Landscape Plants for Wet Areas
While many gardeners may shy away from soggy spots in their yards, there's a world of lush beauty waiting to be unlocked in wet areas. Embracing the moisture opens up a whole new realm of possibilities for your garden, where a variety of plants thrive in damp soil conditions. These water-loving wonders can transform your wet areas into vibrant oases of greenery.
A Guide to Growing Cole Crops at Home
Cole crops are a group of cool season plants that include cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale, and collard greens. These nutrient-packed vegetables, also known as Brassicas, are not only delicious but also relatively easy to grow in your own backyard. Here's a beginner's guide to planting cole crops at home.
Plant Profile: Viburnum
When it comes to versatile and attractive shrubs for your garden, few options rival the beauty and functionality of viburnums. They are cherished by gardeners worldwide for their ornamental appeal, hardiness, and diverse array of species. Let's take a look at why viburnums are a fantastic choice for enhancing your outdoor space.
Camellias: A Winter Star
The best remedy to a cold dark winter is the promise of late winter/early spring’s first blooms. No other flowering shrub quite does that with such panache as the genus Camellia. With its double, single, semi-double, peony flowered, anemone flowered, rose form double or formal double flowers, who cares that there may still be snow on the ground when they bloom!
Starting Seeds Indoors
Are you eager to get your hands dirty and kickstart your garden before the warmth of spring arrives? Starting seeds indoors is a fantastic way to get a head start on your gardening goals, allowing you to nurture delicate seedlings in the comfort of your own home. Not only does it extend your growing season, but it also offers you greater control over the entire process, from seed selection to transplanting.
Dogwoods: A Native Beauty
The species Cornus florida, Flowering Dogwood, is one of the most recognizable and beloved of all our native early flowering trees. The large showy bracts (commonly called showy flowers) are impressive in April as they brighten wooded edges and home landscapes. Keeping track of the many cultivars can be daunting as hundreds exist.
Forcing Paperwhites and Amaryllis
The cold weather turns outdoor gardeners into indoor gardeners. One way to cope with a long winter is to force bulbs for indoor bloom. The top choices are those bulbs native to warmer climates, they don’t need the cold to initiate blooming.
Prepping Indoor Plants for Winter
The beginning of fall is an important time to bring your houseplants inside that were vacationing outside all summer. When night time lows reach 50, it is time to bring them inside. They are most likely bigger and better than when they were this spring. Lots of leaves and roots will have developed in the ideal conditions of outdoor life. First check to see if you need to re-pot. The rule is 2-3” wider than the pot they were in.
Hydrangea Pruning Tips
The showy blooms of the genus Hydrangea are hard to beat for reliable color in the garden, but when do you trim? We get this question a lot! There are basically old wood bloomers (bloom on last year’s wood) and new wood bloomers (bloom on wood produced this season).
Building a Pollinator Garden
Pollinators are in decline and need our help. They are incredibly important as they are responsible for nearly 80% of the world’s flowering plants. Those flowers are critical in the production of fruits, nuts, and berries. Creating a pollinator garden is simple and will add long-lasting beauty to your outdoor living space. Here’s how to get started.
Pet-Safe Houseplants
We get asked all the time what plants our customers can have indoors that are safe for their animals. Here are a bunch we carry that won’t harm your furry friends!
Plant Profile: Calathea
Calathea (syn. Goeppertia) is a widely available genus of tropical plants suitable for indoor growing with as many as 10 species commonly sold in garden centers and houseplant boutiques across the country. We often have 4-5 varieties available at a time here at the nursery. Many have been reclassified to the genus Goeppertia and are commonly referred to as “Prayer Plants” due to the unique movement of their leaves.
Beating Winter Blues
I love my houseplants all year long yet I especially appreciate their presence in the fall and winter! The majority of my plants spend summer outside in various locations around my yard. I bring them in by mid-October and they instantly enliven my house once again.
Winter Houseplant Tips
Winter can be a tough time for your indoor plants. Their favorite spot by the window is suddenly much colder and shorter days provide less light. Some plants can even be forced into semidormancy. There are a few easy things you can do this winter to help your plants thrive-
Plant Profile: Rhaphidophora tetrasperma
I’ve found Rhaphidophora tetrasperma to be one of the easiest and most forgiving plants in my personal collection. Propagation is simple- just cut a piece of the vine below a node, place them in water for a few days or so until you see the white roots develop, then plant into moist soil.
Plant Profile: Monstera deliciosa
Monstera deliciosa is known commonly as the split leaf philodendron or swiss cheese plant. This flowering tropical native to southern Mexico can be found growing in the wild across parts of Asia, Australia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and even Florida.
Air Plants to Hang Around With
Watering and draining properly are the most critical care factors. This will vary due to light, heat and humidity of location. Mist 1-2 times a week or soak to maintain a healthy appearance; more frequently in high temperatures, less in cold.