A vibrant, open entry arbor covered in fragrant Clematis will not only invite your visitors from the sidewalk into an enchanting garden scene, but also provide the necessary transition for the paths that lead to and from your undiscovered garden rooms. Connecting a fence to each side of the arbor can also provide a place for vines to climb, as […]

Gaining Ground Garden Design – Tough Plants for tough places Helpful Hints Add ground cover shrubs such as Dwarf Mountain Pine and Juniper or upright evergreens to provide winter interest Plant Sedum, Thymus and Delosperma on rock ledges or above retaining walls to crate a cascading effect. Create a winding path of Creeping Thyme through your ground cover garden to […]

Garden for Children The perfect garden design Helpful Hints Plant this garden surrounding your children’s play area or sand box. Play word games with your children to help them indentify and remember each plant in the children’s garden. Aruncus is commonly named Goat’s Beard and Stachys is called Lamb’s ear Ask your children where they would most like to see […]

Hot and Humid Garden Design Helpful Hints Subsitute Pennisetum ‘Little Bunny’ for Deschampsia ‘Bronze Veil’, and this could be a Zone 4 collection. Protect your garden from the blazing afternoon sun by planting deciduous or coniferous trees that provide high open shade. Fight drainage problems with mounded planting beds and gravel paths. Give your garden perennials plenty of space to […]

Late Season Garden Design for Sun Helpful Hints Substituting Caamagrostis ‘Karl Foerster’ or Miscanthus “Sarbande’ can make this garden zone 5 collection. Add shrubs such as Burning Bush, Fothergilla, and double-file Viburnum to the garden for dramatic autumn display Keep the grass stalks until late winter or early spring before pruning This garden collection has a huge assortment of perennials […]

Have you grown weary of the all-too-common Juniper-and-Yew combination that flanks your front door? Wouldn’t it be nice to create a setting that says “Welcome” in a charming, personal way? That task is challenging if you have a front yard that gets only a few hours of sun during the day. Inspired by the natural beauty of a woodland garden, […]

If there is a damp spot in your yard that you have always thought was a problem, don’t give up. Whether it’s an area that doesn’t drain well, floods periodically, or borders a pond or stream, let that unique situation become an intriguing, one-of-a-kind garden spot (as well as a beautiful habitat for wildlife) by selecting plants that thrive in […]

The Arctic-style winters of the northern United States (Hardiness Zones 3-5) need not be a reason to deny yourself a beautiful garden. Many favorites perennials have the wonderful ability to hunker down and hibernate during a long, sub-zero winter, then awake for an intense season of growth and bloom. In fact, many plants actually require this cold dormancy as part […]

Driveway or Sidewalk Garden Designs Planting perennials along often-used walks or driveways is one of the best ways to view your garden daily. This strip of garden can be extended or short‑ ened as needed. Because this planting may be used along a driveway, the selected plants are primarily two feet or less in height, so they will not obstruct […]