Everyone who plants a garden learns to know and love daffodils early. However, it still comes as a surprise to learn that more than 11,000 varieties were listed in the 1954 edition of the Royal Horticultural Society list. However, the newest list has eliminated the names of 4,000 that no longer exist or are of … Read more
Strawberries are an integral part of the home vegetable garden, and they can be expected to produce satisfactorily in well-drained soil that yields good vegetables. Twenty-five plants will supply more than enough berries for the average-sized family because one or two quarts of berries can be expected from each plant that you set out. Early … Read more
While the beauty and praises of common, tall rosemary (Rosmarinus Officinalis) are often sung, so far, little light has been shed on the rare dwarf rosemary (R. prostratus). With miniature plants now in the limelight, it is surprising so few gardeners have discovered this versatile herb that grows both inside and outdoors. Nurseries specializing in … Read more
Any gardener living near the seashore has a tremendous treasure chest of free fertilizer merely for the taking—seaweed. Not only does it contain the trace elements necessary for normal plant growth, but also it is a valuable source of the major fertilizer elements. Any seaweeds that wash up on the beach in quantity can be … Read more
This month, a House and Greenhouse guest, Ruby Winston, tells her methods for growing cinerarias on a small scale—the way other home gardeners want to grow them. Ideal Temperature Requirements Ideally, these magnificent late-winter and spring-blooming plants need a nighttime temperature range of 45° to 50° degrees Fahrenheit. If other conditions are excellent, moisture in … Read more
Temperamental plants may challenge the gardener, but those that come up and flower every spring with cheerful determination assure even the amateur of the thrill of achievement. Surely among the most delightful of these dependable plants are the spring-flowering bulbs. Many of the smaller kinds set out this fall will provide intimate pictures from the … Read more
Today, the art of flower arrangement takes in a lot of territory; sometimes, it seems to me it includes everything but flowers. Compositions are built around figures or masks; each pod, cone, or leaf that can be dried is approved; shells are popular—oyster, conch, and coral—and with these, cork. I see cypress “knees,” wisteria and … Read more
Planning ahead is important in any type of gardening. In greenhouse gardening, it is doubly so because the non-producing areas— scarcely noticed outdoors—are as conspicuous as sore thumbs in red flannel. Several plants that are easily grown from seed may be started now to provide abundant color for winter. Ideal Showy Plants For Winter Cineraria, … Read more
You are undoubtedly familiar with the practice of using hay for mulching vegetables and other plants. But do you know that hay will prepare a garden or any area for planting? Hay can transform a piece of weedy field and turf into an area rich and ready for growing things without a struggle or even … Read more
Sometimes, it is the material you combine with your plants that makes pleasing garden pictures. The professional touch at flower shows last spring was the result of a careful combination of walls, fencing, paving, etc. with plants. The drifts of tulips and daffodils and the grouping of azaleas and rhododendrons were made more beautiful by … Read more