Landscape Design and Management

Encounters with wildlife are becoming more common in towns and neighborhoods.

Habitat loss to fragmentation, urbanization, and expanding agricultural production means urban and suburban areas will increasingly become options for wildlife searching for homes. Song birds, snakes, lizards, coyotes, foxes, raccoons, deer and even bears are not uncommon visitors to urban and suburban backyards.

Do you have improving your garden or landscape on your New Year’s resolution list? If you don’t, you should! Each month, we are going to offer a few suggested tasks to do. So, without further ado, here are four tasks for you to complete in your garden and landscape during the month of January:

I love when the calendar strikes December 1, because it means we are officially in the Christmas season. Now, I know it seems like many stores have had their holiday decorations out since before Labor Day, but none of that counts until we get to December.

I am thoroughly thankful I made the move to coastal Mississippi a dozen years ago. One of my truly enjoyable fall pursuits happens after the temperatures have gotten chilly. On bright, sunny fall days, I really like driving on Highway 90 to my office at the Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi along the Gulf of Mexico.

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. -- An upcoming workshop will offer training for people who want to turn their piece of land into an edible landscape, no matter the size.

The Alliance of Sustainable Farms will host its monthly workshop Nov. 8 at Galloway Family Farm in Ocean Springs.

Topics will include growing an edible landscape and square-foot gardening.

Galloway Family Farm has been in operation for more than 50 years, growing crops usually only seen on the Gulf Coast in Mississippi, including pawpaws, Japanese plums, bananas and kiwis.