Dandelions — the bane of any gardener, right? Or….not? Dandelions are related to Asters. They have a basal rosette of heavily toothed leaves-hence the name ‘dandelion’ which comes from the French ‘dent-de-Lion’—meaning tooth of the Lion. The botanical name is taraxacum officinale, from the Greek ‘taraxos’ meaning disorder and ‘akos’ meaning remedy—referring to the many … Read more
IT’S A DIVERSE FAMILY THAT LEADS TO CONFUSION Whenever you stop into the garden center or call and talk to me or any other plant specialist and ask “Do you have Hibiscus” – you usually end up getting two or three questions back at you trying to figure out what type you are inquiring about. … Read more
This coming Thursday, April 22 is Earth Day. Earth Day was established in 1969 at a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) conference in San Francisco, California. In March of 1970, a sanctioned Proclamation was signed at the U. N. by Secretary-General U Thant giving official United Nations recognition. What Led to Earth … Read more
MONARCH DECLINE A couple of weeks ago, Eve Roemhildt, our Virginia Certified Horticulturist, gave a very informative and enlightening talk on native plants and supporting our pollinators. Her talk has inspired this blog and my desire to highlight our Monarch butterflies. I am going to get onto my soapbox for a minute. As citizens of … Read more
What would spaghetti sauce be without the warm savory flavor of basil? I can’t even imagine such a thing! So here is how to grow your own. Ocinum basilicum—Basil. Ocinum means “fragrance.” Basilicum is from the Greek basilikon—Royal. So—Royal fragrance—appropriate, don’t you think? Like many of our fragrant herbs, basil is a member of the … Read more
A LOT OF GARDENING ACTIVITIES AND CHORES FOR APRIL Finally, April has arrived. April is a huge gardening month. As warmer weather becomes more consistent, people are getting ready to spend more time outdoors enjoying their gardens and doing more plantings. Here are some great April gardening chores: GRASS-CYCLING April starts our lawn mowing season. … Read more
April is National Gardening Month. Is that perfect timing or what? Right now my yard is a riot of color—the lush rose pink of the redbud, the sunny yellow of the forsythia and daffodils, the little patches of rich blue muscari and light blue starflowers, and the yellow dandelions and purple violets dotting my backyard … Read more
EDIBLE LANDSCAPING IS BECOMING A VERY POPULAR LANDSCAPING TREND I have been transforming my landscape to include more edible plants and fruits — especially with my container gardens. I recently moved a couple of years ago and I love my edible container gardens. So, you may be asking ‘what is edible landscaping’? Edible landscaping replaces … Read more
So the first day of “official” spring was March 20, but when is spring really? Well, that depends on who you ask. In the United States, spring begins on the Vernal Equinox (on or about March 20/21) and ends on the Summer Solstice. Meteorologists, on the other hand, consider spring consisting of the months of … Read more
AND, WHAT ARE MYCORRHIZAE? To put it simply—Bio-Tone is a starter plant food for organic gardening. And, it contains Mycorrhizae. Together they promote stronger roots, bigger blooms, and healthier plants. ORGANIC I can’t stress enough how I feel about using Bio-Tone. I will never plant anything without incorporating Bio-Tone in the hole when planting. So, … Read more
