Home owners, especially those who live in new developments, are always looking for suitable trees that will be ornamental and provide some shade. The ideal tree, that combines hardiness, rapidity of growth, toughness and resistance to diseases and pests, along with attractive foliage and desirable form, is hard to find. A tree may possess all […]

If you take to casual gardening for reasons of economy, scarcity of help or even from preference, you will find it’s an intriguing game to grow an assortment of plants which can pretty much take care of themselves – plants you like and ones that enjoy your climate and exposure. In every West Coast climate […]

The Oriental influence in home and garden decoration has resulted in the increase in the popularity of the Oriental poppy. To meet the demand, there are hybrids of enchanting colors which, in spite of their delicate appearance, hold their own against wind and rain. Today you can have, in addition to the old-fashioned brilliant orange […]

Question: I’ve heard many people talk about checking the pH of the soil for the lawn, garden and landscape. Is it really that important or some test to make more money. Marcus, Bryan, Texas Answer: Marcus, do not shy away from the term pH because it sounds mysterious and hard to understand? If you do, […]

Autumn Elaeagnus is one of the best shrubs for autumn effect and at one time was highly both for rapid growth and modest price, the problem is – it crowds out native species (see invasivespeciesinfo.gov). Its artistic merits rest on beautiful silvery foliage and heavy masses of pink and red fruits. The latter are effective […]

Groundcovers are the answer in spots too dry for a lawn, where grass is hard to mow, where rain erodes the sloping ground and where shade is too dense.

You may be able to make that green thumb of yours even greener by rooting many of your cuttings under a propagation system called a “mist system”. In this system. cuttings are simply bathed in a fine mist of water – in full sunlight or very bright light – for the entire rooting period. The […]

Of the some 175 different kinds of honeysuckles grown in the United States today, the tatarian honeysuckle, Lonicera tatarica, is one of the most valuable invasive as an ornamental. True, it does not have the very large flowers of some species, but it grows vigorously and is perfectly hardy in all sections of the United […]