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Gardening Advice
A hot, dry summer can be tough on gardens, but lawns are suffering as well. If yours looks like the winner of an ugly lawn contest, don’t despair: There are a few things you can do to help it recover and improve its looks for next year.Start with healthy soil. Fall is the perfect time for a soil test to see what nutrients yours is lacking and fertilize accordingly. Add lime or wood ashes if…
Flowers are starting to appear for sale in the garden centers—and that means pansies. Get to know this old-fashioned “flower with a face” and discover 10 different varieties!Growing PansiesOften, gardeners overlook pansies as being temporary “throw-away” plants, but most are actually half-hardy annuals, which means that you should get at least two seasons of bloom from them.…
Imagine just walking outside your kitchen to your own food garden—gathering golden cherry tomatoes, juicy strawberries, or sweet-as-candy peas off the vine. Food this fresh is more delicious and nutritious! See how to plant a kitchen garden, based on what you actually like to eat.Cultivating a garden full of your favorite vegetables also makes meal planning a snap and inspires new, healthier ways…
Want to start your first vegetable garden? How hard can it be? Just stick a few seeds in the ground and stand back, right? If only it were that easy! Here are 10 garden planning tips to consider before you dig in. 10 Tips For Starting a Garden1. Pick the right location—ideally, a sunny site! Most vegetables need at least 6 hours of sun a day. Some crops such as lettuce and spinach,…
Orchids have babies! Yes, many orchids grow baby plants, or “keikis.” You can remove these plantlets and pot them up to grow more orchids. Here’s how it’s done.I have a Phalaenopsis “moth orchid” which is one of the more common orchids, especially for beginners. This orchid and many others (including Vanda, Dendrobium and Catasetum) can be easily propagated by removing their “keiki”…
Color is lacking during the colder months, so I am always glad to see new seasonal plants at the stores. One plant I can’t resist is the kalanchoe. The clusters of starlike, cheerful flowers are long-lived and can add a happy note to a gloomy day. Learn more about this flowering succulent!The laziest gardener is almost guaranteed success. The kalanchoe is very low-maintenance to the point of…
To conserve water and save yourself some money, consider adding a rain barrel to your yard. Rain barrels are positioned to catch rainwater from your roof, which cuts down on the water bill. Plus, rainwater is great for plants!Water is a precious resource. In many areas of the country, water bans are becoming an annual occurrence as summers get hotter and drier and populations increase. This…
It’s that red berry time of year, and with bunches of fresh holly leaves or branches of winterberries going for $5 to $10 apiece, it only makes sense to try growing these winter beauties at home! Here’s what to know about these easy-to-grow shrubs.Growing WinterberryWinterberry (Ilex verticillata) is one of several native North American hollies. It grows 5 to 15 feet tall depending…
“If I only had a greenhouse, I could grow …” We’ve all thought about it! We plantaholics can never have too much space for plants. If you are planning a greenhouse project, here are ten things to consider when choosing the perfect greenhouse structure.10 Tips for Choosing a GreenhousePurpose: What do you plan to do with your greenhouse? Use it as a season extender or for year-round…
Do you know your winter squash? The squash is part of American history, having started as a native vegetable grown by the Wampanoag people. Today, there are dozens of squash varieties, ranging in shape, size, and color! They’re so convenient because they will last many weeks (or months) and are easily worked into so many dishes. Here’s a quick guide to our favorite types of squash for…
Last week, I gathered some lemon verbena, dried the leaves, and steeped in a tea. This “nervine herb” has an immediately relaxing quality. Many of modern society’s drugs have come from Mother Nature, so let’s come back down to earth! Here are 5 naturally-calming herbs that reduce stress!We are living in uncertain times that can cause even the calmest person to experience some…
Summer fades away, but the asters are just getting started, adding splashes of lavender, purple, and pink to the fall garden. Also known as Michaelmas daisies, asters are a lovely addition to the autumn landscape!A native American plant, the aster got its name from the ancient Greek and Latin words for “star,” describing its radiant blossoms. (Another of its common names is starwort.)As…
