(Distributed 06/25/10) What should you be doing in your garden this time of year? We say, as little as possible because mid-June to mid-September is the most stressful time of the year for gardeners and their plants.

(Distributed 06/18/10) The extraordinary heat we experience in summer in Louisiana can be put to good use in the vegetable garden. Through solarization – a process of using sunlight to heat soil in beds under clear plastic – summer heat can be used to reduce the harmful effects of pathogenic fungi and nematodes and kill weed seeds in the soil without using toxic chemicals.

(Distributed 06/11/10) June is the peak month for harvesting early-summer vegetables. People grow their own vegetables because of the outstanding quality of freshly harvested produce, and growing your own vegetables is a part of sustainable landscaping. Harvesting at the right stage, however, is essential to getting the best quality vegetables from your garden.

(Distributed 06/04/10) June is the month when gardeners around Louisiana need to prepare their landscapes for hurricane season. Even in north Louisiana, landscapes can be affected by the high winds and heavy rains powerful hurricanes can bring.

(Distributed 05/28/10) Spring rose bloom was outstanding this year. The cooler weather through the winter did very little cold damage, and the dry weather and cool nights in spring led to a tremendous peak bloom throughout the state in mid- to late April.

(Distributed 05/21/10) After a beautiful spring in Louisiana, butterfly gardening season is now upon us. As we near summer, we have more bedding plants and herbaceous perennials in bloom, and these naturally attract butterflies.

(Distributed 05/14/10) Coleus are one of our summer favorites for Louisiana landscapes. Coleus come in old varieties and new varieties. Some do well in shade and others do well in sun. There are coleus propagated from seed and coleus that are only propagated by stem cuttings.

(Distributed 05/06/10) Angelonias are one of the top new herbaceous ornamental plants over the past 10 years. Some of us may not have been familiar with angelonias until recently, and many gardeners are probably still somewhat unfamiliar with this new plant. Angelonias are also referred to by the common name of “summer snapdragon.”

(Distributed 04/29/10) Goldsturm rudbeckia is an outstanding perennial that was recognized by the Perennial Plant Association as the 1999 Perennial Plant of the Year. It was chosen as a Louisiana Select plant in 2000 by the Louisiana Nursery and Landscape Association and the LSU AgCenter.

(Distributed 04/23/10) You don’t have to visit Hawaii to get high-quality pineapples harvested at the peak of ripeness. It is entirely possible to raise your own sweet, juicy, plant-ripened pineapples without a trip to the islands.