Plant Profile: Golden Currant (Ribes aureum)
Karen Also known as clove currant and buffalo currant, this deciduous shrub is a native of North America from Saskatchewan to British Columbia, south to New Mexico and California where it…
Book Review: How to Eat in the Woods
Author Bradford Angier in his book, How to Eat in the Woods, a guide to surviving in the wild. He points out that although many people like to go camping…
Earth Kind Roses: Most Fragrant
Everyone likes roses with fragrance and bemoan the many cultivars on the market today that have little or none. Eight Earth Kind roses, however, combine outstanding fragrance with low maintenance…
Plant Profile: Sweet Birch (Betula lenta)
Sweet birch is a deciduous tree also known as black birch, cherry birch, mahogany birch or spice birch, and is native to eastern North America from southern Maine and Ontario,…
Beneficial Insects and How to Attract Them: Big-Eyed Bugs (Geocordiae spp.)
There are over twenty five species of bug-eyed bugs in North America some of which live coast to coast in the US. They are tiny but very abundant and considered…
Plant Profile: Hairy Garden Pink (Dianthus knappii)
Hairy garden pink is a short-lived herbaceous perennial native to eastern Europe where it grows in grassy places and scrub. It belongs to the carnation family that includes baby’s breath,…
Botanical Latin: Crispus
CRISP us: from the Latin crispus meaning wavy or curly Crispus is a specific or varietal epithet usually used for plants that have leaves with wavy or curly edges but…
Plant Profile: Bigtooth Aspen (Populus grandidentata)
Big tooth aspen is a deciduous tree native to eastern North America from Newfoundland and Manitoba, south to Virginia, Kentucky, and Iowa where it grows in open woods, edges of…
Invasive Plants and Their Native Alternatives: Chinese Tallow Tree (Sapium sebiferum aka Triadica sebifera)
Chinese tallow tree is a deciduous tree growing up to 40’ tall and native to China and Japan. It was introduced in the 1700s as an ornamental valued for its…
Plant Profile: Rhone Aster (Aster sedifolius)
Rhone asters are herbaceous perennials native to southern Europe. They belong to the Asteraceae family that also includes daisies, sunflowrs, and lettuce. The multi-stemmed plants have a bushy habit with…