Gardenig in China. Tips & Guides

Fresh Del Monte

Many of you may be familiar with our native fringetree, Chionanthus virginicus, often called Grancy graybeard, granddaddy graybeard or old man’s beard. It is a wonderful small tree that grows throughout the state but is certainly not a common site. It begins blooming in late March with airy, off-white flowers.

Phoebe Cheong

Due to their size and expense, gardeners tend to put a lot more thought into the trees they ultimately buy for their landscape. While a perennial might only live for 6 or 7 years, a tree might grace your garden for 50 years or more—outliving the person who so carefully selected it, in fact. Here at Fine Gardening, we feel strongly that trees should look good in more than one season (for all of the reasons above AND because they take up a lot of real estate). Therefore, on today’s episode, we may be highlighting our favorite flowering trees for every season, but these choices have more going for them than just some fleeting blooms. Listen to hear about which trees we’re willing to sacrifice a chunk of our paycheck on and why.    

The umbrella plant is popular for its large leaves that are held on a long stem, with five long leaves spanning out like the canopy of an umbrella. There are two species of umbrella plant, Schefflera, that make good house plants – Schefflera arboricola and Schefflera actinophylla. These are both easy to grow and low maintenance, being able to cope with a bit of neglect when it comes to watering. These house plants are fast growing, reaching up to 3m, with evergreen foliage that will make an impact in the corner of a room. The most common one found online is Schefflera arboricola, which is native to China and its cultivar ‘Nora’, which is more compact than the species, reaching only 1.5m tall. There is also ‘Gold Capella’, which has yellow margins on its leaves.

With so many Colocasia varieties to choose from, picking one for your room can be a challenge. Don’t worry! We have handpicked some of the most beautiful ones that will make it easy for you to select the one you like!

If you want a quick and eco-friendly solution to get a privacy screen around your Texas home, these fast growing shrubs are your best bet!

Creating a garden with a backbone of colorful, interesting foliage ensures interest even when nothing is in bloom or if inquisitive deer decide to taste-test the flower buds. Varying the texture and height of plants also disguises any indiscriminate munching that would be very obvious in a monoculture. This garden exhibits those principles while also utilizing a selection of deer-resistant plants to keep the space looking good year-round despite pest pressure. Here are some of the key plants that tie this design together. 1. Wine & Roses® weigela

We’re visiting another garden with Cherry Ong today, one that she saw on a tour organized by the Vancouver Hardy Plant Society last summer. This is a collector’s shade garden, full of lots of beautiful and unusual plants, including a stunning collection of Podophyllum (mayapples; hardiness varies, but mostly Zones 6–9).

Ranging from $500 to $5,000 per kilogram, saffron, or the Red Gold as it is commonly referred to, takes a total of about 150,000 flowers to produce just one kilogram! Now you know why it would be a great idea to have its plant at home!

Goji berries (Lycium barbarum) are a popular ‘superfood’ to eat fresh or dried. Native to China, they’re packed with vitamins and antioxidants and have been used in Chinese medicine for over a thousand years. They’re easy to grow at home in the UK and bear fruit after just one or two years. The best thing about growing your own goji berries is that you can eat them straight from the bush – most commercially available goji berries are dried.

So the next time you spot a mushroom growing in the wild, and get confused on whether its name starts with A, or C or D – well, it can be from M!

Colorful Spring Garden Bed with ‘Hino-Crimson’ Azalea Start your growing season by showcasing the vibrant blooms of 'Hino-Crimson' azalea along with other shade garden favorites. Add a burst of spring color with ‘Hino-Crimson’ azalea

Do note that there are no pure black lotus flowers – they have more of a deep purple hue. Nelumbo ‘Momo Botan,’ Nelumbo ‘Empress,’ and Nelumbo ‘Purple Joy’ are some of the most popular deep purple-black examples. Sometimes, people also refer to black Hellebores as black lotus.

Begonias are popular flowering plants known for their beauty and diversity, but beyond this, they also carry symbolic meanings!

How to Plant and Grow Daikon: Add Some Zing to Your Garden Raphanus sativus var. Longipinnatus

How to Plant and Grow Cabbage: A Fall and Spring Staple Crop Brassica oleracea var.capitata

How to Grow and Use Chinese Broccoli Brassica oleracea var. alboglabra

North Carolina’s diverse climate makes it great for growing many types of fruit trees, ranging from apples to pears. If you want to try growing more varieties, keep reading to know your options!

