TODAY ON GARDEN3R - Gardening STORIES

I've Got Sunshine On a Cloudy Day

noreply@blogger.com (Dave Townsend) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:11:34 UTC

Rather than continue with lyrics that will end up stuck in your head for the rest of the day, let me tell you why I say "I've got sunshine on a cloudy day." Currently the jasmine is in a vining form but most prefer to be more of a shrub. I like it how it is so I'm not sharing that bit of information...

Biologicals and Blue Jays

noreply@blogger.com (George Africa) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:43:06 UTC

The sky is clear and the sun is rising above Peacham Pond suggesting it will be warmer by noon. February is a busy time for the animals and birds of the adjacent fields and woodlands. Coyotes, which I have been studying lately, mate this time of year and lately they have been frequenting a compost pile...

Tis the Season for Garden Shows

containergardening.about.com — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:00:10 UTC

I just went to the trade show, New England Grows in Boston. It was lots of fun to see old friends, as well as new plants and products. I don't know if I was wearing rose colored glasses, but it definitely felt like the business of gardening and landscaping was rebounding. Where a few years ago it seemed...

Conditioning Cut Flowers and Foliage

davesgarden.com — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:00:00 UTC

Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site. Conditioning plant material simply means making sure it is as full of water as possible. Conditioning methods vary with different plants types. The guidelines that follow will help you get the most out of...

Signs of Spring

Ilona (noreply@blogger.com) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:21:48 UTC

I woke up to snow this morning... But its days are numbered! I heard one sure sign of spring yesterday- the call of the mourning doves. Want to know another sign of Spring? If you have an oak tree that has held onto its leaves during the winter and notice the leaves falling, guess what? It means that...

Garden Diary: Adapting to reality

noreply@blogger.com (James Golden) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:04:31 UTC

I'm pleased with the off-center symmetry of the evolving garden, and the interplay of the rectangles, quite pleased, actually. The axis runs off the center of the glass doors (that gold hardware has to go!), and will terminate at the back of the garden, in some way I have yet to determine--though I'm...

Torrential Rains last night

noreply@blogger.com (Rusty in Miami) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:58:51 UTC

Last night we had torrential rains, and this morning I was a happy gardener. This area was in desperate need of rain, the last time we had any significant amount of precipitation was in mid December. Below is a picture of the one and only rose bush in my garden. I have killed every other rose I planted,...

Bulb Activity

noreply@blogger.com (Christopher C. NC) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:35:29 UTC

It was 28 degrees this morning with a hard frost that turned into a beautiful, sunny, 50 degree day, perfect weathers for bulbs. The ridge top garden is really beginning to stir.I saw these daffodils in my travels today. They are bit further along and about ready to pop compared to any of the daffodils...

Pruner sharpening 101 (remedial lesson)

Kris — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:54:24 UTC

Given that we really ought to still be tucked into winter, it would be a little premature to start cutting the garden back quite yet. But unless winter suddenly shows up in the next few Groundhog's Day weeks, we will be out cutting the gardens back earlier than usual. It's high time to take a tool inventory...

Lizzano and Terenzo Tomatoes

Meghan Shinn — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:52:22 UTC

Virtues: We love 'Lizzano' and 'Terenzo' tomatoes for their tasty fruit, high yield, disease resistance and their growing habit. Both are cherry tomatoes with a compact size that makes them perfect for containers or small ...

A Clivia cross marks mid-season

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:15:30 UTC

Known as Clivia Interspecific Group, these crosses between two species of the common houseplant clivia, are often crosses between an autumn blooming species such as C. caulescens, and a spring blooming species, like C. miniata. The autumn blooming species have pendant, slender blossoms with greenish...

Seed Exchange Recollection

noreply@blogger.com (WashingtonGardener) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:00:18 UTC

I just wanted to send you a quick email to say THANK YOU for once again hosting the seed exchange this year, and to tell you how much I value it. In my day job, I work for a children's theatre in production so I don't see the sun a lot. Gardening for me started 3 years ago when I moved from an apartment...

Blue-Eyed Daisies

gardening.about.com — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:00:56 UTC

You have to wonder what goes through the minds of the folks that name plants. Osteospermum? Really? It doesn't help to learn that it's some Latin/Greek combination for bone seed. Don't hold it against this plant. Think of it's many common names - African Daisy, Cape Daisy and my favorite, Blue-Eyed Daisy....

A Morning'S Work

Lancashire rose (noreply@blogger.com) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:06:53 UTC

I spent the morning cutting back plants in the sunken garden. Most of these were the pink skullcap, Scutellaria suffrutescens, and the purple skullcap, Scutellaria wrightii. Both are a must for the rock garden. Once you buy them you never have to buy again. Both seed readily, especially the purple one...

It is Springlike

Ilona (noreply@blogger.com) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:06:36 UTC

This morning I woke up to hoarfrost on the ground, from the fog of last night. It seems as if we have had spring all through the winter months. Thanks to the Christmas Rose Hellebores I have had flowers in my garden all year. That never happens...until now. I am going to dig out some of my saved seed...

Reporter Error

Cactus — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:42:49 UTC

I suppose this is why we don't use common names at the nursery - it's easy to get them wrong and they can be applied to different plants and it just is less precise and I think that common names are often just silly and more importantly are the stupid trademarked cultivar names like "Keystone Kopper"...

Heart Shaped Succulent

Cactus — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:14:40 UTC

It must be February because we've brought out the small, single-leafed Hoya kerrii's. Normally we only have these in large hanging baskets with giant vines and hearts all over the place. But this year we brought in a supply of smaller plants. Really just the hearts. Right in time for some mid-February...

Container Gardening Resurrection

containergardening.about.com — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:13:55 UTC

I have long been a proponent of tossing plants that are near death or look awful. However, my recent experiences are making me rethink this approach. After declaring my Meyer lemon tree a dead duck, it rebounded exhuberantly. Now my fig tree which has been looking near death for months, has three of...

A Few February Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Dave Townsend) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:55:07 UTC

The daffodils are out in force now. The early flowers are blooming all over the place but many others are only now emerging. It's amazing how different regions of the yard and different types of bulbs can effect their growth cycles. The clover is greening up. I snapped this picture the other day because...

Spring flowers... Disjointed thoughts on winter and spring.

noreply@blogger.com (Michael) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:03:09 UTC

A quick note... I've planted my spring flowers, a few weeks early... I already had zinnias and snapdragons planted, and so I added the following (some direct-sown, some in nursery pots): Zinnias, marigold (yellow and red), California poppies, and some new cosmos. Oh, and borage--not yet flowering, but...