Plant Profile: Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia)
Karen Growing four to twenty feet tall, this evergreen shrub is native to moist woods and clearings, and along streams from southern Maine south to northern Florida, and west to Indiana…
Plant Profile: Wild Blue Phlox (Phlox divaricata)
admin Envision a gently flowing brook under trees newly leafed out in spring with a mass of fragrant blue flowers blowing in the breeze underneath. Those blue flowers could be Wild…
Plant Profile: Grecian Windflower (Anemone blanda)
Native to southeastern Europe, Turkey, Lebanon, and Syria Grecian windflower is a herbaceous perennial belonging to the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, that also includes delphinium, clematis, and hellebore. The plants grow…
Plant Profile: Spike Winter Hazel (Corylopsis spicata)
Native to Japan, this flowering deciduous shrub is in the witch hazel family, Hamamelidaceae, that also includes fothergill and loropetalum. The unusual fragrant flowers that appear in late winter to…
Plant Profile: Cherry Laurel (Prunus lauroceraus aka P. officinalis)
Native to southeastern Europe and the Middle East this evergreen shrub or small tree is a member of the rose family, Rosaceae, that also includes, apple, lady’s mantle, and pyracantha.…
Plant Profile: Blue Wild Indigo (Baptisia australis)
Native to meadows, woodland borders and streamsides of eastern and central US, this herbaceous perennial is a member of the bean family, Fabaceae, that also includes lupine, mimosa, and black…
Seven Secrets to a Successful Shade Garden
People often tell me that they love to garden but that the trees on their lot create so much shade they can’t do much. I usually smile sympathetically and listen…
Plant Profile: Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis)
Lily of the valley is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial native to the temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere and grows best where summers are warm but not hot. Each plant…
Plant Profile: Cinnamon Fern (Osmunda cinnamomea)
Every spring when I start puttering around in my secret garden I look for the emergence of my cinnamon fern. After 4 to 5 weeks of looking in vain I…
Plant Profile: Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis)
Plant profile