Blake Harrison
About the Author
Blake has 14 years of hands-on gardening experience and a strong interest in the tools and techniques that separate a garden that struggles from one that thrives. She focuses on garden planning and seasonal maintenance, and hier writing tends to be direct; she'd rather tell you what actually works than hedge for every possible situation. In his workshop, she builds and customizes garden tools, which has given her a specific understanding of how equipment performs under real conditions and what most off-the-shelf options get wrong.
Blogs by Blake Harrison
A patch of bare soil after scarifying looks worse than it usually is. In most cases, that’s normal. Scarifying rips out old thatch and moss, not healthy grass, though the
Grass-like weeds are the ones I get asked about most, probably because they’re the hardest to catch early. You mow, water, and feed the lawn, yet a few blades never
Building your own garden gate costs less than buying one, and you get to pick the exact size, style, and wood. You can build a sturdy gate in a weekend,
Coffee grounds for plants work, but only for some plants and only in the right amounts. Blueberries, azaleas, and roses respond well to them. Succulents, lavender, and seedlings do not.
A tiered garden does something a flat garden cannot. It creates rooms. Not zones. Actual outdoor rooms. When you build levels into a garden, you give people a reason to move through it and stop
Does your garden get bright morning sun but shade by afternoon? East-facing gardens, I’ve learned, start softly with light that shields plants from harsh afternoon heat. This pattern works well for spaces that need balance
Most grass seed germinates in 5 to 30 days, but the exact window depends on the variety you plant, the soil temperature, and how well you prepare the ground. That range catches people off guard.
Most people grab the first cucumber they spot at the store. I did the same thing when I started gardening. Big mistake. Here is what I wish someone had told me earlier. Cucumbers vary wildly.
There are roughly a dozen grass species used in American lawns, and most yards contain a mix of them. They split into two camps: cool-season grasses that peak in spring and fall, and warm-season grasses