Stories from A Way to Garden
-
Great Shrub: The 'Other' Butterfly Bush
A Way to Garden &bull Jun 7, 2010
IT'S THE BUTTERFLY BUSH YOU DON'T SEE SO OFTEN, but the one I like best. Not because I'm finicky-this is no rare or expensive plant, and is as gangly and sometimes unkempt as its cousins-but Buddleia alternifolia 'Argentea' just makes… Full Story »
-
Topics:
- Buddleia
-
Vegetable-Garden Tuneup: Make Room For More
A Way to Garden &bull Jun 6, 2010
ITaS NOT JUST THE BEDS OF FADED SPRING PERENNIALS and gone-by flowering shrubs that need a tuneup around here (and maybe in your yard, too?). Pea trellises might be a good place for pole beans (or other vining crops like squash or cukes)abut then I might want to plant fall… Full Story »
-
From The Forum: Eating Pea Shoots (Not Pods)
A Way to Garden &bull Jun 2, 2010
FORUM MEMBER ANN HAD a good question this week: Ever eaten pea tendrils or flowers or any of the bits other than the peas themselves? Well, yes I have, I replied, offering the best variety to grow for this gourmet… Full Story »
-
Topics:
- Damping off
- Variety
- Peas
-
In Bloom: Kousas, Peonies, Honeysuckles, A Rose
A Way to Garden &bull May 31, 2010
THE FIRST PERENNIAL GERANIUMS are rushing by; the Viburnum flowers are shattering. But the aJune gardena (which started a couple of weeks early, like everything else this strange spring) is in full force hereaand moving out of bloom faster than one might like.… Full Story »
-
My June 2010 Garden Chores
A Way to Garden &bull May 31, 2010
JUNE IS THE MONTH when the spring garden, all promise and freshness, fades to a picture of deadheads everywhere, and weeds really start testing us. We shall overcome! Multiple bouts of heat have put things off course a bit, and I find myself doing chores already that usually come mid-month. Go with the flow, right? MAKE A PASS through each garden bed each week, since weeds are not just unsightly but steal moisture, nutrients and… Full Story »
-
A Plant I'D Order: Chaerophyllum Hirsutum 'Roseum'
A Way to Garden &bull May 30, 2010
IALL BUT FORGET THE SO-CALLED HAIRY CHERVIL, or at least I do until Garden Open Days in May, when everyone asks what the pink thing is aover there,a pointing out front. Despite a dozen years of total neglect, Chaerophyllum hirsutum… Full Story »
-
Topics:
- Parsnip
- Botanical Garden
-
Tomato-Troubles Faq'S
A Way to Garden &bull May 24, 2010
Assuming 2009's last blight was the same strain normally seen, it can only overwinter on live plant tissues, not dead, in a cold zone like the Northeast, which would mean just one potential host: potato tubers overlooked during harvest. Dig and destroy (trash) all overwintered potatoes as they resprout. Volunteer tomatoes that sprout in the garden or compost can be the carrier of various other diseases (though not late blight). Always remove volunteer tomatoes as they appear, to prevent other tomato afflictions. Seed that was saved is not a potential transmitter of late blight, which cannot get inside a seed… Full Story »
-
Topics:
- Zone
-
Garden Open Day And Pot Workshop: You Coming?
A Way to Garden &bull May 21, 2010
I'M FEELING ABOUT AS FADED AS MY PANSIES, above-and aren't those the world's most beautiful deadheads? Sunday May 23 is Garden Conservancy Open Day from 10-4 (you can get details and directions at the Conservancy website, here). The $5 donation… Full Story »
-
Look Out The Window: Garden Design 101
A Way to Garden &bull May 17, 2010
I AM NO GARDEN DESIGNER OVER HERE, but this much I know: Look out the window of you want to make a garden. That's Step 1; that's where the siting of a successful home landscape should begin. After all, as a gardener, when was the last time you viewed the garden from outside, when you were in it? If you're like me, you're bending/weeding/mowing/digging, not viewing when you're outdoors. Ask yourself this: Where do you see your garden from most often, and at what time of year? Where does the magical light happen, and catch your eye? The best seat… Full Story »
-
Topics:
- Garden Design
-
From The Forum: Doublefile, Or Kousa Dogwood?
A Way to Garden &bull May 13, 2010
I am as proud of my compost heap as I am of any part of my garden. It is the archaeological record of my garden past; it is the stuff from which future gardens will arise. I read a lot… Full Story »
