Gardenig in North Korea. Tips & Guides

What sets Korean succulents apart are their stunning blooms and versatile nature to thrive in any environment, making them perfect for anyone looking for a plant that’s easy to look after.

What if you have the best of both worlds – a classy foliage plant that you can also add to your platter! Sounds delicious? Keep reading!

I grew up in the north, where my mother’s garden teemed with the intoxicating aromas of lilacs, sweet peas, and lily of the valley. When I moved to Oklahoma, I left these fragrant favorites behind and began the search for new plants to delight the senses. After trying southern classics like gardenia (Gardenia spp. and cvs., Zones 8–11) and summersweet (Clethera spp. and cvs., Zones 3–9) which don’t much care for the Oklahoma heat, I landed on several plants that fair well across many climates.

Today we’re visiting TJ Mrazik’s garden in Worcester, Pennsylvania.

Yelp

Conifers may have a history reaching back 300 million years and cover wide stretches of the northern nemisphere but as garden plants they have long been out of favour. That may be changing. Innovative use at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show last year demonstrated how conifers can add structure to a garden in a relaxed way. 

Today we’re off to Canada to visit with Bas Suharto.

Tips for Growing Japanese Yews Taxus cuspidata

How to Grow and Care for Winterhazel Corylopsis spp.

As native grasses such as little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium and cvs., Zones 3–9) and prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis and cvs., Zones 3–9) increasingly gain traction in gardens, exotics such as miscanthus (Miscanthus sinensis and cvs., Zones 4–9) are losing favor because of their invasive tendencies. But not all exotic grasses are troublesome and need to be avoided. Feather reed grass (Calamagrostis × acutiflora and cvs., Zones 5–9) is a natural hybrid of C. arundinacea and C. epigejos, which are both nonnatives and prolific self-sowers, but the hybrid rarely sets fertile seed—a major plus for an exotic grass, right? So why are other reed grasses—‘Karl Foerster’ aside—so underused? To answer that question is to understand the phenomenon of ‘Karl Foerster’ feather reed grass (C. × acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’).

Have a look at the Different Types of Arborvitae Varieties that you can use for privacy in the garden. They are easy to maintain and also look quite charming with their height.

A. gigas is a star of high-to-late summer, with 6-to-8-inch domed flowerheads of the darkest wine color in much of August or longer. But for me the show begins them those insane-looking buds form, always prompting garden visitors to ask “What’s that?” Indeed.This most dramatic of angelicas wants moist soil, and is adaptable in my area to sun or shade, but seems happiest in bright shade (the old happy medium of gardening conditions).To have a successful colony, as with any biennial, you need to be vigilant and not accidentally weed out your self-sown babies each spring. You also will need varying generations of plants: some at blooming age (one year old) and some babies (to bloom next year). So I suggest to get started you buy yourself some p

(click any green type to link to the profile of that plant)Golden hinoki cypress, Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Crippsii’Japanese umbrella pine, Sciadopitys verticillataConcolor fir, Abies concolorWeeping Alaska cedar, Chamaecyparis nootkatensis ‘Pendula’Korean fir, Abies koreanaLacebark pine, Pinus bungeanaFavorite Coniferous ShrubsRussian arborvitae, Microbiota decussataGolden spreading yew, Taxus baccata ‘Repandens Aurea’Dwarf white pine,Pinus strobus ‘Nana’Conifer SlideshowIf you missed it earlier this year, tour the above favorites and more in my slideshow of favorites conifers.Categoriesconifers for beginners trees & shrubs

The Korean fir in the photo was my Charlie Brown-style Christmas tree perhaps a half-dozen years ago, a scrawny potted baby I festooned with a few shiny things and positioned in the cool back mudroom. (By late summer, its cones turn tan-colored, so it didn’t decorate itself the way it had in summer. And you can only loosely call them pine cones: A. koreana is in the Pinaceae or Pine Family, but not a true pine.) After the holiday I heeled it in for the rest of winter, moving it to a permanent spot in spring.This beautiful smallish tree, to perhaps 15 or 20 feet tall (30 tops, I’ve read), has just one drawback: It can’t take the heat. For my location, that’s just fine; its ideal setting is zone 5 or 6, just like here. Various references say it is hard from Zone 5 to 7, or some claim as cold as 4 and warm as 8.

