Ornamental grasses offer contrast in texture and form in most gardens, and are often and easy, low-maintenance way to provide multi-season interest. Read about some annual and perennial ornamental grasses in these archived articles:
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Look no further than spotted deadnettle for a tough but showy groundcover. With variegated leaves that shine in shade and a long bloom time, Lamium maculatum is an eye-catching plant throughout the year. Choose from cultivars with green and white striped or silver leaves and white, purple or pink flowers. Learn more about this adaptable, low-growing perennial in this article…
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Is it hot enough for you? Heat can refer to temperature, spiciness and also to color, as in the warm or hot color range which includes red, orange and yellow. The more intense or brighter the color, the hotter it is. Bright colors are good for drawing attention to areas you would like to highlight. Here’s a small but sizzling selection of plants with flowers primarily in brilliant, blazing shades. Learn more about these hot plants in these archived articles:
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Spider flower is fast growing, self-seeding annual with delicate and airy flowers in showy, exotic looking heads of pink, white or purple. These eye-catching plants provide a splash of color from summer through frost when planted in mass or as a backdrop for shorter companions in the annual or mixed garden. Learn more about this cottage garden favorite in this article…
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Some of our favorite childhood memories may be of home-preserved foods: delicious dill pickles, spicy salsa, and sweet jams and jellies. And many of us enjoy sharing these favorite items with family and friends. But how do we know that these family favorites are safe and of good quality to share?
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Looking for a vigorous annual vine to quickly cover a trellis, fence or arbor? Cardinal climber offers attractive, ferny foliage and bright red flowers later in the season which are very attractive to hummingbirds. Learn more about this heirloom ornamental with few pests and little maintenance requirements in this article…
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Get ready for flavor when you use herbs fresh from your garden or the farmer’s market. There are all kinds of herbs used for cooking, fragrance, medicinally, or in crafts. Read about some culinary herbs you might want to grow or use in these archived articles:
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With tall, showy spikes of tubular pink or purple flowers with speckled throats, common foxglove is a common addition to informal gardens for vertical interest. This biennial from Western Europe forms a rosette of leaves the first year and blooms in the second year. Learn more about Digitalis purpurea – the original source of the heart medicine digitoxin – but also considered an invasive weed in many places…
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Insects abound in the warm summer months, with many types — such as butterflies, dragonflies and bees — that most people enjoy and appreciate, but also some not-so-nice ones that can damage our ornamental and vegetable plants. Here’s a lineup of some pest suspects which includes one that just seems like a pest because it can be so numerous, but it doesn’t hurt plants. Read more about these six insects in these archived articles:
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One in the Plants Plus Series – a remix of past training presentations, printed materials and other references focused on specific plants or topics to help you increase your knowledge so you can better answer homeowner questions. To get 2 hours of continuing education credit for watching and reading this package of information, just complete the short quiz! This Plants Plus package focuses on post-harvest handling of vegetable crops.
