You can be sure of a fruit crop even if you have only one tree. A few years ago, one of my friends asked me to bring some of my bees over to his home garden to pollinate his cherries. He has only one sweet cherry tree—the excellent Bing variety. The tree is as tall … Read more
Magnolias are among the most beautiful trees, and the early flowering kinds are near the top of the list for spring display. And one of the hardiest early magnolias, Magnolia Kobus, has pearly white blooms and slender branches. Kobus Magnolia The Kobus magnolia is one of the most pleasing, and fortunately, it is also one … Read more
No tree native to the northern part of the United States makes a better specimen than the common flowering dogwood found wild over the entire eastern part of the country. The pink- or red-flowered form, rare in nature, is tops in colorful beauty when it is in flower. Horticulturists propagate it by budding and grafting. … Read more
Like so many others, our back walk connects the back porch with the street. In our case, this walk extends east and west, south of and near the house. For the most part, we have planted dwarf or low-growing conifers and small or slow-growing shrubs along them. They were chosen for this location so that … Read more
If you are searching for a shrub that will add beauty to your grounds the summer through, plant forsythia —plenty of them. This floral bush is one of the earliest of all spring-blooming shrubs, its yellow, bell-shaped flowers preceding its leaves. Forsythia blooms in such profusion it resembles a ball of sunlight even on the … Read more
The feeding tray serves as a convenient small stage on which we may observe the performing bird actors close at hand. Many birds—purple finches, evening grosbeaks. Cardinals, fox sparrows, towhees. Woodpeckers and the like—are chiefly known to the general public for their activities at the feeding station. That is. They are usually seen eating sunflower … Read more
The Mayapples grow in the fresh sunshine with curious, awkward grace. No walk through the spring woods or pastures would be complete without finding colonies of these plants. Their glossy umbrella tops conceal the waxen, white flower, but the rich gardenia-like fragrance reveals its whereabouts to the insects that pollinate it. May apples are seldom … Read more
You can save that little crab apple tree that the rabbits have girdled. Sometimes a lawn mower, a wire, or a boring insect has injured a young grafted nursery tree, and the roots keep sending up shoots, but the top is standing still. Most of the root strength goes into sucker growth, but this strength … Read more
Hedges solve many landscape problems around the home. But when homeowners plant a hedge, they begin to wonder which kind to choose. Soon the hedge idea seems to arouse as many new problems as it solves. Each possible hedge plant raises questions about its: Potential height Hardiness Preference for sun or shade Moisture requirements Suitability … Read more
Have you ever considered what a lucky thing it is that one of our favorite flowers – the rose – grows as a vine and a bush? That may be one of the reasons for its popularity! If lilies, dahlias, gladiolus, and iris grew in climbing, rambler, and pillar forms like the rose, competition for … Read more