Book Review: Farming
Karen In her delightful book, Farming, Gail Gibbons explores the activities that take place throughout the year on an old fashioned, idealized, family-owned, small farm probably in the Northeast. The farmer…
Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects: Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota)
A native of Europe and southwest Asia, this tough biennial has naturalized in Canada and US where it grows in disturbed sites and has become invasive in many areas and…
Plant Profile: Fernleaf Yarrow (Achillea filipendulina)
Fern leaf yarrow is a herbaceous perennial native to the Causcasus, Afghanistan, and central Asia. It is a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisies, sunflower, and…
Genus: Heucheras for the Garden
The genus Heuchera is in the saxifrage family, Saxifragaceae, that also includes foamflower (tiarella), pigsqueak, and false spirea (Astilbe). It consists of over fifty species of herbaceous perennials that are…
Plant Profile: Joseph’s Coat (Alternanthera ficoidea)
Native to Mexico and South America, this herbaceous tender perennial is a member of the amaranth family, Amaranthaceae, that also includes beets, spinach, celosia, and gomphrena. It grows 6-12″ tall…
Book Review: Fabulous Frogs
Linda Glaser’s book, Fabulous Frogs, introduces young readers to the life cycle, behavior, and appearance of frogs in general with a focus on leopard frogs, spring peepers, and bull frogs.…
Shakespeare’s Garden: Thistle
Thistle refers to plants that have leaves with sharp prickles on the margins. Most of them are in the sunflower family, Asteraceae, and are native to Europe and Asia.. There…
Plant Profile: Stemless Carline Thistle (Carlina acaulis)
Also called dwarf thistle and silver thistle, this short-lived herbaceous perennial is a native of alpine regions of central and southern Europe where it grows in poor soil in dry…
Invasive Plants and Their Native Alternatives: Baby’s Breath (Gypsophila paniculata)
Baby’s breath is a herbaceous perennial native to central and eastern Europe and central and western Asia but naturalized in North America and is now considered invasive from new Brunswick…
Plant Profile: Shoo-fly Plant (Nicandra physalodes)
Also known as apple of Peru, apple of Sodom, Peruvian bluebell, this annual is native to northwest Argentina, Bolivia, north and central Chile, and Peru where it grows in disturbed…