Plants of Colonial Williamsburg: Rue (Ruta graveolens)
Karen Also called herb of grace, rue is an evergreen mounding subshrub and a member of the Rutaceae family that also includes oranges, limes, and skimmia. It is native to the…
Plants of the Bible: Rue (Ruta graveolens)
Also called herb of grace, rue is an evergreen mounding subshrub native to the Balkan Peninsula where it grows on dry hillsides, often on limestone. The ancient Greeks used rue…
Plant Profile: Rue (Ruta graveolens)
Also called herb of grace, rue is an evergreen mounding subshrub and a member of the Rutaceae family that also includes oranges, limes, and skimmia. It is native to the…
Plant Combination: Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana) and Rue (Ruta graveolens)
For late spring into summer the blue flowers of spiderwort and the yellow flowers of rue are especially pleasing in a perennial grouping. The spiderwort can bloom for up to…
Herb Companions for Old Garden Roses
There is nothing new about growing herbs and roses together. Roses were traditionally grown as an important part of the herb garden because of their supposed value for curing a…
Herb Garden: Five Herbs to Ward off Evil Spirits and Witches
You probably don’t spend much time worrying about evil spirits and witches but when Halloween rolls around it is always nice to know that you are protected. There are numerous…
Name This Plant Game: Perennials Grown for Foliage 2
Chuck This simple game tests your gardening knowledge by identifying five plants shown in photos from a list of possible names. Photos of each plant are accompaned by a clue describing…
Garden Journal: August 2011
As summer winds down the hot humid days of August have slowly ebbed and we have been blessed with some dryer air and cooler temperatures. Some rain has fallen but…
How to Attract Butterflies to the Garden in Spring
The garden is usually filled with butterflies in summer but often has few in spring. True, many are still sleeping, but you can attract those that are “out and about”…
Butterflies in the Garden: Black Swallowtail Butterflies (Papilio polyxenes)
This year was a great year for butterflies in our area and many mornings I counted 10-15 butterflies in my garden at one time. Most of these were tiger swallowtails…