What’s Growing in My Mulch? A North Carolina Guide to Mulch Fungus By Ken Erickson · Updated June 2026 Every spring and after a warm Triangle rain, we get the same call: there’s something weird growing in my mulch – is it going to kill my plants or my kids? Short answer: almost never. The…
How Much Mulch Do I Need? (Calculator and Install Cost) By Ken Erickson · Updated August 2026 Key Takeaways How do I calculate how much mulch I need? Start by measuring your beds. For a rectangle, multiply length by width to get square footage. For an odd curved bed, break it into rough rectangles and…
How to Fertilize a Tree or Shrub in NC (DIY) By Ken Erickson · Updated August 2026 Most of the trees and shrubs I see in Triangle yards don’t need feeding nearly as often as people think — and half the ones that do get fed get the wrong product. It isn’t complicated once you…
New House, Blank Yard? Here’s the Order to Landscape It in NC By Ken Erickson · Updated August 2026 You just moved to the southern Raleigh suburbs – Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs, Cary, Apex, maybe out toward Lillington. You have got a new house, and like most houses around here it was built on old farmland….
Storm and Hurricane Prep for Your Landscape and Trees in North Carolina By Ken Erickson · Updated June 2026 Good storm prep for trees starts long before the forecast. We do not get direct hurricane hits out here in the Triangle, but we get the remnants – the heavy rain and gusty wind bands that…
How to Install Drip Irrigation for Your Beds (DIY Guide, and When to Call a Pro) By Ken Erickson · Updated June 2026 Drip irrigation for garden beds puts water right at the roots and cuts your watering in half. If you are hand-watering beds or running a spray zone over your shrubs, you are…
Modern Landscape Design Elements: How to Give Your Yard a Clean, Current Look By Ken Erickson · Updated June 2026 Walk past a yard with a clean, current look and you can feel it even if you cannot name it – it looks calm, intentional, uncluttered. That is modern landscape design, and it is less…
Mulch vs Pine Straw: What Actually Works in North Carolina Clay By Ken Erickson · Updated July 2026 Mulch vs pine straw comes down to cost, looks, and how often you want to redo it. I’ll tell you what I did in my own yard. I moved to the Raleigh suburbs about 15 years ago…
