You will delight in growing the hardy amaryllis (Lycoris squamigera) if you enjoy unusual plants. The bulbs were not too plentiful for a long period, but they are in good supply now. For the small price a bulb or two costs, you will be buying years of pleasure. Few, indeed, are the plants that evoke … Read more
Hypericums or St. John’s Worts are among the most gratifying plants for the summer effect—valuable both for their quantities of yellow flowers produced over a long period and for their adaptability to various growing conditions. They are singularly untroubled by plant diseases and insect pests and thrive in nearly any situation offering a porous open … Read more
Chamomile, a sweet-smelling herb with daisy flowers and delicate lacy foliage, was probably better known in past centuries than it is today. Dioscorides, a wandering soldier whose collection of herbal observations became in the first century A. D. The earliest illustrated herbal extant pointed out that some called it “Chamemelum”, because of its likeness of … Read more
Just about this time every year, many gardeners face the sudden yellowing of the leaves on many of their plants—especially azaleas, rhododendrons, and roses. There is usually no indication of insect or disease damage, so the immediate reaction is that something is lacking in the soil, even though a regular fertilization program has been followed. … Read more
Daffodil breeders in England, Ireland, Holland, and America constantly strive to develop new and better varieties of the loveliest spring flowers. If the numerous daffodil shows held throughout the country and the extensive plantings that are being made in public and private gardens are any criterion, the enthusiasm for daffodils is growing by leaps and … Read more
When spring flowers, especially the dainty crocuses, fade, we often wish their fleeting beauty would remain with us longer. However, planting colchicums allows us to enjoy a delightful flowering carpet in the fall when other flowers prepare for winter. Seeing these showy chalice-like flowers emerge from the ground without leaves is a joy. Commonly referred … Read more
A bit of fresh golden yellow corn for the autumn rock garden or border is provided by cheery cups of Sternbergia lutea. This tiny bulbous plant has long remained an overlooked possibility, even more so than the autumn crocuses and colchicums. Unlike the autumn crocus, which it somewhat resembles, Sternbergia develops its foliage shortly before … Read more
Growing ivy-leaved geraniums (Pelargonium peltatum) in pots is a challenging art because they like to sprawl or hang down and not stand upright. Yet, when an ivy geranium vine is pinched back, and growth processes are delayed, the plant is forced to branch and become bushy, a mass of glorious color in full bloom. Pinching … Read more
Phlox is one of our most versatile garden flowers, suitable for practically any location on the home grounds. There are the low-growing, sun-loving, trailing forms, ideal for sunny banks, rocks, and garden walls, and shade-loving types, such as the spring phlox or wild sweet william (Phlox divaricata). Because of varying heights, the early and midsummer … Read more
When one sees some of the newly improved Shasta daisies, it is obvious why they are increasing in popularity as a favorite white summer flower. The newer varieties bloom from late June until heavy frosts in the fall, and even when they are not in flower, their foliage is most attractive. It is rather difficult … Read more