Book Review: Edible Houseplants
Karen Edible Houseplants offers a guide to growing 46 tropical houseplants from citrus, fig, and papaya to coffee, chocolate and vanilla. The plants include trees, shrubs and vines and all may…
Weeds and Their Control: Orange hawkweed (Pilosella aurantiaca aka Hieracium aurantiacum )
Orange hawkweed goes by many names including devil’s paintbrush, king-devil, fox and cubs, and grim the colliar and is a herbaceous perennial in the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes…
Plant Profile: Red Alder (Rubrus rubra)
Red alder is a deciduous tree native to North America from southeast Alaska south to central coastal California with an extension inland across Washington and Oregon into northermost Montana. It…
Plant Profile: Poached Egg Plant (Limnanthes douglasii)
Also known as Douglas’s meadowfoam, this fast growing annual is native to grassy wet areas of California and Washington, and is a member of a small plant family, Limnanthaceae, consisting…
Book Review: Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine
First published in 1996, this updated version reflects the enormous growth and changes in herbal medicine that have occurred since it was first written. It combines information on the traditional…
Weeds and Their Control: Perennial Sowthistle (Sonchus arvensis)
Perennial sowthistle is a herbaceous perennial and a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisies, yarrow, and lettuce. It is native to Europe and western Asia but…
Plant Profile: Indian Hawthorn (Raphiolepis indica)
Also known as Hong Kong hawthorn, this dense evergreen shrub is native to south China to Indo-China and temperate eastern Asia including Japan, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. It is…
Plants for a Mary Garden: Crown of Thorns ( Euphorbia milii var. splendens aka Euphorbia splenden)s
Native to Madagascar, this evergreen semi-succulent shrub is a member of the spurge family, Euphorbaceae, that also includes pointsettia, croton, and castor oil plant. The plants grow up to 6′…
Plant Profile: Silver-Lace Vine (Polygonum aubertii aka Fallopia baldschuanica)
This deciduous woody twining perennial vine is also known as Russian-vine, Bukhara fleeceflower, Chinese bindweed, and mile-a-minute vine. It is a member of the knotweed family, Polygonaceae, that also includes…
Weeds and Their Control: Witchgrass (Panicum capillare)
Witchgrass is a summer annual and a member of the grass family, Poaceae, that also includes corn, rice, and bamboo. It is native to most of North America from the…