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Environment Blog Posts

Purple petunias.

July 8, 2022

Petunias are great summer annuals to have in your landscape. They offer beautiful blooms that can withstand the Mississippi heat and thrive up until the first cold snap of the winter. Get the most out of your petunias by properly deadheading them! Deadheading the wilted or dead blooms only encourages new blooms to grow and keeps them looking great for several months.

A hand sprinkles eggshells on garden soil

June 27, 2022

Most of us have heard that eggshells can help increase the calcium in our garden soil, and some of us may have even tried it in our own yards. The goal is to help prevent blossom end rot on tomatoes and other plants affected by calcium deficiency. As it turns out, using eggshells really doesn’t fix anything.

Joro Spider

June 17, 2022

You may have recently heard about joro spiders on the news. The gigantic yellow spiders are creepy enough to give anyone the heebie-jeebies! The good news about these spiders is that they have not shown up in Mississippi yet. 

Green tomato with buckeye rot.

May 26, 2022

Tomatoes are a popular crop for home gardeners, but they can be tricky to grow. Insects, disorders, and diseases can all cause problems with tomatoes. 

People gardening in hay bales.

May 26, 2022

Summertime means everyone is hard at work on their gardens. Gardening can be quite the tiresome project and can even be difficult for those who can’t bend over easily. That’s where hay or straw bales come in handy!

Yellow coreopsis flowers.

May 23, 2022

Native plants are great to have in the landscape because they often do not require watering, fertilization, or maintenance. They grow naturally in the region and are adapted to the overall climate and soil conditions. Native plants also provide food and shelter for wildlife and pollinators! 

A pile of heirloom tomatoes

May 12, 2022

Heirloom tomatoes have three distinct characteristics. Learn what makes them different from other kinds of tomatoes.

Turtle crossing the road

May 6, 2022

In the South, there’s a legend that says rain is on the way any time you see a turtle cross the road. There’s very little truth to this myth, even though it does seem like rain is in the forecast after we see one of these creatures slowly making its way across the street. 

close up of a person pruning a branch with pruning sheers

April 28, 2022

Pruning is one of the least understood gardening tasks and for good reason – it’s confusing. When, how, and if you should prune depends on the type of plant or tree you have and your goal for the plant.

White and pink native azaleas.

April 25, 2022

There’s no plant more iconic in the springtime than azaleas. Their bright, colorful blooms are exactly what we need to welcome the warm weather after a dreary winter. 

fruit and vegetable waste is added to a compost pile

April 21, 2022

Are you interested in starting a compost pile but aren’t quite sure where to start? Well, it’s an easy process, but it does require some patience. Here's how to do it.

Blue and purple hydrangeas.

April 14, 2022

Hydrangeas are a favorite among many Southerners. Their colorful blooms are a classic staple in many landscapes. They typically come in a variety of colors, including blue, purple, white, and pink. But did you know you can change the color of certain hydrangeas? With a little work and a lot of patience, you can change the color of bigleaf and mountain hydrangeas by adjusting the soil pH. How cool is that?!

Hairy crabbed

April 8, 2022

With warm weather arriving, many people are starting to think about their landscape plan for the spring and summer. It’s so exciting to get those colorful flowers planted. But with warmer weather, we also get unwanted, pesky weeds. It’s inevitable to have some type of weed pop up in your flower beds, gardens, or lawn at some point during the summer.

Leaves on a tree

April 1, 2022

Do you want to learn to identify trees? Do you want to be one of those people who can spot a tree, point at it, and name it with certainty? Always start with the leaves. Leaves are one of the most important aspects of tree identification.

Baby bunnies on log.

March 29, 2022

Spring is when we see a lot of baby wildlife. You’ll likely start seeing young animals tagging along behind one or both their parents, and boy, is it cute.

three different pictures of caterpillars.

March 22, 2022

Butterflies aren’t just beautiful. They are important pollinators for wildflowers and woody plants. But before they transform into the colorful, winged adults you see fluttering around your landscape, they are caterpillars hatched from eggs. Mississippi is home to more than 50 species of butterflies. Have you seen any of these three common butterfly caterpillars in your yard?

Purple martins flying around white gourds.

March 11, 2022

Purple martins are a real treat to have grace your landscape. They offer hours of bird watching entertainment with their musical chatter, beautiful colors, and aerial acrobatics. Each year, purple martins migrate to North America from South America to nest. They arrive at varying times, but most tend to show up in March in Mississippi. To help welcome purple martins to your home, make sure you have the right kind of habitats for them. 

A man plants seeds in a garden row.

March 3, 2022

Do you know what your USDA Plant Hardiness Zone is? USDA Plant Hardiness Zones are based on the average annual minimum winter temperatures across the U.S. These minimum temperatures are broken down into 10-degree increments and provide a guide for which landscape plants are cold hardy for a given area.

Soil in egg carton.

February 25, 2022

With spring right around the corner, many people have gardening on their minds again. To get your gardening fix, start seeds indoors for spring planting now! Have you tried egg cartons to get your plants started instead of purchasing seedling trays?  There are many benefits to trying this alternative container instead.

A faucet drips water.

February 17, 2022

You probably know how dangerous lead is, especially for children. Even low levels can have long term effects on a child’s development. The most important thing you can do is lessen your exposure or avoid lead exposure altogether.

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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

Recent Posts

A closeup of a poplar tree showing its leaves and flowers
Yellow poplar is one of the largest hardwoods with solitary flowers that are yellowish green with a reddish-orange band wrapping the base of the flower.
Tree of the Month:Yellow Poplar
A group of seven rabbits from different breeds.
Rabbits have recently been added to the Mississippi 4-H Livestock Show list, and make great project animals for young people who live in urban areas. Photo by reodejongh/Adobe Stock
Rabbits: A Fun 4-H Project
Man mowing grass.
Regular mowing will be pivotal in helping you control weeds that pop up during warmer months (Photo by Canva)
Spring Lawn Guide