Painted Daisy: Why It’s Going on My Grow-Again List
Is painted daisy worth growing? Absolutely! Painted daisy (Ismelia carinata), also known as tricolor daisy, is an easy annual that has earned a permanent spot on my grow-again list. I direct sowed the seeds for the first time this year, had 100% germination, and enjoyed a summer full of colorful blooms. Even better, my plants […]
Digging and Storing Dahlia Tubers: When to Dig and How to Save Them
Dahlias can bloom right up until frost, but if you garden in Zone 5 like I do, those beautiful flowers need a little extra care before winter arrives. Digging and storing dahlia tubers properly helps protect them from freezing, drying out, and rotting before spring planting. I’ll show you when to dig, how to handle […]
Prime Day Gardening Deals: What This Retired Grower Would Actually Buy
Amazon Prime Day is back—and it’s blooming with unbeatable garden steals! From must-have tools that make digging and deadheading a joy to beautiful accents…
Can You Plant Flowers After the First Frost? What You Can Still Plant
Can you plant flowers after the first frost? Yes, but your choices become much more limited once cold weather arrives. Spring bulbs like tulips and daffodils actually prefer going into cold soil, and many perennials can still be divided or transplanted for a few weeks after that first light freeze. What you can’t do is […]
What Flowers Can Survive a Light Frost? 8 Tough Garden Favorites
There are quite a few garden flowers that shrug off a light frost (temperatures dropping to around 28-32°F) without missing a beat. Pansies, violas, snapdragons, calendula, dianthus, sweet alyssum, stock, and ornamental kale all tolerate light frost, and several of them actually get sweeter blooms and deeper color once the nights turn cool. I’ve pushed […]
A Cottage Garden for Shade: How to Create a Lush, Romantic Look Without Full Sun
A cottage garden for shade might sound like a contradiction, but it has become one of my favorite parts of my own yard. The east, north, and west sides of my house get real shade from the surrounding trees, and instead of fighting that, I built a garden that leans into it. What I learned […]
10 Garden Plants You Can Bring Indoors for Winter
As summer winds down, I start looking at some of my favorite garden plants a little differently. Instead of letting the first frost take them, I ask myself, “Is this one worth bringing indoors for winter?” For many tender favorites, the answer is yes. Learning how to overwinter plants indoors can help you save geraniums, […]
First Frost Dates by Zone: What Gardeners Need to Know
The first frost of fall is one of those dates gardeners watch closely. It marks the point when tender annuals may need protection, plants you’ve been growing for cuttings may need to come indoors, and some of those last garden chores suddenly become more urgent. Knowing your average first frost date gives you a useful […]
Cottage Garden Design: 10 Elements That Create the Classic Look
Cottage garden design isn’t really about choosing the right list of flowers. It’s about how those flowers are arranged, repeated, layered, and allowed to grow together. A cottage garden has a distinctive look, but that look doesn’t come from one particular plant. Roses, delphiniums, foxgloves, daisies, zinnias, cosmos, and dozens of other flowers can all […]
What Is a Weed? A Different Way to Think About Weeds in Your Garden
A weed is simply a plant growing where you don’t want it. There’s no botanical category for “weed,” no genus or family that separates a weed from a wildflower. The word describes a relationship, not a species. A plant that’s a weed in one garden bed might be the exact thing you’re babying along in […]