Shea McGee Shares Her Best Secrets for Furniture Shopping

Last week Kathy Sandel shared her former garden in Calabasas, California, and today we’re back visiting her current garden in Sacramento:

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Heaths and heathers are easy to grow if you give them the right conditions. They only loathe clay soil and summer humidity (although you can find exceptions), and you can’t do much about those. Other than that, you can provide the conditions or find the species or cultivar that suits your spot. The best source for in-depth information is Gardening with Hardy Heathers by David Small and Ella May T. Wulff.

As well as being that haloed place where one can enjoy a bit of peace and quiet and a hot soak, the bathroom is also one of the best rooms to grow house plants. Its high humidity is a haven for a lot of indoor plants because so many of them hail from tropical or subtropical forests. There they flourish in the consistently damp, warm air and the light that pours in between the trees. These plants will feel right at home in bathrooms, shower rooms, and kitchens, if provided with the indirect light and average-to-warm temperature that most of them crave.

Dramatic and elegant, amaryllis (Hippeastrum) are bulbous indoor plants that cheer us through the coldest months. The huge flowers bloom atop tall, sturdy stems, opening like colourful trumpets, as if about to blast away the winter blues with a clarion call.

Designing your home is an exciting endeavor—that is until you realize just how many interior decorating styles there are. If you're firmly rooted in a particular style, happy designing. If you're feeling dizzy from the number of choices, don't fret.

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). 

Karen Delahay

Would you like to maximise your cantaloupe harvest? This list of good companion plants for cantaloupe will help you give your plants the best chance of thriving and fruiting.

‘Marian Sampson’ hummingbird coyote mint

Just as we cherish a day of pampering, your green friends can greatly benefit from special treatments, too! These unique, out-of-the-box Plant Spa Day Routine tips not only boost plant health but also deepen your connection with your leafy companions.

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