Nobody cares as much about somebody else's vacation as they do about their own. But I saw a couple of things on my travels in the Carolinas that I thought I would share.

The first is pine needle mulch.

Southern gardeners seem to prefer it to the pine bark mulch we use, and it makes sense...there are pine trees everywhere and they drop a lot of needles. You use what is at hand.

I guess I thought this mulch just fell from sky and gardeners raked it into place around their beds. Not so. It actually comes bundled like straw. I saw stacks of it waiting to be distributed in the many incredibly manicured beds of Hilton Head Island...which looks like one big landscaped garden, by the way. Not a bloom out of place anywhere. It must be zoned that way.

But that does not account for the pine needles that DO fall from the sky, landing on top of shrubs and flowers like a snowfall. Not to mention driveways and walkways. The result is, you hear a lot of leaf-blower noise around these gardens.

Of course, pine needles will increase the acidity of your soil, and certain plants love it: azaleas, rhododendron, chrysanthemum and roses, plus hydrangeas, oaks, hickorys, dogwood and holly. Onions, garlic, mint and tomatoes are just a few of the plants in the vegetable and herb garden which will also enjoy the acid boost. But the acidity might damage grass. If you are worried, sprinkle some lime over top.

Pine needle mulch is incredibly attractive, I think, and I have read that it contains certain retardants that stall weed germination. But that also means they can retard germination of the seeds and plants that you like. The answer is to use your nose. If the needles still smell very "piney," they contain the terpenes that you might not want.