Perennial Gardening

The new gardener is coming to rely on perennial flowering plants to a greater extent every year. This is natural, for these plants to possess qualities, which enable them to fill satisfactorily almost all gardening needs. There is danger, however, that we may select too many plants of too many varieties and undertake to care for a larger garden than […]

Perennials for Edging

Edging your garden provides a clean crisp look. Your garden borders will stand out when there’s a clean edge between the planting area and your landscape paths, driveway, sidewalk, and your lawn. Common edging, such as stone, wood, or brick, provide an optimal appearance keeping the plants in the garden bed while keeping the lawn out, but it isn’t always […]

Planting the vegetable seed

Planting the vegetable seed There is no part of the garden work which calls for such nice judgment and careful attention as the sowing of seed. Most of the failures originate right here, and a large share of the blame devoted to the seeds and seedsman, if traced back to its original source, would be found to rest on the […]

Beans How to grow and care for this vegetable

What to know about vegetable beans. BEANS: THE PRINCIPAL TYPES Full Details of How to Grow These Nutritious Vegetables Beans as a group constitute one of the largest vegetable food crops; their culture is extensive and widespread. They mature crops quickly when used as green vegetables, thrive successfully in most temperate and warm climates, and are valuable items in the […]

How to prune roses this Spring

SPRING PRUNING of established roses is always a gamble. If you prune too early, late spring frosts can kill all the canes. If you prune too late, some of the plants’ strength will be lost in the growth of the top shoots (spinach). You and you alone must be the judge of when to prune your roses. All roses must […]

First Signs of Spring

I am lucky. Gardening has always been a slightly guilty pleasure for me. I used to think that it was because I never had enough time in the garden. Now I am positive that I would feel the same way even if I had all the time in the world. As a little more light and a bit more warmth […]

Grow Your Own Peas

The pea is a vegetable which helps the soil, has an interesting history, is easy to grow, and is a more versatile food than you might know.  It is loaded with helpful vitamins, protective phytonutrients that provide antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits, protein and fiber.  They’re low in fats but, what they have, are healthy omega-3 fats.  Some research (whfoods.org) indicates […]

Planting plants in pots

There are several important stages in the cultivation of a plant and one of these is the planting of plants in pots. This is known as potting. The move is dictated by the vigor of the plant, especially in its root system. Once it outgrows its original soil area in a pot it is necessary to provide more room for […]

Plumbago Passion

I am very prone to love at first sight. In fact, it happened just last week. I saw a tall southerner “across a crowded room”, as the song says. My heart stood still (as another song says). I was enraptured. The tall stranger was plumbago (Plumbago auriculata, also known as Plumbago capensis), which is sometimes also known by its extremely […]

Growers Guide for Starting Seeds Indoors

I have given up indoor seed starting completely on several occasions. The first time it happened I was a novice gardener. I had ordered seeds of just about every plant that I saw in the garden catalogs without thinking about such practical things as gallons of potting soil, hours of daily watering, and square feet of windowsill space. It also […]