Book Review: Growing Perfect Vegetables
Karen From the Mel Bartholomew Foundation of Square Foot Gardening fame comes this book about recognizing when fruits and vegetables are ripe, picking, and storing them. It is not about growing…
Edible Mushrooms: Black Truffle (Tuber melanosporum)
Also called the Perigord truffle, this justly famous fungus is native to southern Europe where it grows singly, two to twenty inches below soil level among tree roots in red…
Plant Profile: American Linden (Tilia americana)
Also called American basswood, this medium to large deciduous tree is native to eastern US and southern Canada, and is a member of the mallow family, Malvaceae, that also includes…
The Language of Flowers: Pheasant’s Eye (Adonis autumnalis aka A. annua)
Also called red Morocco, blooddrops, red chamomile, rose-a-ruby and soldiers-in-the-green, this colorful annual is a member of the buttercup family, Ranuncluaceae, that also includes anemone, hellebore, and nigella. It is…
Plant Profile: Rose Escapade
Bright crimson buds open to lilac pink flowers with white centers and conspicuous yellow stamens. The flowers fade to pale pink in hot climates creating a lovely effect with many…
Plant Profile: Rosa Mille Cecile Brunner
elegant buds open to large airy clusters of 10-25 flowers with Hybrid Tea form. Each flower has pink petals with yellow undertones and lighter pink edges but fade in the…
Book Review: Bug lab for Kids
John E. Guyon’s book, Bug Lab for Kids, is a dynamite introduction to entomology for children! It introduces readers to the methods and type of thinking that characterizes real scientists…
Old Time Recipes for Home Made Wines: Pea Shell Beer
Making beer from peas goes back to 17th century England when brewers and distillers were using peas and other legumes to make alcoholic beverages. Of course they were using other…
Plant Profile: Ankara Crocus (Crocus ancyrensis)
Ankara crocus is a perennial plant and a member of the iris family, Iridaceae, that also includes gladiola, freesia, and crocosmia. It is endemic to Turkey, Pakistan, and Afghanistan where…
Plant Combination: Jupiter’s Beard (Centranthus ruber var. coccineus) and Perennial Cornflower (Centaurea montana)
The beauty of the combination lies in finding just the right color echo by matching the crimson red of the Jupiter’s beard to the red center of the perennial cornflower.…