Foliage Color – In general people think of leaves as being green, but look again. Leaves can be all the colors of the rainbow. In itself, green is paramount in the garden. It is the color that induces calm and tranquillity. It has the ability to heighten pale colors and to tone down bright ones, and a
Indoor Hanging Baskets
Indoor Hanging Baskets – A group of attractive indoor plants in a hanging basket will indeed provide a beautiful display, but do not rush into hanging a container from a hook in the ceiling or a bracket on the wall until you have carefully studied the difficulties. The air will be warmer and drier than at
Create A Barrel Of Petunias
Create A Barrel Of Petunias – Most petunias are half-hardy perennials but they are best grown as annuals, as the plants tend to become leggy and less floriferous in their second year. In their first year, they flower continuously from early summer until fall, but as with most plants that flower for a very long
Useful Ground Cover Plants
Useful Ground Cover Plants – The best ground cover plants are evergreen. St. John’s wort (Hypericum) can be grown in a shady part of the garden where its bright yellow flowers will grow out of the darkness. Rose of Sharon (Hypericum calycinum) flowers from early summer to early fall. It makes a good specimen plant
Elegant Companions Of Spring Plants
Elegant Companions Of Spring Plants – Only a handful of spring bulbs grow to a good size. They include Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum), which flowers in late spring and early summer and likes a shaded or semi-shaded site, and the crown imperials. Grown in three colors – yellow, orange, or deep red – the crown imperials
Decorating Your Garden With Herbs
Decorating Your Garden With Herbs – Most herbs are perennial plants that need six to eight hours of sunlight and well drained soil. Some are annuals and must be replanted every year. Even some annuals like rosemary and lemon verbena become annual in very cold areas of the country unless brought inside during the coldest
Climbing Plants
Climbing Plants – Climbers produce some of the most magnificent floral displays of any plants. They can cover bare walls, fences, trellises and pergolas with sheets of bloom in every color in natures range. Yet even the largest and most rampant takes up an area of ground only the size of its trunk. Because climbers
Winter Trees: Chamaecyparis, Cupressocyparis And Cupressus
Winter Trees: Chamaecyparis, Cupressocyparis And Cupressus – Chamaecyparis or false cypress is a useful genus, from East Asia and North America, with a huge number of cultivars. They range from giant forest trees to smaller forms that can be used as specimen trees, for hedging and as dwarf plants for the rock or scree garden.
The Winter Cherry
The Winter Cherry plants (Solanum) bear tiny flowers in summer and these are followed in fall by green berries which change color as winter approaches. The Winter Cherry is a familiar sight at Christmas. The orange or red berries among the dark green leaves provide a festive touch, and if this small shrubby plant is
Find A Place For Your Topiary
Find A Place For Your Topiary – During the fall season the key architectural ingredients start to grab the eye. And some of the best are topiarized shapes that range from traditional birds, urns and simple geometric shapes, to clouds, animals, chairs, and even cars. The best way to decide where to place your topiary
The Ideal Flowers For Thanksgiving Day
The Ideal Flowers For Thanksgiving Day – Each year, we celebrate the glorious bounty of the fall harvest with our family and friends. In the US, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. Thanksgiving Day feast would be incomplete without a beautiful, fresh bouquet of flowers or a floral Thanksgiving table centerpiece
Jasmine Tobacco
Jasmine Tobacco (Nicotiana alata) is a lovely heirloom flower gaining recognition among today’s gardeners. This ornamental tobacco plant is notable for the unusual color of its evening-scented flowers, which make it popular with flower arrangers. It makes an erect bushy plant, 60-75cm/24-30in tall, covered in sticky hairs and with lax group of long-tubed flowers which