Plant Profile: Bathhurst Burr (Xanthium spinosum)
Karen Also known as prickly burweed and spiny cocklebur, bathhurst burr is an annual that is possibly native to South America but found in disturbed habitats such as pastures, crops, grasslands,…
Book Review: Seed to Table
Karen Meyers Luay Ghafari’s book, Seed to Table, is a cook book, gardening book, or both. With a focus of feeding your family with nutritious food from a home garden, it includes…
Meadow Garden: Mid-Sized Grasses
Grasses are the backbone of a meadow garden and the mid-sized ones will blend especially well with the many mid-sized perennials that are also essential to a meadow garden. The…
Plant Profile: Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
This clump-forming herbaceous perennial is a native of central and eastern North America from Ontario and Quebec south to Florida and Louisiana, and west to Oklahoma and Iowa where it…
Plants for a Mary Garden: Garden Fuchsia (Fuchsia magellanica) “Our Lady’s Eardrops”
The name Our Lady’s Eardrops for Fuchsia magellanica is relatively recent and is based on the shape and appearance of its flowers. The plant was introduced to Europe in the…
Plant Profile: Treasure Flower (Ganzania rigens)
Also called African daisy, this native to South Africa and Mozambique is a spreading tender perennial that has become naturalized on the shores of the Mediterranean and is now considered…
Book Review: The Seven Step Homestead
In her book, The Seven Step Homestead, Leah M. Webb shares her experience establishing a mini-farm in her backyard. Motivated by the desire to grow her own food as well…
Meadow Garden: Tall Native Grasses
Tall native grasses are usually associated with the natural prairie ecosystem of central US. This area has rich loess soils and moderate rainfall of 30-35 inches per year and are…
Plant Profile: Barber’s Diascia (Diascia barberae)
This mat forming tender perennial is native South Africa. It is a member of the figwort family, Scrophylariaceae, that also includes butterfly bush, mullein, and nemesia. Plants grow 12″ tall…
Plants for a Mary Garden: Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina) “Our Lady’s Fingers”
The name ,”Our Lady’s Fingers” for Stachys byzantina probably arose from Christian folklore and plant symbolism. The soft, velvety texture of the plant’s leaves suggests the gentle, comforting touch of…