Plant Profile: Black Mulberry (Morus nigra)
Karen Black mulberry is a slow growing deciduous tree originally from southwestern Asia and a member of the mulberry family that also includes figs, Osage-orange, and banyan. It has wide spreading…
Book Review: Heaven is a Garden
Gardens traditionally have been said to be a piece of paradise for their owners but have you ever tried to create such a paradise for yourself? It is not easy…
Old Time recipes for Home Made Wine: Apricot Wine
My grandmother’s book, Old Time Recipes for Home Made Wines, written in 1909, contains recipes for making wine from all sorts of plant material from fruits and vegetables to herbs…
Plant Profile: Common Fig (Ficus carica)
Native to the Middle East and Asia this deciduous shrub or small tree is a member of the mulberry family, Moraceae, that also includes banyan, breadfruit, and Osage-orange. It grows…
Spring Blooming Perenials with Pink Flowers for the Front of the Border
The use of pink in the garden adds special meanings. It can imply romance, tenderness, and caring, and produces a sense of security, comfort and hope. Combine pink with other…
Plant Profile: Giant Fibert (Corylus maxima)
The giant filbert is a deciduous shrub or small tree native to southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia but it widely cultivated for its edible nuts which have a sweet, rich…
Book Review: Simple Effortless Food, Big Flavors
Diana Henry presents an exciting array of recipes in her cookbook, Simple, Effortless Food, Big Flavors. Drawn from an international palette, the recipes offer creative new combinations of flavors that…
Roses in Art: Ancient Times
Roses have been grown for seventy million years in Asia and thirty five million years in North America. Today there are over one fifty different species of rose and thousands…
Plant Profile: Pacific Dogwood (Cornus nuttallii)
Also called mountain dogwood, this flowering deciduous tree or tall shrub is native to the West Coast from southern British Columbia to the mountains of southern California, with an isolated…
Plant Profile: Rose ‘New Dawn’
The first of the modern climbers, ‘New Dawn’ is a sport of ‘Dr. W. Van Fleet’ a fine rose but only blooms once. ‘ New Dawn’ became ancestor to many…