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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As winter moves hesitantly into spring, and the worst weather has passed in your area, its time to turn your thoughts to preparing the garden for another season. If you are lucky enough to have a garden with room for some fruit trees, then this is also the time to prune them. There is no one ‘right’ date for pruning them, and some are pruned,...
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In some parts of the country the first signs of spring are already showing. In colder places there is some time to go yet, but it is not too soon to start some planning, and even start some work to prepare your garden for its best season yet. In milder areas February is the ideal time to start pruning, and in colder areas, March or...
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If you live in warmer parts of the country, where winter is shorter, and days above freezing are common, then your garden doesn’t have to be a blank canvas of twigs and leaves all winter. There are several amazing plants that bloom during the coldest, darkest days of the year, that make winter much more exciting in the garden. Even in colder areas, where snow...
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No two places on the planet have exactly the same soil, although sometimes similar types of soil can cover large areas. Plants growing in a particular place have adapted over millions of years to the local soil, so when we plant them in different soil in our gardens, it’s can be a challenge for them. Certain areas have ideal soil for certain kinds of plants,...
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In our last blog we talked about the basics of compost making. Making this ‘black gold’ from garden and kitchen waste is not only a fantastic way to put goodness into your soil, it is the ideal way to re-cycle that waste, rather than add it to garbage and land-fill. Those leaves, grass clippings, dead flowers and annual plants, and weeds too, can all be...
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The word ‘organic’ has many meanings these days, and most people probably think of ‘food grown without chemicals’ when they hear it. An older meaning is, ‘made from something natural’, and that meaning certainly applies to what some gardener’s call, ‘black gold’ – the rich mixture of decomposed material that we add to our soil to give us stronger and better plants. The proper name,...
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This quiet time in the garden, when not much is happening, is the perfect time to check out your garden, and learn more about it. The biggest stumbling-block in creating a beautiful garden is making poor choices of plants and trees. The wrong plant in the wrong place is a source of constant frustration. No one want to feel they have failed, and when your...
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Gift-giving is a big part of the holiday season. Besides family and friends, it is common to give gifts to pets too – a bone for the dog, a catnip mouse for the cat. Many people also give their gardens attention and love, so how about something special for the garden too – you wouldn’t want it to feel left out. Why not give the...
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As the first snow settles in northern areas of the country, and the fall colors become a memory everywhere, the smart gardener has by now cut down or dug up their flowering plants, raked the leaves, and perhaps even dug over their flower beds. Mulch has been spread, and the garden settles into its winter sleep – long or short, depending on where you live....
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The ideal garden is one for all seasons, and that includes the most important one of all – the Holiday Season. Many people decorate a spruce or fir in their garden with lights – and often as many of their other evergreens as they can, but there are other things we can take from the garden to decorate our homes. A little considered choice in...
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Even the name has a magical ring, and magnolia trees are among the most beautiful trees in the garden. Sometimes they can be confusing, because there are two distinct groups. So when a magnolia is pointed out to you, it may not match what you have seen before. The Kinds of Magnolias In warmer parts of the country, and especially in the south, you will...
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One of the pleasures of gardening is growing plants from outside your hardiness zone. There are many trees and bushes that will grow happily for most of the year, but in winter your own location is just too cold. The way to enjoy these plants is by growing them in pots and providing some protection during the coldest months. By doing this gardeners in the...
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