My favorite Kousa, the variegated shrublike one called ‘Wolf Eyes,’ looks anything but happy right now, perhaps a combination of an extra-dry May with repeat late frosts tossed in for good measure. That’s it below, in the distance.Mea culpa for not watering it properly, I guess; it looked good early on and then, poof, toast.  No brittle twigs, thankfully; just lots of crisp leaf edges. I’m watching for signs of what it wants to do next before I do anything but keep it well-hydrated (no food, no pruning, not yet).And then there’s the smallest: a weeping Kousa, the one called ‘Lustgarten Weeping’ that I almost tossed, as those of you who were here last year will recall. Despite the fact that my un-beloved yellow bellied sapsucker male apparently moved from the nearby lacebark pine that was his passion last year to the weeping Kousa sometime in the last few months,

I ALMOST LOST MY COLONY of Angelica gigas this last non-winter and dry spring/summer, but various species of bees and wasps and other insects are very glad I didn’t. The Korean angelica, a biennial with unearthly wine-colored flowerheads, is just one of the primary pit stops abuzz right now in the late-summer garden–and many of them are in the family that’s variously called Umbelliferae or Apiaceae.

You may remember some of these from A Way to Garden’s series on beloved conifers: You can find those plant profiles by going to this easily browsable page. Many links to individual plant portraits are listed below. But first, the tour (click on the first thumbnail to start the slideshow, then navigate from image to image by clicking the arrows beside the caption): Favorite Coniferous Trees(click any green type to link to the profile of that plant)Golden hinoki cypress, Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Crippsii’Japanese umbrella pine, Sciadopitys verticillataConcolor fir, Abies concolorWeeping Alaska cedar

J UNGLE CONDITIONS NOTWITHSTANDING, some things are still standing here, and even looking good. I wanted to make sure to give each one its due so that these brave souls, who didn’t pack up and float away lately with all the you-know-what, know that I appreciate their courage and tenacity.

AS MANY TIMES AS I HAVE SEEN THEM, I’m always startled when the Korean fir, Abies koreana, puts out a fresh crop of purple “pine” cones each year at this time.

The trees and shrubs below are my most reliable for that assignment. I have many other woody plants that display good fall color—but only some years. Some magnolias do (such as ‘Ballerina,’ an early flowering fragrant white Loebner hybrid that I adore), though only most years.Shadbush, or Amelanchier, would be another easy-to-grow good choice, a native with extra-early flowers and good fall color. Except for this: In my area, where Eastern red cedars and apple trees are both in long supply, conditions are therefore prime for the fungus called cedar apple rust to cause my shadbush (and other rose relatives) to defoliate early.  Oops.So here’s my top-12 list (with links to their full profiles if I have

THE ONLY THING THAT WOULD HAVE MADE THIS MISHAP a little more bearable: if I’d had a vase big enough for the spectacular flower-covered branch I lost to storms from one of my Cornus kousa, or Korean dogwoods, last week. Come to think of it, I don’t even have ceilings tall enough to accommodate the 11-foot consolation prize indoors, vase or no vase.

How to spice it up in our home cooking? Alexandra Stafford of the Alexandra’s Kitchen website, alexandracooks.com, author of the “Bread, Toast, Crumbs” cookbook, is helping me get a little confidence about using spices to create some favorite take-out flavors at home. Together she and I have been digging for inspiration into the latest crop of cookbooks, which would also make great gifts to others who might need a flavor nudge.Read along as you listen to the December 2, 2019 edition of my public-radio show and podcast using the player below. You can subscribe to all future editions on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher (and browse my archive of podcasts here).And we’ll have a double book giveaway: Over on Ali’s website, ent

Hedges are the best way to create boundaries for your yard, make a small privacy screen, and shelter little plants from harsh winds. Check out the Best Low Maintenance Hedge Plants you can choose to create the perfect fence for your garden.

