A lush, thick, green lawn is a pleasure in and of itself; but it also provides a verdant “frame” for a picture-perfect garden. Bare spots in your lawn detract from the total landscape by drawing the eye away from the pleasing symmetry of floral plantings and focusing attention on those stark brown patches of barren earth. The effect is unpleasantly jarring, but correctable.  ...read more

When Kate Middleton walked down the aisle to marry Prince William, Britain’s future queen carried a delicate bouquet that may have seemed small by royal standards but held tremendous meaning for the bride. In keeping with royal tradition, Kate carried an all-white bouquet but eschewed royal ostentation for a simple bouquet of Sweet William, in tribute to her prince, mixed with fragrant hyacinths, charming lily-of-the-valley and myrtle. The same flowers were used in the bridesmaids’ bouquets. The young flower girls wore wreaths fashioned of English Ivy (Hedera) and lily-of-the-valley, a gracious nod to the wedding bouquet Kate’s mother carried when she wed Kate’s father. ...read more

Freezing winds and snow flurries one day, sunny skies with balmy 60-degree temperatures the next. The unpredictability of spring weather is hard on growing plants. Bulbs are one of the few flowers hardy enough to survive Mother Nature’s mercurial spring temperament. Daffodils (Narcissus) and Tulips grow and sprout on warm days, sending tender green shoots poking through the ground. When a blast of cold or late snow freezes the garden, bulbs hold steady and wait it out until the next burst of warmth starts them growing again.  ...read more

This Easter turn some of your colored eggs into a charming Easter Eggshell Garden. The perfect kid-friendly project; these mini gardens will make a delightful Easter centerpiece. When the weather warms, plant them, eggshell and all, in your garden.  ...read more

As scrumptiously edible as they are beautiful, alliums are a delightful – and flavorful – addition to spring gardens. These exotic members of the onion family, including chives, leeks, garlic and shallots, are identified by their spicy, onion scent. Attractive spring bloomers, alliums have distinctive pink, purple or white pom pom-like flowers that rise on long, thin stems from low-growing green foliage. Tolerant of cold weather, their long maturation period makes early spring the best time to plant alliums. Some allium varieties can take as many as 4 months to reach edible maturity when grown from seed. Purchasing allium plants from your local garden center and adding them to your garden in early spring can cut growing time nearly in half, allowing you to start enjoying these savory plants by early summer.  ...read more

As soon as the snow melts, gardeners start checking their gardens for signs of spring. Cheerful yellow and purple crocuses decorate the ground, splashes of bright paint on the garden’s still barren canvas. The green tips of spring Tulips and Daffodils (Narcissus) can be seen emerging from the soil. The tiny flowerettes of the Sedum that will color the fall garden can be seen clustering around the dry stalks of last year’s growth. And spotted between your favorite plants, already green and growing are the first weeds. ...read more

When shopping for plants at your local garden center, you may have noticed a zone number listed on the identification tag. Plant hardiness zones were developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 1960 to assist farmers in selecting crop plants that would thrive and over-winter successfully in their local area. Each zone indicates the geographic area where climatic conditions are suitable for the successful growth of particular types of plants. Plant growers soon adopted plant hardiness zones as a handy way of indicating to consumers where a particular plant would thrive. ...read more

The right plant in the right place; that’s the key to creating a beautiful garden that will flourish with minimal care. Think of your yard as a picture puzzle of interlocking ecosystems. Each piece of your yard is a small ecosystem all its own, providing a different mini-environment for growing plants.  ...read more

After the long, gray days of winter, life and color return to the garden each spring as the first green shoots of flowering bulbs push through the earth. Soon the spring garden will be in full bloom: the golden-trumpeted Daffodil (Narcissus) dancing in the breeze, cheerful Tulip (Tulipa) cups adding splotches of bright color, elegant Iris regally unfurling and the jasmine scent of fragrant Hyacinth (Hyacinthus) perfuming the air. But the beauty of the spring garden depends on fall planning and planting.  ...read more

Garden centers at local stores are setting up their bulb displays, encouraging gardeners to start planning spring gardens. After a long, dreary winter, spring-flowering tulips, daffodils and other bulbs are a cheerful harbinger of the fragrant annuals and perennials to come. ...read more