Coffee cans are among the most useful of my gardening accessories. They can be used to store broken pottery bits I use over drainage holes in flower pots. Their tight-fitting lids make them ideal waterproof containers for pieces of twine ready-cut into convenient sizes for instant use in staking and tying plants. Seeds, plant labels, … Read more
Each year in my West Virginia garden, I am amazed anew at the splendor of the Oriental poppy display. And visitors, seeing for the first time these giant poppies blooming, gaze in wonder at the magnificence of the flowers, invariably they exclaim. “We can’t believe it. These poppies can’t be real.” But real they are, … Read more
A quaint little white daffodil grown and loved in England more than 300 years ago is the cernuus or swan neck daffodil (Narcissus moschatus). Demure and feminine in expression, it is unlike many of our robust yellow trumpet hybrids. The curved neck and slender trumpet, with narrow perianth segments draped about it gracefully, give it … Read more
Methods of curing gladiolus corms have been modified in recent years to reduce winter injury from disease and thrips to a minimum. Quick drying, even by the use of heat, is extensively used by both commercial and amateur growers. However, to have sound, clean corms for planting next spring, one should follow all the latest, … Read more
Few novelties have caused more excitement in the horticultural world than the pink daffodil. Unfortunately, exhibition varieties such as Salmon Trout, Rose Caprice, and Pink Monarch are still too expensive to concern many of us. But fortunately, there is also a large number that can be bought quite reasonably, and these make decorative garden flowers. … Read more
This interesting plant of the iris family (Iridaceae) has been known variously as Belamcanda punctata, Gemmingia chinensis, Pardanthus chinensis, and sinensis. Belamcanda is an East Indian name, possibly meaning leopard flower, which is the significance of Pardanthus, referring to the spotted character of the flower segments. It is not commonly listed in nursery catalogs and, … Read more
Crocus come in about three main categories. Earliest of them are the species, of which there are many. These are called winter-flowering, and will bloom at the slightest slackening of wintry weather. Most of these are quite small in size but tough and willing to make considerable increases so that after a few years, they … Read more
The delightful, unpretentious charm of the small-flowered bulbs is the first attraction of the garden year. Without them, spring would be like a play without the first act. Most of these little gems demand nothing more than to be planted in soil reasonably suited to their needs and then left alone. The catalog will be … Read more
There are many different kinds of iris in southern gardens. The Japanese, Siberian, and Louisianas do well in moist soil, and the Dutch iris put on a glorious display in April and May in a well-drained location. The bearded iris—the most popular in America today—needs special care to do well south of Montgomery, Alabama; West … Read more
Some gardeners must just be the contrary! When the wise ones told me it was impossible to grow Japanese irises in Denver, that was all it took! “Our climate is too dry, too hot in summer, too cold in winter; our soil is too alkaline; Japanese irises are just not grown here.” So, I scouted … Read more