It’s too early to tell yet whether the coming growing season will bring us abundant rain or if the dry weather trend that gave us a relatively easy winter will continue through the summer. As of last week, almost 50% of the Midwest was considered abnormally dry or under moderate drought conditions, with Winnebago County [Continue]
When my husband and I decided to attack the long overdue task of cleaning out our file cabinets, he found some old papers he’d brought home from work years ago that had been printed on a dot matrix printer, on that continuous feed computer paper with the holes down the sides. He took a photo [Continue]
The Perennial Plant Association has named Geranium x cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’ the Perennial Plant of the Year for 2015. For starters, here is how it is pronounced: jer-AY-nee-um kan-tuh-brij-ee-EN-see bi-o-KO-vo. Notice that this is a perennial plant, not the potted annual geraniums that you buy by the dozen. ‘Biokovo’ has many wonderful qualities, and when I [Continue]
Marigolds have long held a place in flower beds, so much so that they have almost become overused. Still, they are perfect for formal beds, as they know their bounds and are clean, neat and upright, never sprawling in an ungainly manner or becoming leggy and untidy. Beginning gardeners often turn to marigolds because they [Continue]
One of the most rewarding parts of growing herbs is the pleasure you get from working around them in the garden. Herbs give off lovely scents and brushing against them releases a delightful fragrance. Here are some undemanding herbs for your garden. Parsley can be grown from seed, but it takes up to six weeks [Continue]
One of the definitions of herbs is “the useful plants.” What a dull and boring definition for a group of plants that impart so much joy through their beauty, scent, taste, and yes, usefulness. You need not have a dedicated herb garden to enjoy herbs. They can be tucked into a flower bed or vegetable [Continue]
Here in Wisconsin, mistletoe comes to mind only at Christmas time, and then only to those hoping to kiss or be kissed beneath it. Come January, nobody gives it another thought. It’s not that way in some parts of the U.S., but we’ll get to that later. The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe comes [Continue]
Herbal Gifts Herbs from your garden can form the basis for a healing salve, lip balm, soothing hand cream or solid perfume. All have the same three ingredients: an herb-infused oil, beeswax and vitamin E oil. Varying the amount of infused oil and beeswax is what changes the outcome. The first step is to [Continue]
No need to splurge at the florist for a centerpiece to decorate your Thanksgiving table. Look around outdoors and you’ll find all you need. Prairie plantings abound with stiff-stemmed flowers topped with interesting dried seedheads. The prickly tops of spent purple coneflowers are classic. The rattling pods of wild indigo hang on the stems all [Continue]
In September, my dear great-aunt Rose passed away at age 100. All the plants at her funeral were the same and my aunt Karen, who made the funeral arrangements, had ordered twenty so that each of the cousins could take one home. Bets were made back and forth as to who could keep their plant [Continue]