versatility is their name; garden pizzazz is your gain. Annuals make themselves at home in your garden beds, intermingled with your trees and shrubs, patio containers, window boxes and/or hanging baskets Some annuals are groundcovers, some are perfect for the "middle and marvelous" group, and of course some will stand "tall and sassy" in the rear of the garden bed.

For a huge colorful impact, plant in swaths or waves. For example, many people (Click here to read the complete article "Heat Loving Annuals")

Product Spotlight: Dr. Earth Tomato, Vegetable & Herb Food

Dr. Earth Tomato, Vegetable & Herb Food contains a superior blend of organic ingredients to help herbs and summer and winter vegetables grow their best and produce a bounty of healthy, great tasting crops. Each package also contains beneficial soil microbes plus Ecto and Endo Mycorrhizae to help keep bad bacteria from attacking your plants. Use during transplanting and as a top dressing every couple of months during each growing season. This fertilizer produces exceptional results and is loaded with calcium to help prevent blossom end-rot on tomatoes, peppers and other vegetables. So throw out the chemicals and start growing more nutritious and tasty vegetables today!

Do ladybugs really help control bad insects?

Answer:

They sure do! In fact, ladybugs are one of the most effective predatory insects around--and love to make a meal out of bad ones. But give them time to do their thing. If you get too impatient with them, they just might "fly away home." Make sure your garden friends are happy by providing them with water and shelter. Remember that good bugs are living creatures and they have feelings too.

It is best to release them in the evening or early morning, just after you have watered the garden. This will help keep them in the garden. It is also better to release them in small batches all around your garden than in one big group; otherwise, they might get all huffy and start duking it out for the territory.

Ladybugs are more likely to remain in your garden if there is a ready food supply. It is important to provide them with an alternative food source when meals of pest insects are scarce. Flowers produce nectar and pollen, which ladybugs also need to survive. Plan your garden to feed beneficial insects by choosing a variety of plants that will bloom as many months of the year as possible.

Don't be surprised if they leave after they have removed all your bad insects, though. They will only stick around for as long as there is a good food source in your garden.

This phrase could be the Summer Vegetable Theme Song. And it is time to plant your summer vegetables!

Most of our favorite vegetables are grown this time of year. What vegetables do we grow in summertime? Try plantingbeans, corn, cucumber, eggplant, leeks, onions, peppers, squash, tomatoes and zucchini, just to name a few. Beets (red and golden), potatoes, carrots and radishes are root vegetables, and they are simple to grow. (Click here to read the entire article "Summer Vegetables"

Product Spotlight: Master Nursery Black Forest

Master Nursery Black Forest is a premium soil conditioner for trees, shrubs, roses, vegetables and lawns. This blend of forest humus has been fortified with nitrogen and iron and will not deplete soil of pre-existing nitrogen like untreated products. It loosens hard, compacted soils to improve drainage and increase moisture retention.

You can use it as a soil amendment or as a top dressing for lawns and garden beds.