Ever since I saw a slide of England’s Royal Botanical Garden at Kew’s amorphophallus ‘Titan’, the biggest and smelliest flower on the planet in 1997, I wanted one.
read moreGet inspired as Doreen G. Howard shares her backyard gardening tips. After all, she has grown more than 300 varieties of heirloom edibles and flowers the past two decades! Enjoy a nice mix of garden chat from news about exciting new vegetables to advice on container gardening to photos of unusual houseplants growing in her home! Doreen welcomes questions from everyone in the gardening community, from the expert to the enthusiast. This is your chance to ask all your puzzling plant care questions and just stay informed about the world of gardening. Check it out and tell us what you think!
My Dream Come True: The Smelliest Flower in the World
August 27, 2012
More Winding Down a Difficult Season
August 11, 2012
If you garden in an area not affected by drought, you may wonder why I’m obsessing.
read moreWinding Down a Difficult Season
August 5, 2012
Despite the severe drought covering two-thirds of the country, we still have vegetables to harvest, perennials to deadhead and clean-up chores to do so that gardens thrive next spring.
read moreZucchini Fertility Spawns Annual Holiday
July 23, 2012
Every gardener who has grown zucchini and other summer squash types such as patty pan and yellow crookneck knows that this time of year vines go crazy producing hundreds of tiny squash. They quickly grow to gargantuan size if not picked.
read moreHerb Garden Solutions
July 16, 2012
Mint is an invasive thug in my garden and everyone else’s. Runners spread rapidly and can choke out perennials and annuals in flower beds.
read moreNew Plants and a Blueberry Recall
July 4, 2012
A trio of perennial plant "stars" are lighting up my drought-stricken garden this summer.
read moreWhat Wacky Weather Wrought
June 22, 2012
Coral, burgundy and copper chrysanthemums are blooming in my garden. It’s June, not October! Mums are short-day (photoperiodic) plants that bud and flower only when nights are longer than days, usually after the Summer Solstice.
read moreStraw Turns to Gold
June 10, 2012
No, I’m not Rumplestiltskin, the cranky gnome in a Grimm fairy tale; I can’t spin straw into gold. But, straw saves me money, crops and my sanity, which is golden to my thinking.
read moreOld Roses are Tough and Gorgeous
May 28, 2012
The only hybrid tea rose that will survive in my -20F winters is ‘Cherry Parfait’. It’s beautiful, but has no fragrance. What does survive and thrive are old or antique roses.
read moreTomatoes: Fruit or Vegetable?
May 17, 2012
Last blog I asked you what edibles you would plant if you were limited to only three. The response was overwhelming, with tomatoes topping everyone’s list.
This week, I’m sharing a few bits of tomato trivia and a number of gardening tips for big, healthy harvest.
read morePick Three!
May 3, 2012
A gray-bearded man in the audience stood up and asked me, “If you could only pick three edible plants to grow, what would they be?”
read morePlant Extra for the Hungry
April 17, 2012
Red, white and blue potatoes are in the ground. Red onion sets are planted in neat rows.
read moreAttract Butterflies for More Flowers and Joy
April 10, 2012
A couple days ago I spotted the first Monarch butterfly of the season on a dandelion.
read moreIdeas for all Seasons
April 2, 2012
I just planted ‘Jade’ cabbage and “Purple Graffiti” cauliflower plants I grew from seed amongst the waning daffodils and muscari at the edge of the perennial bed under my kitchen window.
read moreFlowers for Everyone
March 27, 2012
A number of readers asked me about which plants are the easiest to grow, what are the ones that survive anything and how can they have instant beauty.
read more


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