Today we had to say goodbye to the oldest, tallest, shadiest tree in our yard.  :(  It was really sad to see it go.  Really sad.  But it had to be done.  What, you might wonder, is a good enough reason to remove such a lovely sycamore?  I’ll show you.

Reason #1:

That would be the remnants of a nylon rope that someone tied around the tree at least a decade ago…and the tree grew around it and swallowed it.

Reason #2:

That would be a 2×4.  Yup, a piece of wood being consumed by our tree.  Does that make it a cannibal?  Oh, it makes me so sad to see this!  If you need a better view…

We figured that the kids who lived in the house before us tried really hard to build a tree house.  I’m guessing they gave up.

Reason #3:

Yes, friends. That would be another rope that got swallowed up by the tree.

Reason #4:

This might seem a little shallow, but every time the wind blew, a million of these little twigs would fall all over the grass.  I clean up after 4 kids all day, I don’t want to clean up after the tree all the time too!

Reason #5:

We didn’t know about this one until today, but there is METAL in the middle of the tree. METAL!!!  The poor guy cutting it up ruined his saw.  Who does this to a tree?  And it wasn’t just one spot…but it was in the trunk, AND in one of the main branches.  I’m still cringing.  Maybe nails from the failed tree house?

  I think he had just hit the metal right before I came out to take a picture.  I felt really bad, but not bad enough to offer to buy him a new saw.

This was the beginning of the end of our favorite big tree…even the kids were sad. Probably the closest thing we’ll ever have to a pet!  Well, other than the 4 monkeys running around our house.  We’ve planted nearly 20 trees in our yard since we moved in almost 8 years ago.  And I have to feel good about that.  Especially since I’ve been having all this tree removal guilt!  Goodbye sycamore!!

Flower pots are a big commitment for someone like me. Throw them together in April or May, and then my neighbors and I have to look at them until September or October.  That’s a long time…and that’s slightly terrifying to a person like me. What if they’re ugly? What if I hate how they turn out? Ugh. My solution used to be to opt out and make my poor, tired husband do it. I kinda did that…for years. I water, dead-head, and make sure they don’t die, but for a long time I just couldn’t handle the pressure of creating something that needed to be beautiful.

Well, I finally got brave a few years back, and now I plant the flowers!  This is a big deal.  I usually stick to the same basic flowers every year, but I always try something new that I haven’t seen before.  Like I said, brave!

So this is one of those things that I show ONLY to illustrate that I am still learning how to garden (and manage my time with 4 busy kids).  Since our last baby came in the Fall, all I had the time/energy/mental capacity to do was stick my pots in the garage.  They had been sitting under a honey locust tree, so they were full of leaves.  Not so beautiful.  {The upside down bottles are my plant nannies.  I love them!  You attach the long plastic cap to an old water bottle, fill it with water, and then stick it in the terra cotta spike (which you sink into the soil in your pot).  The terra cotta (which stays moist from the bottle of water) keeps the soil moist, which keeps my plants a lot prettier on hot summer days.  Moist soil also absorbs water better than dry soil, so it’s easier to water them.}

This is what the terra cotta looks like

This is my house plant nanny.  Just push the terra cotta down into the soil, and you’re in business!

Back to flower pots…this is what I went home with to make my porch more beautiful!  I also ended up with some veggies for my garden.  I couldn’t resist!

I always like to do a pot with orange and blue flowers.  Probably my favorite flower combination.  Ever.

And then I did a pink pot for Princess Sassy Pants because she helped me pick out flowers and pink is her favorite color!

I tried a yellow and white combo this year.

Osteospermum is probably my all-time favorite flower to put in my pots!!

So here are my before and afters!  This doesn’t look like a big deal, but I’m excessively proud of myself.  Just like every year.  And if you knock on my door, I will probably make you tell me how lovely my pots are.  It’s amazing how much they really do add to a space.  I’m not cutesie and with-it enough to put out fun decor for every holiday, so my porch looks kind of bleak and barren in the winter.  I love Spring!

I used random.org to generate the winning comment number…1!

Congratulations to Laurie, the winner of our Giveaway for a $30 Western Garden Center gift certificate!

Laurie said, “When my kids were little I paid them a penny per snail—solved our garden snail problem in a hurry!”

Thanks to everyone who entered!  There were some really great ideas for getting kids involved in the garden and yard.  I think another blog post is coming soon so I can share everyone’s ideas!

It might look good immediately after mowing, but it could be killing your lawn.

Before the invention of the mower, bluegrass (the prevalent turf in the Salt Lake Valley) grew long blades full of chlorophyll which captured the energy of the sun and provided energy to the grass.  Mowing the lawn too short reduces the amount of chlorophyll exposed to the sun, increases the amount of water needed for the lawn because of evaporation from un-shaded soil, and generally stresses the plant.  Cutting the lawn too short isn’t healthy for the plants and will look worse in the long run.

Here are six steps to help you keep your lawn looking great all season long:

1. Never cut more than 1/3 of the turfgrass blades off at any given mowing.  This reduces plant stress.
2. Set the mower as high as you can bring yourself to do.  Mow no less often than usual.  This will develop into the uniform look you want, just at a higher level.
3. The longer the turfgrass blades are above the ground, the longer the roots can develop below the surface.  This allows better water absorption and reduces potential water stress.
4. Less stressed turfgrass can better resist damage from fungus and insects.
5. Mowing your turfgrass shorter first thing in the spring to remove overwintered dead tissue is OK.  Raise the blade height over several cuttings to get to the preferred height.  Mowing the last time of the year at a lower level is a good step to remove tissues that would otherwise die anyway, reducing the potential for fungus damage.
6. Apply water correctly.

Keeping your lawn a little longer will help keep it healthy, lush, and free of disease.  If you have questions, please feel free to stop by and visit any of our expert gardeners at Western Gardens—and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook.