Gardening & Outdoor Ideas

A dry terracotta pot can survive a hard winter untouched. The same pot full of wet soil will split after one freeze. Here’s what actually cracks planters — and the 20-minute fall job that prevents it.

Most lawn damage that shows up in March was caused by one mow in October. Here’s the exact height to cut for the last mow of the season, when to stop, and the two mistakes that cause gray patches next spring.

A healthy arborvitae can drop a third of its foliage this month and be completely fine — and so can a white pine. But evergreens do die, and early warning signs look almost identical from thirty feet away. Here’s the ninety-second check that tells you which one you’re looking at.

Most mowers that die over winter aren’t broken — they’re clogged with fuel that went stale in the tank. Here’s how to winterize a lawn mower in about 20 minutes this fall.

Bulbs are in every garden center right now — but the bag in your hand is not a signal to start digging. Here’s when to plant tulip bulbs, and the one-minute check that beats any calendar date.

Most fall mums are dead within two weeks of coming home — and cold weather has almost nothing to do with it. Here’s the real reason, and the 30-second check that keeps them blooming into November.

Here’s something most home gardeners never realize until it’s too late: garlic planted in spring …

Your tomato vines are looking tired, the zucchini has slowed to a trickle, and there’s …

Most people wait until spring to plant a tree because it feels right — everything …

If you’ve got a hosta that used to be a tidy clump and is now …