How to Grow and Care for Mexican Fan Palms Washingtonia robusta
06.12.2023 - 09:25 / finegardening.com
Lifelong saxifrage
Saxifraga paniculatasubsp. paniculata
Zones: 2–6
Size: 6 to 12 inches tall and 3 to 6 inches wide
Conditions: Partial shade; well-drained soil
Native range: Central Europe
Lifelong saxifrage is probably one of the easiest saxifrages to grow. Its white-edged green foliage grows in spreading rosettes, and in spring a central flower spike that can tower up to a foot tall may emerge from mature plants. Those flowers can vary in color from white to pink to yellow. This plant loves the cold, so it may sulk in hot and humid climates. It likes rocky soil, and it can thrive in a frost-tolerant pot with a very free-draining, gritty soil mix. Lifelong saxifrage is remarkably hardy and often looks best in late winter through early spring.
‘Pink Champagne’ epimedium
Epimedium ‘Pink Champagne’
Zones: 5–8
Size: 1½ to 2 feet tall and 2 to 3 feet wide
Conditions: Partial to full shade; moist to dry, well-drained soil
Native range: Hybrid
When I asked epimedium expert and breeder Darrell Probst which cross was his favorite, he led me to a
trial bed with a knee-high massive clump of a plant
he named ‘Pink Champagne’. Like most epimediums, this cultivar takes a year or two to really look awesome, but it is well worth the wait. While the pink-and-white spring-blooming flowers are really gorgeous, what
sets this plant apart is its dramatic mottled leaves that often last through most of winter, lighting up the garden during the offseason. Trimming away old foliage each spring as the new growth emerges will keep ‘Pink Champagne’ looking its best.
Christmas fern
Polystichum acrostichoides
Zones: 3–8
Size: 1 to 2 feet tall and wide
Conditions: Partial to full shade; moist to dry, well-drained soil
Native
How to Grow and Care for Mexican Fan Palms Washingtonia robusta
Most gardeners would agree that the best pastime for cold winter days is looking through seed and plant catalogs imagining the growing season to come. With that in mind, consider these four strong summer blooming perennials for the midwest when you are ordering plants in the coming weeks.
Whether you’re house hunting, looking for a new apartment, or considering a move, Zillow surfing is one of the most lovely experiences you can have online. There’s no comment section or social media aspect to it; it’s simply a tool for exploration and fun, and, boy, did we take advantage of that this year.
Some people are particular about the garden tools they use. Others take it less seriously and are content with the cheapest things they can find. I’m somewhere in the middle. I’m not one to waste money on overpriced brands, but I do want durable tools that last a good while. Just as important, they need to do the job and be up for the conditions under which I’ll be using them.
Tropical evergreen shrubs of the Verbena family can be a vibrant addition to any garden, offering a blend of lush foliage and vivid flowers.
Last week Kathy Sandel shared her former garden in Calabasas, California, and today we’re back visiting her current garden in Sacramento:
When to Plant Succulents in the Northwest
Seed saving is the art of collecting the seed from your crop and using it in subsequent seasons to grow new plants. Even if you save only small quantities of a few crops, understanding more about the life cycle, breeding tendencies, and botany of your crops will help you manage and care for them more effectively.
White Christmas Cactus, £11.99 from Hortology
While some may be familiar with Japanese sacred lily (Rohdea japonica, Zones 6–10), Rohdea pachynema is an uncommon species that is indeed a Rohdea less traveled. Found only in the Chinese provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan, it is an intriguing member of the Asparagaceae family that is slowly becoming more available to gardeners. It was formerly known as Campylandra sinensis or C. pachynema, but recent DNA work has moved it into the genus Rohdea, whose name commemorates German botanist Michael Rohde. We can find no documented common name for this species, so we have dubbed it “yellow thread rohdea” since pachynema means “thick thread” (referring to the colored central stripe on the leaves).
The Isles of Scilly are like an idealised version of England – where the sun always shines, the food is wonderful, there’s no traffic and no one locks their doors! To say the sun always shines is an exaggeration, but they’re among the sunniest and mildest places in the UK – sea breezes mean it’s never too hot or humid and thanks to the Jetstream, they almost never have frost.
Boasting some of Britain’s most beautiful countryside, the Lake District, in the north-west corner of England, is a draw for anyone with a love of the outdoors. Its hills and mountains, including England’s highest, Scafell Pike at 978m, attract walkers and climbers, while in the valley bottoms, vast lakes, such as Windermere and Ullswater, invite quiet contemplation.