Smart Landscapes Videos
Roof Garden
Here’s a neat gardening challenge for you: Growing plants -- on a roof. Roof gardens have actually been
around for centuries, and they do a lot of good things for the environment, including reducing flooding, reducing urban heat temperatures, increasing building energy efficiency,
and a host of other benefits.
In this video, we will show you how we recently constructed a small green roof over the porch area of an outdoor storage shed.
Drought-Tolerant Landscapes
If watering your garden during the hot dry summer months is a problem, you might consider planting a drought-tolerant garden next year. Drought-tolerant landscapes, also known as xeriscapes, feature plants that need little water.
In this video we’ll show you how to make a xeriscape garden, to help get rid of the sparsely growing lawn In this Mississippi front yard.
Pollinator Gardens
How to Make a Bug Hotel
This video will show you how to make a bug hotel. Bug hotels, like these, will encourage good garden bugs to winter in the garden by giving them a place to hibernate and nest over the colder months, so they’ll ready to help in the spring.
Toad Abodes
Toads are a familiar sight in many Mississippi landscapes, and can be encouraged to take up residence in your garden by creating miniature houses or “toad abodes.” These beneficial amphibians are a welcome addition to the home garden as they eat a wide variety of insects and small invertebrates.
Publications
News
Backyard drainage problems are not fun to deal with. A big rain comes and suddenly your backyard turns into a puddled mess! Having standing water in your yard can lead to turf diseases, mold, or wood rot to your home. Nobody wants to have to deal with that! Consider installing a French drain in your yard during the upcoming fall and winter months. A French drain allows water to naturally drain from your yard.
Are you tired of seeing used masks and gloves dropped in the parking lot at the grocery store? Me, too!
“Pandemic litter” is a relatively new problem, but pollution is nothing new. I grew up watching the ad that admonished, “Give a hoot, don’t pollute!”
Battling the coronavirus requires the use of some single-use items, but they don’t have to end up on the ground!
Here are three tips to help keep Mississippi beautiful!
Increased littering of single-use items related to the novel coronavirus pandemic, including masks, gloves, and disinfecting wipes, has troubling consequences for the environment.
When trash is not properly disposed of, it makes its way into watersheds, where it travels by water flow from rivers and streams into the ocean.
If there’s one thing all Mississippians can agree on, it’s that the summer sun can be brutal. I enjoy spending time on my back patio, but it’s hard to enjoy without shade. I’ve noticed several restaurants, parks, and pools have installed shade sails to provide shade to visitors. Why not install one in your own back yard?
What are pollinators and why are they important? Bats, bees, beetles, birds, butterflies, and other mammals play a vital role in our environment. These creatures help move pollen from one flower to another, which helps fertilize plants so they can reproduce.
Success Stories
See what's new in Extension: a new monarch garden, a storytelling series will begin, the Garden Expo highlights Extension education, and Keep America Beautiful recognizes MSU Extension.
