Filtering by tag: horticulture ✕

Saving The State Flower: How to Help Your Struggling Dogwoods Survive Summer Stress

It has been a hot, dry summer across North Carolina, and only recently have we finally caught a break with some rain. Unfortunately, these sudden weather inflection points are precisely when we start…

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…

When Less is More: A Lazy Gardener’s Guide to Supporting 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…

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…

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…