Edible Mushrooms: Chestnut Bolete (Gyroporus castaneus)
Karen The chestnut bolete usually grows in small groups in deciduous forests of Eastern US from summer to fall. It is especially fond of oak stands but also can be found…
Plant Profile: Yellow Pond Lily (Nuphar lutea)
Also called brandy-bottle and spattercock, this aquatic deciduous perennial is a member of the Nymphaeaceae, a family of 75 specie of aquatic plants including and water lily. It is native…
Book Review: Seeds of Resistance
As our food supply is increasingly threatened by climate change, the importance of agricultural practices become more important and Mark Schapiro’s book, Seeds of Resistance, examines one of these: the…
Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects: Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis)
This short lived perennial is native to southern Europe and North Africa but has naturalized in much of Europe where it is grown as an annual. It is a member…
Plant Profile: California Sea Lavender (Limonium californicum)
Also called western marsh rosemary, this mounding evergreen herb or subshrub is a member of the leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae, that also includes thrift. It is native to western US from…
Genus Lychnis for the Garden
This genus of fifteen to twenty-five species is native to Europe, Asia, and north Africa and belongs to the family Caryophyllaceae, also known as the pink or carnation family. The…
Plant Profile: Winterfat (Krascheninnikovia lanata aka Ceratoides lanata)
Winterfat is a long-lived evergreen small shrub and member of the amaranth family, Amaranthaceae, that also includes celosia, spinach and beet. It is native to western North America from Saskatchewan…
Book Review: And Then the Seed Grew
Marianne Dubuc book And Then the Seed Grew explores how a community of characters that live in a garden react to change. The community includes Mr. Gnome and his little…
Shakespeare’s Garden: Samphire
The samphire mentioned by Shakespeare is probably rock samphire, Crithmum maritimum, a coastal species which grows on the southern and western coasts of Great Britain and Ireland, as well as…
Plant Profile: California Interior Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum var. polifolium)
Also known as eastern mojave buckwheat, this rounded evergreen shrub or subshrub is a member of the knotweed family, Polygonaceae, that also includes rhubarb, dock and sea grape. It is…