Filtering by tag: Gardening ✕

Purple Coneflower Clinic: What's wrong with your Echinacea flowers?

Purple coneflowers (Echinacea species) are absolute powerhouses in the Southeastern landscape. Native across the Midwest and Eastern United States, these tough perennials have become garden royalty…

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Tour the Pollinator Haven Garden

Summer and Fall 2026 Dates and Theme:Tours start at 10 a.m. and take about an hour.Friday, August 7 — The Great Southeast Pollinator CensusGet ready for community science in action! Learn how to…

It's Okay to Have Moss

Every spring and summer, I receive a lot of phone calls at the Lee County Extension Office about moss taking over lawns. Usually, the caller is slightly frantic, worried that this low-growing green…

Less is More- Lazy Best Practices for Gardening For Pollinators

When we think about helping bees and butterflies, we usually think about adding things to the landscape: buying more plants, building insect hotels, or spreading bags of seed. But since June is…

Pirates and Assassins [Bugs] to the Garden Rescue

I’m not going to lie: they’re not pretty. In fact, they can be pretty gnarly; and they hurt if they jab you in the finger! But, assassin bugs, especially the large wheel bugs, and pirate bugs are the…

Top Five Hummingbird Plants for Central North Carolina

Hummingbirds are one of the true wonders of the natural world. For residents in and around Lee County, the return of these tiny visitors is the ultimate sign that summer is on the way. When the first…

Connect the Plots: Celebrating Pollinators in Lee County with Yard Certifications

June has officially arrived, which means it is National Pollinator Month! Around the state, you’ll hear a lot of talk about “saving the bees” and “planting meadows”. But here in Lee County, we have a…

Why You Should Remove Fruit From Your Fruit Trees

If you look at your fruit trees this week and see clusters of peaches or apples along the branches of your trees, it is time to act. While it feels wrong to remove potential food, "thinning" your…

Who’s dusting my crape myrtles? Powdery mildew!

Crape myrtles are a wildly popular landscape tree in North Carolina. You can easily find them in parking lots, business landscapes, and home gardens. In fact, there is a bit of an issue with them…

May All Your Weeds Be Wildflowers

An old embroidered pillow sits on a rocking chair in the corner of the living room. It was inherited from a great aunt who spent the time to stitch these gentle words, “May all your weeds be…