Bee-Friendly Plants for Your Landscaping

Reports show that the population of bees has continued to fall, putting food security at risk as they play a crucial role in pollination. The fast population decline can be attributed to the continued use of agricultural chemicals, climate change, and other factors such as urban development. When landscaping or setting up your garden, don’t only think about how good […]

Oxypetalum caeruleum – A Good Blue Tender Perennial

Oxypetalum caeruleum is a South American member of the Milkweed Family which deserves to be better known. A reference to it in an English gardening magazine aroused my interest, and in the summer I sowed a packet of seeds in a flat. They germinated well, and in the autumn the little plants were potted up, and placed in the greenhouse […]

Growers Guide for Dichorisandra – Blue ginger

A genus of herbaceous perennial plants from tropical America, grown mainly for their ornamental foliage, though some also have showy flowers. They need warm greenhouse treatment in cooler areas. From the Greek dis, twice, chorizo, to part, aner, anther, referring to the 2-valved anthers (Commelinaceae). Species grown today Where to Plant and Grow Dichorisandra These plants are potted up in […]

OUTER SPACE FLOWERS – Gardening

In many places in the United States columbines (Aquilegia ssp.) still grow wild. Highbrow hybrids dominate the marketplace, but even they seem to retain some of that wildness. While cleaning out an overgrown greenhouse once, I noticed columbines of indeterminate variety growing up through the cracks between the slate floor’s slabs. In my own garden they tend to self-seed, coming […]

Controlling Animal Pests in the Flower Garden

Although insect pests and plant diseases are generally easy to control in the flower garden, animal pests are not. For one, much of our wildlife is protected by law and can’t be indiscriminately eliminated. You may have variable success with repellents, depending on your location or timing. If the animals are not very hungry or population pressures are not too […]

Herbal plants offered today

The plants offered to gardeners or non-gardeners at nurseries, garden centers and the corner store vary immensely.  They may be culinary herbs suitable for all sorts of savory dishes, or valued for their blooms or can be used medicinally. In this article, we look at all three distinctions in all the plants listed.    As the plants are used for these […]

Sorting Seeds

Since confession is good for the soul, I feel compelled to say that I always order too many seeds.  And since making excuses is one of the hallmarks of the human condition, I will also say that my seed surplus is not entirely my fault.  Seed companies and garden magazines and charities send me all kinds of small seed packets […]

What’s in a Plant Name?

A few weeks ago, I went to the garden center to buy some pansies to put in decorative pots by my front porch. In my experience, pansies hold up even after the mums bite the dust, and they provide color just about as long as anyone has a right to expect color from a garden plant. I arrived and found […]

Update your home cottage garden landscape.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of landscaping is reviving the gardens of older properties, where generations have pottered and pruned. The Cottage Garden Challenge We had been asked to restore the charm of a cottage garden. The clients knew that the garden looked rather tired and dated. The lawns were bare, and the concrete paths and driveway were crumbling. […]

Planning the perfect garden

Before planting a garden, considerable thought must be taken to ensure important features are correct. There are many factors to consider when considering a garden surface. The light availability, soil structure, and PH level, water availability, and buildings or other structures around all contribute to the location of the proposed garden. Other things to contemplate are the different garden styles […]