Environment Blog Posts
September 3, 2019
You’ve spent all summer planting and maintaining your garden or mowing your lawn and are ready for a break. But before you put your landscape to bed for a long winter’s nap, consider applying lime.
August 27, 2019
How is it already September? I know I’m not the only one in disbelief that fall is right around the corner! Now’s a good time to prep your garden for the upcoming cooler temps.
August 22, 2019
When you’re ready to hire a contractor to repair or rebuild property damaged by flooding, keep these tips in mind to help avoid being scammed.
August 21, 2019
Getting started on clean-up after a flood can seem overwhelming. Before you do any work, be sure you know what your insurance company needs to file a claim. Take photos and video of damage, inventory items damaged beyond repair, and keep track of expenses.
August 20, 2019
You’ve been waiting for months to clean up your flooded home, but before you start this daunting task, you need to purchase the appropriate safety equipment to wear. Mold and other toxins can pose a serious health threat inside a flooded home. By following the manufacturer’s instructions, safety gear can protect you from those dangers.
August 2, 2019
Sometimes it is necessary to use a pesticide to rid your home of some uninvited guests. When using pesticides, remember to use them safely.
July 23, 2019
There’s always a lot going on in August. School is back in session, and everyone is trying to get back on their busy schedule. In the middle of the chaos, don’t forget your garden!
July 19, 2019
Being outside in the summertime can feel like a battle against nature. Mosquitoes. Ticks. Chiggers. (Photo by CanStock)
July 2, 2019
Everyone deals with the occasional invasion of sugar ants in the kitchen. It’s just a fact of life.
But when they do make their way in, you don’t want to lay out the welcome mat for them. Regina Boykins, Extension agent in Humphreys County has a few tips to help keep ants and other pests out of your kitchen.
June 21, 2019
It’s officially summer, meaning the heat is here in full force! I set my watering can by the door as a reminder to water my plants. A few years back, when I first started growing an interest in gardening, I learned the hard way that you have to water your plants regularly because of the Mississippi heat. Don’t be like young Michaela. Always water your plants! (Photo by Michaela Parker)
June 4, 2019
Maintaining a healthy home can be challenging, but it IS possible. Use the “right hand rule” to make your home a healthy one.
May 31, 2019
No matter how you slice it, gardening is a risky business.
We have no control over the weather, waves of pestilence, the threat of plant diseases. It’s a wonder we don’t all just chuck our gardening tools and say, “See you at the farmers market.”
May 28, 2019
If edibles are on your list for the landscape or garden this year, check out the list of Mississippi Medallion winners. They are proven performers when it comes to our Mississippi climate.
Our horticulture experts help select several plants, including fruits and vegetables, each year that make the cut.
May 21, 2019
I love riding around town looking at everyone’s front yard landscapes. I know how much work goes into making it look top-notch! A lot has been done, but there’s plenty more to do in your yard and garden.
May 7, 2019
Do you want surefire performance in your landscape and vegetable garden, but don’t know what to look for when you go to the garden center?
April 30, 2019
Do you have a mysterious plant coming up in your yard and you’re not sure how it got there?
Extension has answers. Our experts can tell you what it is and the best ways to eradicate, control, or manage it.
April 23, 2019
I spent a lot of time working in my yard during April. I planted several pots, pruned my shrubs, and put down a fresh layer of mulch. It would be easy to sit back and admire my hard work, but with the warmer weather coming in, there’s still so much to do!
April 16, 2019
Hummingbirds are fascinating creatures and fun to watch. We usually begin to see them in Mississippi in March. Here are a few tips to draw them to your landscape.
April 12, 2019
If you have a sunny area where you’d like to try out some plants, consider putting them in a container for a trial run.
Plant them in the ‘thriller, filler, spiller’ fashion for a container with lots of visual interest. The thriller is the main focal point. A filler plant will help fill in the majority of the pot, and the spiller plant will grow to flow over the sides of the container.
April 9, 2019
Container gardens are a quick and easy way to spruce up your porch, deck, or landscape. Just make sure you choose the area you want to place the container before heading to the garden center. (Photo by Michaela Parker/Cindy Callahan)
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About Extension for Real Life
Extension for Real Life is a product of the MSU Extension Service’s Office of Agricultural Communications.
That’s a long way of saying we are professional communicators who get to talk about food, families, 4-H, flowers, and farming for a living. Pretty good gig, right?
The three main writers for the blog are Ellen Graves (Seamstress of Social Media Strategy), Susan Collins-Smith (Content Connector) and Keri Lewis (Captain Cat Herder). But we get by with a lot of help from our friends in Ag Comm and Extension!
You can reach us at 662-325-2262 or extreallife@msstate.edu