Sunny yellow blooms fringed with a green ruff green poking through snow is my first sign that spring has sprung. Eranthis hyamalis, in the buttercup family, is a spring ephemeral, which means that it is a short-lived plant above ground with a burst of blooms, then disappears, remaining under ground until next winter. Beaming …
Continue reading "Winter Aconite-The Bulb That Keeps Giving"
Davidia involucrata, commonly called dove tree, is a tree that I have known about for twenty years, but rarely have seen in the U.S. On my travels through the UK, I have seen many beautiful specimens and am inspired to plant my own. Now I am ready to get one, if I can find one. …
Continue reading "Plant Lust-Dove Tree"
No flower says Christmas like the beautiful Poinsettia. I was amazed to learn that the Poinsettia is the most popular potted plant by far in the U.S. and Canada. Here are some other interesting tidbits: History & Legends The Poinsettia, Euphorbia pulcherrima, means "very beautiful" The showy leaves or petals, called "bracts", are not the actual flower. The …
Continue reading "Poinsettia-Christmas Customs & Traditions"
Pumpkin on a Stick is actually an eggplant but looks like tiny dancing pumpkins. Easy to grow, you can use them in stir fry dishes or dry for fall arrangements.
If you want to grow the ultimate flower buffet for butterflies and bees, try Joe Pye Weed. When there isn't much else blooming, Joe Pye will surprise you with fuzzy pink umbels of flowers that flying insects clearly relish. I planted only one plant of the great late summer bloomer, Eupatorium dubium, 'Little Joe', which …
Continue reading "Butterfly and Bee Magnet, Joe Pye Weed"
Now is the perfect time to plant Cool Season Annuals for a quick pick me up color show after a cold winter. Larkspur, Poppies, Bells of Ireland, Calendula, Clarkia, and Love-in-the-Mist are great choices for your spring garden.
Have you ever been in the check out line at the grocery store and seen packaged Mistletoe with white plastic berries? A familiar sight around Christmas, I was always intrigued about this plant but never knew much about it. A recent trip to the coast of North Carolina opened my eyes to the stomping grounds …
Continue reading "Mistletoe – A Sprig of Romance and Legend"
From July to a killing frost in October, dahlias dominate my garden with their many petaled lushly colored flowers. Except for a true blue, you can find just about every flower color in a dahlia. Sizes can vary from an enormous 12 inch dinner plate to small button pom poms. Bee magnet blooms cover my …
Continue reading "Dahlias-Divas of the Garden"
Welcome heirloom annuals back into the garden. Blending seamlessly with perennials and shrubs, old fashioned annuals will inject a long lasting blast of color into your garden.
Black flowers bring excitement and drama to the garden and can transform flower borders and containers from the expected to the extraordinary.
