Frederick Leeth

Not long ago, I was talking to a gardening friend. The subject was spring bulbs, and her lament was that she just didn’t have the time to get them in the ground. “I’ve given up buying bulbs,” she said, “because every year they end up rotting in my garage.” I can sympathize with her, because of every fall, at least in my little corner of the world, sinister forces conspire to take away the weekends that I intended to spend planting all the bulbs that I ordered back in August.

Why don’t my plants flower? Probably this plaintive question is raised oftener than any other that has to do with gardening. As likely as not, too, the complaining gardener will go on to say that he gives considerable attention to fertilization, to watering, and to cultivation, but still, his plants do not flower as well as those in his neighbor’s garden. Why? he asks, and if his morale is low enough he will probably repeat, with emphasis, Why?

A NORWAY MAPLE whose leaves are dark, glistening crimson throughout the spring and summer is horticultural news that opens all opportunities for new landscaping effects. The form known as Schwedler maple has made an effort toward this rewarding goal, but its red changes to green with the arrival of summer. Finally, along comes the postwar variety Crimson King, which really fills the bill. As a result, it is making headlines such as no other new tree has achieved in years.

Approximately 180 species of gladiolus are available to the gardener. Originating from South Africa on rocky slopes, marshy areas and grasslands, they are also found growing in the Mediterranean, Asia and Central Europe. The latin name “Gladiolus” means “small sword”, which is referring to the shape of the leaves and flower spike. They were at one time referred to, as “sword lilies” or “corm lilies”, as the plants are formed from round, flattened bulbs, called “corms”.

The name originates from the Greek anchousa, a cosmetic paint (Boraginaceae). Alkanet, bugloss. Cultivated species are usually perennials or biennials, noteworthy for their blue flowers. The plant long known as Anchusa myosotidiflora is now correctly known as Brunnera macrophylla.

Cucumbers and squash are such productive vegetables that only a few plants will provide an abundant harvest.  Experiment with unique selections that are rarely seen in stores. For example, long slender Oriental cucumbers or petite pickling cucumbers are simple to grow, as are brightly colored summer squash and zucchini. These are also fast growing crops that start producing only six weeks after planting seed.

This is an important stage in the cultivation of plants which have been raised from seed. As soon as the young seedlings can be handled easily, they must be moved on into deeper boxes which will provide their roots with more room to develop. If the seedlings are left in their original boxes or seed-pans too long, they will become badly drawn or straggly and they will not grow into sturdy specimens.

This is not to say that I have no other roses in my garden. Life would not be complete without a few good reds, a generous handful of peach-tinted varieties and a sprinkling of whites. This year we may acquire one or two striped roses, and I have a feeling that they may prove addictive. However, for the moment, the yellow roses hold sway in my heart.

Distinctive border perennial with Leaves are narrow, long, and grasslike. This is a sturdy, but graceful plant with few problems and architectural character. Varieties available in both dwarf and larger forms. Primary bloom season is summer. Remove spent flower spikes and old leaves in fall. Good companion plant for daylilies.

Hardy perennial and annual plants of varying heights which bloom in June and July chiefly; the original species or wild types from which the modern beautiful varieties are descended are natives of California, Siberia, Syria, India and other countries. Delphinium Ajacis, originally from eastern Europe is one of the plants from which the annual Larkspurs have been raised. Delphinium belongs to the Buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. The name is an old Greek one.

A giant invasive plant known as “Millennium Madness” sprouted worldwide last year. It was particularly bad in the United States and positively egregious in the New York metropolitan area. And, as if Millennium Madness was not bad enough all by itself, there were rumors that it was infested on a grand scale with the dreaded Y2K Bug. While professionals in a host of countries spent months trying to think of ways to eradicate the Y2K Bug, ordinary people were rumored to be aiding the rapid growth and spread of Millennium Madness by watering local specimens with vast quantities of bottled water that they had stored in their basements.

How to grow Heuchera

The news has been awash with UK Environment Secretary Owen Paterson’s issues in relation to the badger cull. There has been fierce opposition to this issue. No one seems certain whether this strategy will help make a positive impact on the reduction of bovine tuberculosis in cattle. With fierce protests and ongoing issues yet to be resolved, it seems this is far from over.

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

JI #1 Base

Do you have small space to plant or little time to garden? Then look no further than a shrub rose. A potted Star® Landscape Shrub Rose blooms from spring well into fall frost with little care for year-round color and non-stop blooming

I admire tenacity. It is a trait that I strive for myself and have tried to instill in my child. I am moved when I hear stories about people who overcome adversity or achieve great things by trying repeatedly until they reach their goals. And yet, when a great example of tenacity occurs right in my own backyard, I find myself strangely unmoved.

From the Greek gala, milk, ago, to lead; the plant was used as fodder for cattle and goats and was thought to stimulate the flow of milk (Leguminosae). Goat’s rue. A small genus of hardy herbaceous plants with pinnate leaves, useful for the border. The only species likely to be found in cultivation is G. officinalis, 3-5 feet tall with spikes of bluish sweet-pea‑shaped flowers in summer and autumn. It is variable in flower colour and has several varieties, including alba, white flowers, and hartlandii with larger flowers of a better lilac than the type. Cultivars include ‘Duchess of Bedford’, mauve and white; ‘Her Majesty’, clear lilac; `Lady Wilson’, blue and white flushed with pink.

