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 […]
Ragweed vs. Goldenrod: Which One Is Really Causing Your Fall Allergies?
Every year around late August, the roadsides near my zone 5 garden light up with goldenrod, and every year I hear the same complaint from friends and neighbors: “That goldenrod is killing my sinuses.” I get it. I’m allergic to ragweed myself, and by this time of year my eyes are already burning and I’m […]
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 […]
How to Get Amaryllis Bulbs to Bloom for Christmas
If you want an amaryllis blooming right around Christmas, plant the bulb in early to mid November. Amaryllis typically take 6 to 8 weeks from planting to first flower, so counting backward from your target date is really the whole trick. I’ve timed dozens of bulbs for the holidays over the years, and I can […]
Geraniums: Pelargoniums vs Hardy Geraniums, Which Should You Grow?
If you want geraniums for a sunny windowsill, look for pelargoniums (the classic red or pink “geranium” sold in garden centers every spring). If you want geraniums to soften a walkway or edge a border, you want hardy geraniums, also called cranesbills, which are true perennial Geranium species that come back every year. They’re not […]
How Seed Saving Saves Me Hundreds of Dollars in the Garden
If you’ve looked at seed catalogs lately, you’ve probably noticed how quickly a handful of flower packets can add up. Mine certainly did. These days, I save enough seed from my own garden that some years I only buy special hybrid flower seed. Here’s where the biggest savings come from, what I always save, and […]
Why Are Aphids So Bad This Year?
If you’ve walked out to check your delphinium spikes or rose buds this week and found them coated in a sticky little cluster of green (or black, or gray) bugs, you’re not imagining things. Aphid populations really have exploded this year for a lot of gardeners, mine included. The short answer: a mild winter let […]
Is Salvia Deer Resistant? What I’ve Learned After Years of Growing It (Despite the Deer)
Is salvia deer resistant? Yes and here’s why it’s one of my go-to plants. If you’ve got deer wandering through your yard at dusk like I do, you’ve probably already learned to be suspicious of every “deer resistant” label on a plant tag. Salvia is one of the few plants in my garden the deer […]
6 Essential Fall Garden Tasks for More Flowers Next Spring
Every fall, I have to remind myself that gardening isn’t winding down, it’s just changing seasons. While the flower beds may look tired, this is when I do some of the most important work of the year. A few hours spent planting bulbs, sowing seeds, and dividing perennials now means a garden that’s ready to […]