Abies Koreana , this Korean Fir Makes  a wonderful specimen tree.  The dark green leaves are distinctly silver on the underside, however the striking feature of this evergreen  is the large blue cones.

Planting Aspen Trees: Aspens are beautiful, medium-sized ornamental trees with smooth bark and slender leaves. Also known as quaking aspen, they prominently occur in highly elevated prairies and upland grasslands. Most commonly found in the USA and Canada, aspen trees fall in the likes of every gardener.

We love pleasant aromas, and flowers are the liveliest source of them. Here’s an all-inclusive list of the Most Fragrant Flowers According to Gardeners based on a small survey in more than 20 countries on major social media platforms.

In hot and arid areas availability of water even for regular chore is difficult sometimes, forget about watering plants. If you live at such a place or really a busy person who can’t about trees growing in your yard, then these low maintenance and drought tolerant fruit trees are perfect for you.

Plants make you happier! We couldn’t agree more with Slow Pharmacy. For those of you who have not yet heard of this beautiful label from South Korea, let us have the honor to introduce you to the magic of bottled plants! The founders, Lee & Jeong, strongly believe that the power of plants contributes to our overall well-being. If you read our Plant Tribe book, you know this is a point where we fully agree with Slow Pharmacy. But these two creative Koreans have interpreted the idea of bringing plants into our homes in a new, minimalistic way: carefully selected plants, hand-filled in beautiful vials, floating in a transparent liquid and preserved for years to come. Adding Slow Pharmacy vials to your home adds a touch of botanical serenity. It is a poetic way of encapsulating the elusive beauty of a plant in a bottle, offering the viewer a moment of meditative serenity and calmness. By carefully choosing the place for your Slow Pharmacy vials, you will observe the play of light caressing the plant and presenting an array of hues and details that keep your attention. Not only does this look beautiful, it truly tickles your phantasy and creativity. And before you even know, you have relaxed fully while observing the floating plant in its vial. Botanical magic happened!We both have added our selected Slow Pharmacy vials into our homes, too. Whether it is on a plant shelf accompanying your potted houseplants, on a desk to inspire your creativity, or in a darker corner of your home that is not suitable for a potted plant – the vials look stunning in every scenery and add a touch of simplicity, beauty and minimalism.

Let’s explore the origins of these flavorful nuts and discover the fascinating history behind them. From the ancient pine forests of the Mediterranean to the modern-day harvests in Asia and North America, let’s uncover the story of “Where do Pine Nuts Come From?“

Well, Diarmuid has done it again with his ‘mine’s bigger than your’s garden’. Last year I really liked his sky garden, which was good despite its gimmicks, this year it just irritated me and the only time that I felt it came to life was when the Chelsea Pensioners lined up along the various levels, giving the whole thing some much-needed definition. I think the reaso

Yes I did, and almost a month early! It’s a pretty good one, too.

If you want to add the beauty of big and colorful flowers in a small space, then learnHow to Grow Rose of Sharon in Pots!

While most of the gardeners have common flowers, you could grow something different and exciting in your yard! Here are some of the rare and Best Russian Flowers that you can try your hands on!

Autumn is my favorite season… it’s not even close. And fall is an ideal time for a grab bag of reasons: Halloween, longer nights, the cool-without-being-freezing-weather, and so on.We link to vendors to help you find relevant prod

Home Away From Home is a series that spotlights BIPOC brands that are adding a cultural essence to everyday items. This allows anyone to always have a piece of their culture in their own space without ever feeling homesick or out of touch with their roots. We're exploring the stories of the individuals behind the brands that have touched people's hearts through their products and have allowed people to feel at home anywhere.