Perennials are the mainstays of our gardens but many of them bloom for only a week or two and then their show is over for the year. Coreopsis, pronounced core-ee-OP-sis, is a perennial whose bloom lasts for two or three months. Coreopsis is also known as tickseed. There are two cultivars whose flowers [Continue]
I was doing research on the Perennial Plant Association’s 2007 Perennial Plant of the Year, which is Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low,’ commonly called catmint. I started thinking of the many garden plants named after cats and dogs. First, some information on ‘Walker’s Low.’ Introduced in Europe in 1988, ‘Walker’s Low’ catmint has become increasingly [Continue]
Just because you don’t have a vegetable garden doesn’t mean there is nothing to eat growing in your yard or flower garden. Most herbs have flowers that are edible, as do many pretty annuals and perennials. Fancy restaurants use colorful blossoms as garnishes and as flavoring ingredients in many dishes and you can [Continue]
Every year brings new and exciting plants for gardeners and this year is no exception. Here are some of the latest offerings for 2007. One of the flashiest new flowering shrubs is ‘Pinky Winky’ hydrangea. Despite its rather silly name, it is a gorgeous plant with large two-toned light to dark pink flowerheads. [Continue]
The last two summers have been much drier than usual. Other parts of the country have been dealing with lack of rain for years, but in the Midwest, with a few exceptions, we’ve had ample rain for the past several decades. Xeriscaping is the term coined to describe a method of water conservation through [Continue]
Over the past decade, gardening has become the most popular leisure-time activity in the United States. There are so many benefits – physical, spiritual, the production of healthy fresh food, the satisfaction in saying “I grew it myself,” and the connection to nature. Then there is the reason most people start gardening – to [Continue]
What is the easiest, hardiest, longest-blooming, most adaptable perennial? Sedum! There are 600 species of sedum to choose from in the Northern Hemisphere. One of the most popular is Sedum ‘Autumn Joy.’ Like all sedums it has fleshy leaves that store moisture, allowing it to go at least a month without water. ‘Autumn [Continue]
October is the time to plant tulips and other bulbs. Then you wait, and wait, and wait, for April or May for them to bloom. What if you didn’t have to wait that long? What if you could have tulips and daffodils blooming in January or February and could enjoy them indoors? Well, you [Continue]
Remember the Gilligan’s Island episode where the crate of radioactive seeds floated into the lagoon? When the castaways planted them they got beets the size of Mary Ann’s head and beans as long as Gilligan’s arm. A perusal of seed catalogs I recently received convinced me that I can grow vegetables and flowers [Continue]
Near the end of June, most all the planting has been done. Besides weeding, the primary garden activity for the coming month is deadheading. Deadheading is a not very pretty name for a very pleasant activity. It means to remove spent flowers from plants before they have time to form seeds. Deadheading [Continue]