As with fashion, floriculture also has its trends. Dutch botanist Jacqueline van der Kloet signals two color trends.

Carnations in all their various forms are generally considered to be derivatives of Dianthus Caryophyllus, although the origin of some is not entirely clear. In North America, when referring to carnations, we immediately think of the carnation of commerce, the continuous or perpetual flowering carnation that is commonly grown under glass. There are, however, various garden types of this delightful flower that have never become so popular in North America as they are in many parts of Europe; this is because, over much of the continent, temperatures are too high for their successful, easy culture.

Tender herbaceous perennial plants, from South America and the West Indies, of the family Cannaceae. They have unbranched, stately stems springing from a fleshy rootstock; large, ornamental foliage; and showy gladiolus-like flowers in dense terminal clusters during summer. They are chiefly used in summer beds and borders. The origin of the name is uncertain.

The Blueberry is a native American fruit harvested from wild plants since the country was settled. About 1910 the late Dr. F. V. Coville of the United States Department of Agriculture began the domestication of the High-bush Blueberry. A breeding program based on selected wild types has produced through the years a number of varieties vastly superior to their wild ancestors. Considerable research on cultural problems has developed a body of knowledge on which a highly profitable and extensive commercial industry is growing rapidly.

Most shrubs are low-maintenance plants that grow well for years with little attention. However, it is important to start with species well adapted to the local climate and soils. Thousands of shrubs range from dwarfs that hug the ground to tall, tree-like specimens. Before selecting any for your garden, it pays to look around and study those thriving in established landscapes of nearby neighborhoods. Remember that mature shrubs often look very different from their young counterparts sold in pots.

Recently I went to see a big garden—seven acres to be exact. It was located on some of the priciest real estate anywhere, and it was gorgeous. It took a big crew to maintain it and a big chipper shredder machine to keep it in wood chips. Needless to say, it was bankrolled by someone with a big pocketbook. It also took a lot of big-leaf plants to cover the ground. Small and delicate plants have their charms, but when you have acreage to cover, eyesores to hide, or lots to do other than gardening, big plants are the ticket.

(Aza’lea). Botanists now classify all plants they once called Azaleas as Rhododendrons. Garden lovers still use Azalea for deciduous or leaf-losing kinds and for a few that are not, and the name Rhododendron for evergreen kinds which have large, leathery leaves. In the treatment that follows, Azalea is used as a common name and Rhododendron as the scientific name, thus, when a species is named it is written, for example, R. calendulaceum instead of A. calendulacea.

ACER CAPILLIPES Young bark striated with white; young growths coral red, leaves turning crimson in autumn. A. davidii, young bark shiny green, striated with white; leaves usually turn yellow and purple in autumn. Long chains of keys striking. A. griseum, paper bark maple, the outer bark peeling in papery flakes to show the copper-colored inner bark; opening leaves bronze colored, turning red or orange in autumn. A. grosseri, A. g. hersii, young bark green or yellowish striated with white, leaves orange and crimson in autumn. A. pennsylvanicum, moosewood, young bark green striped and patterned with white, the large leaves pinkish on opening turning clear in autumn. A. rufinerve, bark green, with an elaborate pattern of greyish markings, persisting on old trunks; leaves red when young and usually crimson in autumn, when the long chains of keys are attractive.

There are exceptions, as may well be imagined, among the wonderful variety that is found in roses at the present day. The first exception is found in those varieties that make vigorous growth even when hard pruned; this would seem to indicate that the orthodox method is not for them. Neither, in fact, is it suitable.

A friend called not long ago, and she sounded desperate.

Hypertufa is a cast “rock-like” material which can be used for relatively inexpensive bonsai pots and slabs for plantings. It looks like rock, can be cast into almost any shape, is very lightweight and also strong enough to withstand the freeze/thaw cycle of most northern climates. The American Rock Garden Society uses the following basic recipe to create alpine troughs. They can be textured anywhere from very smooth to a rough rocky look for a “natural pot”.

The gardener must at times give plants protection against too intense light and against excessively high temperatures.

At first glance, a derelict garden seems a most depressing problem and one which would appear to be insurmountable. Certainly, its renovation and reclamation will require a great deal of hard work, but it is a task which can be made much easier and pleasanter if a plan of campaign is worked out beforehand.

A hardiness zone is a defined geographical area in which a specific category of plant life can grow, according to the climatic conditions, including its ability to withstand certain minimum temperatures of the zone. For example, a plant is described as “resistant to zone 10” which means that the plant can withstand a minimum temperature of -1°C (30 F). A more resistant plant that is “resistant to zone 9” can withstand a minimum temperature of -7 ° C. The concept was initially developed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the system has been adopted by other nations.

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This is the time of year when garden pundits tell their disciples to bring in branches of forsythia, pussy willow or flowering quince for indoor bloom.

Columnar or Fastigiate trees

Standard Potting Mix