The crocus is the most exciting flower because they are the first. Winter is still lashing furiously about when the earliest of them—gold, purple, and white—spangle the lawn, carpet the loam under shrubs, push up through streaks of left-over snow and freeze into flowers of sheer ice when sleet storms rage. Yes, crocus are necessary … Read more
Eventually, we may have many varieties of gardens, often called hardy, chrysanthemums which are reliably hardy everywhere. At present, I know of no cut-flower variety, such as Lavender Lady, Red Riding Hood, Allegro, and the various spoons, that can be depended upon to survive our winters without protection. Three varieties that have lived through several … Read more
One of the most valued characteristics of a pot plant is its long blooming period. Bulbous plants often fail in this respect, but one that meets this requirement is the Scarborough lily, Vallota speciosa. This member of the amaryllis family, which is not a true lily, has umbels of scarlet, funnel-form flowers, each about 3″ … Read more
Do you toss out potted chrysanthemums after they have finished flowering? If you do, you are throwing away a potential mum’s garden, for every plant will yield many cuttings for next spring’s planting. This past summer we enjoyed a lovely pink patch of 24 mums all derived from one Thanksgiving gift plant! Greenhouse gardeners usually … Read more
Quick Tips On Veltheimia Care Family: Asparagaceae Light: Full sun to light shade Temperature: 50° to 55° degrees Fahrenheit at night Water: Watered rarely; Moderately moist soil Fertilizer: Liquid fertilizer Propagation: Seeds, offsets, or leaf cuttings Common Problems: Fungal diseases, snails, slugs, caterpillars Veltheimia (vel-thay-mee-uh) is a bulbous perennial that belongs to the genus Veltheimia … Read more
The clerodendrum are not only reliable perennials but beautiful and different. They require no pampering, asking only ordinary garden soil, with a bit of food and water. They will take droughts but will not bloom as well as when watered regularly. They thrive in sun or half shade. Most of them will take the cold … Read more
Recently, a homeowner shared to me: “I don’t care for chrysanthemums.” Then, almost as though speaking to herself she added: “They just won’t grow for me.” As she looked at a varicolored array of potted mums which decorated the room, there was an expression that revealed she did like them and that she would enjoy … Read more
In the midst of Summer, the leopard flower, or blackberry-lily, Belamcanda chinensis, which belongs to the iris family, is bravely opening, continually, a one-day-old flower that is freely spotted with red on orange or yellow, from which the name is derived. Leopard Flower: Native in China and Japan The leopard flower is native to China … Read more
Begonia Hiemalis was once the darling of old-time estate gardeners, its culture a closely guarded greenhouse secret. Nov that we have discovered its simple requirements, we find it relatively easy to grow. We root plants from stem cuttings (instead of from leaves) in January or February. These are taken from top growth with about three … Read more
Tulips are so varied in their color, in their height, and in their time of bloom that you can enjoy six weeks of pleasure from these gay spring-flowering bulbs by selecting your favorite varieties from the various classes. These include the early singles and doubles, the cottage varieties, the lily-flowered kinds, the breeders, the Darwins, … Read more