Dear $$firstname$$,

Crystal Rennicke

Last month, I asked you to send photos and e-mails from your backyard projects. I was impressed with your beautiful gardens! It’s very inspiring to see your ideas and I am looking forward trying some in my own backyard. For those of you who are new to the Backyard Garden Club, we’re always looking for photos, tips and comments from you, so feel free to write me at crystal@backyardgardenclub.com. And who knows…your great idea or garden photos may end up in a future issue of one of our magazines!

There are just a few days left to get your entries in for the Backyard Video Contest for Birds & Blooms. You have until June 30 to send your best backyard videos of birds, squirrels, insects, great garden moments and more. We’ll be posting the best entries on July 15, so keep your eye out on our YouTube page. We’ll need your vote!

Next week, we’re picking the winner for the garden shed from Lifetime Products. Watch your inbox to see if you’ve won! If you received this newsletter from us, you’re automatically entered to win.

If this newsletter was forwarded to you, please use this link to sign up for yourself.

Happy Gardening!
--Crystal

READ ON TO DISCOVER...

• Plant of the Month
• Yard Smarts
• Question of the Month
• 7 Secrets to a Welcoming Outdoor Living Room
• July Regional Checklist
• Frugal Gardener Tip of the Month
• Current Needs

Submit Your Story

Plant of the Month

Lantana ‘Teenie Geenie’
Botanical name: Lantana camara ‘Monike’
What’s new: Typically, these plants are tall and lanky; this one is quite compact and uniform.
Hardiness: Zones 9 to 11; grow as an annual elsewhere.
Size: 20 inches high; 24 to 30 inches wide.
Growing tip: Regular watering is important until the plant is established; then, it’s quite drought-tolerant. Induce profuse blooms with occasional doses of general-purpose fertilizer.
Pretty pairings: Yellow or pink sun-loving annuals make good partners, especially in a basket, tub or window box.

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Yard Smarts

Welcome, Ladybugs!
Ladybugs are great for the garden because they eat aphids and other plant pests. Attract them to your yard by planting geraniums, cosmos and coreopsis. Plants with umbrella-shaped blossoms like fennel and dill will lure ladybugs, too. However, one of the easiest ways to attract ladybugs is to go easy on insecticides or stop using them entirely. Chemicals that kill damaging insects may be lethal for these garden do-gooders, too.

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Question of the Month

Flowers of a Different Color
Q: My sister-in-law spotted this pink-blooming strawberry plant in her garden. What caused the flowers to change from the typical white color? –Dianna Justice, Lebanon, Oregon

Melinda: It’s not always possible to pinpoint why a plant developed a new characteristic. However, these types of unexpected changes keep the plant world interesting, sometimes resulting in the introduction of new varieties.

The spontaneous changes in leaf shape, flower color or other features are called sports. This may be what happened to your sister-in-law’s plant. In fact, there’s an ornamental strawberry with pink flowers that’s known as Pink Panda. This pretty strawberry is grown for its flowers but rarely bears fruit.

See more of Melinda’s answers

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7 Secrets to a Welcoming Outdoor Living Room

More and more folks are expanding their unwinding and entertaining options by taking everyday living outdoors. Smart homeowners view their patios as bonus rooms that allow them to enjoy our back with easy access to indoor conveniences. Here are some expert tips from design experts Margie Archer and Melissa Howes-Vitek of the Washington D.C. area.

1. Light up the night! “When you don’t want the party to end, outdoor lighting can keep the festivities going all night,” says Margie, who recommends setting the patio aglow with lots of candles, torches, hanging lanterns and twinkling strings of lights entwined in nearby trees and twisted around umbrella poles. Use solar lights to mark pathways. Brighten farther-afield gardens and landscape features by employing spotlights to showcase statuesque trees and shrubs.

For more expert tips, click here.

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July Regional Checklist

Summer is finally here and there is plenty to do out in the yard. Keep the work a pleasure by avoiding the heat of the day, and don’t forget to pause and admire the ever-changing beauty surrounding you.

• Northeast
• Northwest
• Southwest
• Central
• Southeast

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Frugal Gardener Tip of the Month

Keeping Her Feet Clean
I use sturdy, lace-up shoes to do lawn and garden work. It is too time-consuming to untie and remove them when I need to go inside for a few minutes, so I now keep a supply of plastic grocery bags in the shed. I slip a bag over each shoe and tie it at the ankle. I can go inside without removing my shoes. —Margaret Phillips, Clarksville, Tennessee

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Current Needs

Do you or someone you know have a military-themed birdhouse in your backyard that you’ve built? We are searching for these for a very special Home Tweet Home section. Remember to send a photo! Click here.

Step Back to the Victory Era!

The editors of Reminisce magazine bring you Reminisce Through the Decades: The 1940s, a 6-hour-plus, three-DVD set of real-life stories from the ’40s! For more information, go to www.reminisce.com.

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