Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects: Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis)
Karen 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…
Invasive Plants and Their Native Alternatives: Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota)
Also called wild carrot, bird’s nest, and bishop’s lace, this herbaceous biennial is a member of the parsley family, Apiaceae, that also includes celery, dill, and poison hemlock. It is…
Plant Profile: Flowering Spurge (Euphorbia corollata)
Also called prairie baby’s breath, flowering spurge is a herbaceous perennial and member of the euphorbia family, Euphorbiaceae, that also includes poinsettia, caster oil plant, and cassava. It is native…
Book Review: The Book of Seeds
The Book of Seeds presents seed profiles of 600 different species of plants in order to show the great diversity that exists among seeds. The seeds were chosen on the…