Every spring, all over South Carolina, we see yards, abandoned lots, natural areas, roadsides, and, in some cases, forests fill with white flowers. These first white flowers of the year are nearly all from the Callery pear tree (Pyrus calleryana). This tree is native to China, and while they may look the same, many of the trees planted in yards, around businesses, and in other managed landscapes across South Carolina are cultivars of P. calleryana. One of the most common cultivars is the Bradford pear (more information on Bradford pears can be found on this Clemson HGIC fact sheet HGIC 1006, Bradford Pear). Bradford pears, by themselves, cannot produce viable seed. But, if pollen from a different flowering pear cultivar (or a wild Callery pear) pollinates a Bradford pear flower, then viable seed can be produced. The fruit is often eaten by birds, and birds doing what birds do (hint: they fly and poop), spread the seeds across the land. When these new plants grow, they’re now Callery pears, the wild relative of Bradford and other cultivated varieties of Pyrus calleryana.

Apart from being incredibly beautiful to look at, camellia flowers also carry hidden aspects that relate to love, admiration, and cultural significance across different societies.

In the rich tapestry of Chinese culture, flowers are symbols of their tradition. Whether you are a gardener or an artist, these will inspire you to grow them for sure!

Simonetta Di Pippo, Bocconi University

A native of China, tea leaves  were delivered around the world in Clipper ships, created the furore at the Boston Tea Party during the American war of independence and still provides badly paid work for workers in India, Sri Lanka, Kenya and China.

If you're looking to redo your current kitchen space because you no longer like how it looks, don't panic because there are many easy and budget-friendly ways to add major character and charm to your kitchen without diving into a full-on project.

Though aglaonemas are not that fussy, they do have their fair share of problems. Here are the tips and tricks to keep Chinese Evergreens trouble-free.

(Deut’zia). A group of leaf-losing shrubs that are beautiful in bloom but are otherwise undistinguished. The flowers are produced from the side buds of the previous year’s growth. Many kinds are known, chiefly natives of China, Japan and the Himalayas. The majority are not perfectly hardy in the North against winter cold and should be given sheltered positions even in the climate of New York City and its environs. The Deutzias are closely related to the Mock Orange, or Philadelphus; they belong to the Saxifrage family, Saxifragaceae. The name Deutzia was given in honor of John van der Deutz, a patron of botany and at one time Sheriff of Amsterdam.

Evergreen shrubs, 5-6 ft. high, with large, glossy, laurel-like green or variegated leaves and clusters of red fruits, each containing a single seed. The flowers are small and not showy, and male and female flowers are borne on different plants. They grow wild in Japan, China, and the Himalayas, and belong to the Dogwood family, Cornaceae. The word Aucuba is derived from the Japanese name of the shrub, aokiba. Aucubas will live outdoors in very sheltered locations near New York City but are generally hardy only where milder winters are the rule.

What do you think – Are Grapes and Lychees related? Are they distant cousins or mere strangers in the fruit world? Let’s find out!

Information pertaining to broadleaf trees.  Listed below are common trees with care facts.

When you rely on foliage over flowers, a plant rarely experiences a “down period.” The following are all plants that play an important role in my garden’s composition.

Matt Armendariz

How to Grow and Care for Weeping Cherry Trees Prunus spp.

While gardeners often extol the virtues of outstanding bark and winter interest, let’s not kid ourselves—flower power reigns supreme. A tree that is a stately focal point most of the year will be transformed into an awe-inspiring centerpiece by spectacular blooms. Spring-flowering trees often occupy prime garden real estate, but for some easy, unexpected floral elegance, it is truly worthwhile to plant trees that bloom in summer, fall, or even late winter. Many of my favorites even have dazzling displays when they aren’t in bloom. Here are some excellent choices for you to consider.

This year, when gardeners look at plant and seed catalogs, I think they will be inclined to go for the safe and familiar. After all,  even optimists need a sense of security. It will probably be a banner year for roses of all kinds, with reds selling well. The ongoing vogue for cottage flowers will probably continue to be strong. In fact, the wildest thing many people will invest in come spring will be a few of the more bizarre coleus cultivars.

Asian fruits bring a tasty adventure to your palate! From sweet bananas packed with vitamins to figs' earthy aroma, each fruit has unique flavors and health benefits. Try juicy lychee, creamy jackfruit, or sour starfruit. Dive into the crunchy snake fruit, sweet mangosteen, or the delightful Asian pear. Don't forget the king of fruits – the mango, known for its unbeatable taste and fragrance. Enjoy these delicious treats from Southeast Asia!