The form and size of a herb garden is determined by the interest these plants hold for the individual. It can be a tiny border of commonly used culinary herbs such as mint, parsley, sage and thyme or an elaborate garden designed to house a wide collection of herbs. Many plants could legitimately be included in one of these large […]
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 […]
TORENIA (Wishbone flower), Annual Flower Information
The Wishbone flower is a gem. Those who have not tried this annual, nor seen it growing, have a pleasant surprise in store for them if they will raise a few plants. The flowers of Torenia fournieri are violet and lavender with a prominent yellow blotch on the lip. There is a less attractive white variety. In the center, the […]
Salvia – Sage, Perennials Guide to Planting Flowers
Saliva – Sage LIGHT BLUE SALVIAS. Salvia Azurea grandiflora. This species is one of great beauty, bearing light azure colored flowers in great profusion upon tall, slender spikes. The plants grow from 3 feet to 4 feet tall and bloom from August until frost. S. farinaceaclosely resembles the former species, except that the calyx ; enclosing the flowers is a […]
Cerastium – Snow-in-Summer, Mouse-ear Chickweed, Perennials Guide to Planting Flowers
Snow-in-Summer is surely a very descriptive name for this low growing, white flowered and silvery foliaged plant. There are myriads of small white flowers produced in June from a dense mat of growth. Cerastium tomentosum is the common species and grows about 6 inches high. C. Biebersteinii is very similar but grows a little taller and has larger flowers. C. […]
The pleasure of herbs should be in every garden
Herbs, in my opinion should be grown in every garden. Not requiring a lot of space or care, the benefits are immense. Think about various dishes that are made and you will find at least one herb flavouring it; potatoes and chives or lovage, tomatoes and basil, spaghetti sauce and oregano, and many more. Herbs like other plants fall into […]
Catnip for your garden
I subscribe to a lot of gardening magazines.Each one is a bit different, but there are some things that are common to all of them.At least every other month, a reader writes in to Horticulture or Fine Gardening or Garden Design to ask about ways of keeping cats out of the garden.The litany of feline evils is always the same: […]
Bergenia – Perennial Plant, How to grow
How to grow Bergenia (ber-gen-i-a) Named for Karl August von Bergen, 1704-60, German botanist (Saxifragaceae). These hardy perennial herbaceous plants with large evergreen leaves were at one time called megasea, and were at another time included with the saxifrages. The flowers which come in early spring are showy in white, pink or red-purple, borne in large heads on long stems. […]
Salvia – Perennial Plant, How to grow
From the Latin salveo, meaning save or heal, used by Pliny with reference to the medicinal qualities of some species (Labiatae). A large genus of over 700 species of hardy, half-hardy and tender annual, biennial, perennial plants and shrubs, some with aromatic leaves, widely distributed in the temperate and warmer zones. It includes the common sage, S. officinalis, a valuable […]
STRELITZIA Bird of Paradise Flower (Strelit’zia)
STRELITZIA — Bird of Paradise Flower (Strelit’zia) A group of tender perennial plants, only one of which is commonly grown. This is Strelitzia Reginae, which has large ornamental leaves on long strong petioles (leafstalks), and bears brilliant orange and purple flowers, several together within a large bract, on stems 3 ft. or more high in spring. It is a native […]