If you’re planning to grow groundcovers to create contrast and balance in your garden, Liriope muscari is an excellent choice for you! Liriope muscari, previously known as Liriope gigantea or Liriope exiliflora, is a broadleaf evergreen perennial belonging to the genus Liriope. It’s also a member of the Asparagaceae or Asparagus family, which comprises about … Read more
Planning a flower garden is an art; planning a vegetable garden is a science. Half the fun of growing things is to make your arranged beds. The other half is to get down on your kneeling pad, dig your fingers in the soil and plant the items you want to grow. You can take suggestions … Read more
Evergreens are expensive, and they have every right to be. A blue spruce six years old ranges between 16″ and 24″ inches. That means six years of pruning, transplanting, and care by the nurseryman. Seedlings or rooted cuttings can be purchased for less than a tenth of the cost of a mature plant. The only … Read more
Roselle, Hibiscus sabdariffa, has long been grown in tropical lands and a few warmer parts of the United States. Still, it has never had anything like the appreciation it deserves, and its cultivation might well be increased thousands of times. Roselle, botanically, a relative of cotton and the ornamental hibiscus, is an upright, bush-like plant, … Read more
Growing bush fruits in your backyard brings a double pleasure. When you pick them fresh from the garden in the early morning and serve them for breakfast covered with sugar and cream, and taste the raspberry jam, gooseberry tarts, currant jelly, or blueberry muffins, you not only have the well-being that comes with eating good … Read more
A bank skirting the street can often be a problem spot. Sowing it to the lawn is impractical because of the inconvenience of mowing a slope. Grass and creeping ground covers, like myrtle and pachysandra, remain too low to separate the grounds from the street. A retaining wall involves a heavy expense unless the owners … Read more
Birds in the garden are always a joy! What’s more, they are off in an estimable value to plants because of the great number of insects they consume. One way to attract them to the garden is to provide them with boxes for nesting purposes. This, too, is the time to build these structures and set … Read more
The English poet, A. E. Housman, reckoned his life span by the number of Springs in which he could see the wild cherry bloom along the woodlands. In America, by such reckoning, he might have counted himself immortal. But how many Springs a year might he have estimated? Somewhere, you may find Spring every day … Read more
Some of the best hardy plants that contribute interest and beauty to winter gardens are rarely seen. But fortunately, some are becoming better known. One of the most pleasing is winter heath, Erica carnea. This small shrub is outstanding not only for the abundance and duration of its bloom, which lasts fully half the winter … Read more
When “the days begin to lengthen and the cold begins to strengthen,” one draws up close to a blazing fire and settles down with a book for a cozy winter’s night of relaxation. Now and then, as you add a fresh log to the fire, pause a moment and examine it. If the outer bark … Read more