Summer is at its height, but the smart gardener is always thinking ahead. Fall will be with us all too soon, and if you want to continue the garden fun and beauty into that special season, it’s time to take inventory and add some plants that will make it an even better season for you. We always think of fall leaves when thinking about the...
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Boxwood shrubs – as hedges of different sizes, clipped shapes or growing naturally – are the backbone of the structure of many gardens. Boundaries and edgings are the easiest way to bring order to a garden, and make your other plants stand out. Whether its edging a path or driveway, adding accents around your home, or simply putting evergreen permanence into a bed of deciduous...
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As we enter the hot days of August, our gardens can begin to look a bit tired. The heat and drier conditions mean that the flowers of spring and early summer have faded, and often there is little color to be seen. Smart gardeners plan for this, and make sure they grow some plants that will carry on through the heat and drought, brightening the...
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Crape Myrtles (Lagerstroemia) are very popular shrubs for warmer areas, and no wonder. They have spectacular blooms for an extended period, grow well in poor soil, and are heat and drought resistant. They also come in many sizes, so there is a plant for every purpose around the garden, from specimen tree to low shrub or container plant. If you grow Crape Myrtles in your...
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Planting a tree is always a great moment – most trees have longer lives than we do, and although a newly-planted tree will be a beautiful addition to our gardens after just a few years of growth, we can expect most trees we plant to live longer than we do, reaching their full glory when we are gone, so tree planting is always a special...
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Across most of the country, you will see, and probably have in your garden, cedar trees. The name ‘cedar’ was given by the early settlers to several tall evergreen trees they found in the new land. In the east we have ‘white cedar’, and out west there are two trees called ‘red cedar’, ‘Alaskan cedar’, and ‘incense cedar’. As well there is ‘eastern red cedar’,...
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It has not been all that many years since grass had only one place in the garden – green and mowed weekly on the lawn. It took some adventurous growers and garden designers to open our eyes to the beauty of grass – not short and green, but tall and golden, ornamented with striking plumes flowers and seeds. The increased interested in grasses coincided with...
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There is a big push these days to use less water on our gardens. Periods of drought, limitations on city water supplies, concerns about long-term freshwater availability, and increased costs to home-owners – all these things point in the direction of ‘water-wise’ gardening. There is also much more emphasis on growing trees suited for your local region, rather than struggling to grow plants from moister...
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New gardeners quickly hear about this thing called ‘mulch’, but often all that hear is, ‘mulch regularly’, or ‘use mulch for weed control’ – without getting any real idea of what it is, what is so good about it, or the best ways to use it. Mulch, properly chosen and applied, is a substantial benefit to your garden, and can really deliver top results. So...
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Planting a tree is an action full of hope. We hope that our tree will grow and flourish, living out its life – which will certainly be decades, and perhaps even a hundred years or more – free of problems that threaten it. This is usually true, trees are remarkably tough, and most grow and survive without problems. But some don’t. Sometimes it is a...
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Holly is one of the most popular broad-leaf evergreens. It’s deep-green glossy leaves look great in the garden all year round, and the winter bonus of bright red berries really brings color and interest at a low time in the garden. Plus, it’s traditional for the holiday season, so you can make your own wreathes and garlands to brighten your home. For hedges or specimens,...
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A drive around any older neighborhood will quickly show you giant trees right up against houses, blocking windows, damaging foundations and drains, and making rooms dark and gloomy. Bad decisions about planting distances are easy to find, so why are they made? The biggest single reason for poor tree placement is the way we see plants as cute and small, and our wish to surround...
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If you have gardened in colder parts of the country for a long time, you will remember the ubiquitous PG Hydrangea, still seen in many gardens. It’s a standard shrub for later flowering – reliable, hardy, but with several faults that make it a long way short of perfect. To begin with, it grows quite large – older plants that have not been regularly pruned...
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Wherever you garden, even in cooler climate zones, you can have hot, dry areas in your garden. Those places that bask in the sun all day, perhaps with sandy or rocky soil that dries out quickly and leaves your plants looking sad and droopy. Sometimes too, if you have wide eaves, there are dry areas at the foot of a south or west-facing wall, that...
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Spring is the big season in the garden, and this is when we all go out and look at our gardens, to see what we can grow that will make them more beautiful. Evergreens are popular choices for easy-care gardening, and pines trees stand out for their very different appearance, and suitability for many different areas. Pines have a special kind of beauty, and their...
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Japanese and Asian-themed gardens are amazingly popular – and no wonder. They combine beauty with serenity, and by using just a few carefully chosen plants they create low-maintenance gardens, turning a few plants and rocks into a place of beauty. They are also perfect for smaller spaces, and courtyards, which are becoming increasingly common, especially in urban areas. You can even create an Asian ambience...
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The single biggest trend in gardening over the last couple of decades has been the growing of native plants. An interest in the environment, concerns about the spread of alien species – these things have made gardeners look again at plants from their own country to decorate their gardens. These are replacing some of the traditional plants used in gardens, which often come from around...
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Spring brings life back to our deciduous trees, and the delicate unfolding leaves are beautiful, no matter what the tree. But the most beautiful of all are undoubtedly the new leaves of Japanese Maples. As spring turns into summer, the leaves expand fully, and again, in Japanese Maples their form and coloring make them stand out. When fall rolls round, it is Japanese Maples that...
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Travel in late summer through the colder states, especially in the north-east, and everywhere – in parks, private gardens, and even cemeteries – you will see a bush with large white flower heads, perhaps beginning to turn pink as the nights cool. It may be a bushy plant, or it may be tree-like, on a tall single stem. Old plants may be 15 feet tall....
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A big trend in gardening is growing native plants. This began with wildflowers, but it has spread to trees and shrubs too, especially with all the alarming stories of invasive species escaping gardens and interfering with the natural ecology of wild areas. These plants can cause significant problems, so many gardeners want to grow native plants, making their gardening fit in more closely with the...
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Especially in colder parts of the country, it can be a long wait for spring. When the snow begins to melt, and the days lengthen, we can become impatient to see some signs of life in our gardens – but many plants just keep sitting there. They are not stupid, because spring can suddenly turn back to winter, and early bloomers can have their blossoms...
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Everyone knows that in real estate the secret is ‘location, location, location’, but many gardeners don’t realize that the secret of good gardens is ‘soil, soil, soil’. That doesn’t mean you have to have that perfect soil that other people always seem to have – it means that with the right input, almost any soil can be almost perfect. Like life, it is what we...
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After the cold, dreary months of winter, spring has a habit of jumping out at us, and taking us by surprise. We may be grateful to see her (or him), but we are all too often not ready, and get caught by surprise. To get the best of out what is undoubtedly the best season of the year, especially if you live in colder parts...
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Growing oranges, lemons, limes or other citrus fruits in pots is a popular activity. Planting them in a container means you can grow your own citrus, no matter where you live. They spend most of their time outdoors, in a sunny place, and then when the temperatures dips, you bring them inside to a cool, bright room. You can find details on this in another...
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