Plant Profile: Crucifixion Thorn (Colletia hystrix)
Karen Crucifixion thorn is a deciduous large shrub or small tree native to Chili and Argentina where it grows in poor dry soils. It belongs to the buckthorn family ( Rhamnaceae…
Birds in the Garden: Plants that Attract the Swallow Family (Hirundinidae)
Don’t expect to see a lot of the swallow family feeding in your garden. They are birds of the sky and are not easily lured down to a backyard. This…
Plant Profile: Tree Dahlia (Dahlia imperialis)
This super large herbaceous perennial is native to Mexico, Central America, and Colombia where it grows in the upper elevations of the mountains. It has a tuberous root system which…
Book Review: Highgrove: A Garden Celebrated
Highgrove the estate of Prince Charles, Prince of Wales. In this book, Highgrove: A Garden Celebrated, The Prince shares his experiences in planning and creating the gardens at Highgrove over…
Shakespeare’s Garden: Almond
The almond belongs to the genus Prunus made up of 430 species of trees and shrubs including plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines and apricots. It is most closely related to peaches.…
Plant Profile: Sweet Pepper bush (Clethra alnifolia)
This suckering deciduous shrub is native to eastern North America where it may form dense colonies in moist to wet areas in woodlands and along the sea coast from Maine…
Plant Profile: Riverside Windflower (Anemone rivularis)
This herbaceous, clump-forming perennial is native to Kashmir, northern India, Tibet, and southwest China. It belongs to buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, that also includes delphinium, clematis, and hellebore. It grows up…
Book Review: Gardening at Longmeadow
If you have ever wondered about the intimate details of an English garden and how the gardener started and maintains it, Monty Don’s book, Gardening at Long Meadow will tell…
Old Time Recipe for Holiday Apple Wine
With a fresh crops of apples at hand during the holidays what could be better than an old fashioned apple wine made the way it was done over 100 years…
Plant Profile: Autumn Crocus ( Colchicum speciosum)
Although the common name suggests a relationship to the spring blooming crocus, they are two very separate kinds of plants and are not even in the same botanical family. The…