Edible Flowers: Cowslip (Primula veris)
Karen Cowslip is an evergreen or semi-evergreen perennial native to Europe and Asia. It is a member of the primrose family (Primulaceae) along with shooting star (Dodecatheon maedia), oxslip (Primula elatior)…
Plant Profile: Rose ‘The Fairy’
One of the most popular and widely grown Polyanthas, ‘The Fairy’ has mid-pink frilly double flowers that fade to almost white. They are produced in clusters of ten to forty…
Book Review : The Complete Book of Nature Craft Techniques
Getting back to basics is a good way to put new life into a favorite hobby. The Complete Book of Nature Craft Techniques, by Deborah Morgenthal and Chris Rich, provides…
Collecting Seed: Hollyhock (Alcea rosea)
Hollyhocks are handsome plants that give the garden vertical movement and bring a touch of nostalgia. They are usually treated as biennials so that seeds are collected in summer and…
Plant Profile: Virgina Sweetspire (Itea virginica)
Virginia sweetspire is a deciduous to semievergreen shrub native to eastern North America from New Jersey and Missouri south to Florida and Louisiana where it grows on stream and pond…
Garden Plants for Flower Arrangements: Spotted Laurel (Acuba japonica)
Spotted laurel is a broad leaf evergreen shrub native to China, Japan and Korea where it grows in moist forest soils. Its variegated forms are very useful in both the…
Plant Profile: Carolina Jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens)
This rapidly growing, climbing or trailing woody vine is evergreen and a member of the logan family, Loganiaceae, a group made up of about thirteen genera many of which are…
Book Review: Compost Critters
Is a compost pile just a mound of plant debris and kitchen scraps? No, and Bianca Lavies’ book, Compost Critters, reveals the amazing critters that inhabit the compost pile and…
Earth Kind Roses: Nearly Thornless
The thorns, or prickles, on roses can make them very unpleasant garden companions especially when you have to weed, spread mulch, fertilize, deadhead, or cut flowers. Roses that lack prickles…
Plant Profile: Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides)
Quaking aspen is a deciduous tree native to the cool climates of North America from Newfoundland across the subarctic to Alaska and British Columbia, south to Pennsylvania and Iowa, and…