Comprehensive Gardening Resource
Purple Ragwort – SENECIO (Jacobaea) – Purple Groundsel (Latin from senex, old man, refers to gray pappus of seeds) In English gardens one finds a lovely dwarf annual listed as a Jacobaea, Senecio elegans, which grows less than 18 inches tall and is completely covered with double purple, crimson or white flowers, not unlike a double Cineraria of the greenhouse. […]
At last, the Zinnia has come into its own. Because it is of easy culture and does well for anyone, it has in the past been admired less than it deserves. Recently the seed growers of California have developed enormous flowers of unusual shapes and with excellent colors. We may now obtain clear rose, rich purple, golden yellows, the palest […]
From the Latin lupus, a wolf (destroyer), because it was thought that the plants depleted the fertility of the soil by sheer numbers (Leguminosae). Lupine. A genus of over 300 species of annuals, perennials, and subshrubs, mainly from North America, though there are a few Mediterranean species which, since Roman times, have been used for green manuring. This is surprising […]
Asphodel – King’s Spear The classic Asphodel is rarely seen in gardens although its interesting, tall and stately spikes of yellow and white flowers are of interest to garden lovers. The Asphodels are variously cataloged as Asphodeline and Asphodelus; the former genus is erect and has leafy stems, the latter is stemless. In Asphcdeline lutea the flowers are sweet scented […]
How often we are tempted to praise the beauties of some foreign flower while our excellent native ones pass by with little attention. There are many sorts of Eupatoriums and most of them can be found growing wild in our own country. The hardy Ageratum or Mist, Flower (Eupatorium or Conoclinium calestinum) has myriads of small, fluffy, azure-blue flowers which […]
The Chinese Balloon Flower is very closely allied to the Campanulas. It grows erect and the stems are rigid. The flowers have five petals and open out rather flat, but when in bud they look like inflated balloons, from whence the common name is derived. The flowers are both single and double. They are blue and white in color and […]
Anemones To say that the Japanese Anemone is one of the best fall flowers would be an understatement-it is the best. Here is a plant and flower with real charm, refinement, and sophistication. The plant grows from 1 to 5 feet- tall, is erect and stately. Foliage is glossy and brilliant. Flowers are more or less saucer-shaped and vary from […]
If you need an attractive low growing plant to use as a Border to conceal the scrappily base of rosebushes or to mask the water faucet on the side of your house, try oxalis. Or if you’ve a narrow park-way too difficult to mow easily or an area underneath an air vent in a house wall, oxalis will meet this […]
How to grow Dipsacus (dip-sa-kus) From the Greek dipsao, to thirst, a reference to the water-holding cavity formed by the leaves united round the stem (Dipsaceae). Teasel. Biennial or perennial herbs, stiff, erect, rough plants with spiny or prickly stems and fruits, some of which can be found wild in Great Britain. The heads have long been used to tease […]
How to Propagate and Grow These Amazingly Handsome Shrubs Evergreen shrubs and trees from China and Japan, belonging to the Tea family, Theaceae. They are adapted for outdoor cultivation in the milder parts of the United States, but in the North need greenhouse protection. Their beautiful flowers, single, partially double, or double, varying in color from white, through pink, to […]