Submerged Plants For a Garden Pond

We’re visiting with Bonnie Plikaytis in north Georgia today.

Gardening jobs are just like any other job; sometimes, they seem daunting. Where to start? What is more daunting than starting with a weed-filled field?

Although it would be nearly impossible for any plant lover to choose just one favorite, here are a few of the standouts that look especially good in my Zone 6 Michigan garden at the peak of the growing season.

Flittering, twittering, and singing—birds bring so much life to a garden. Apart from their beauty and pleasant songs, they also add to the biodiversity of our landscapes by spreading seeds and eating insect pests. How can we encourage birds to not only visit our yards but to nest there? Here’s a hint: it goes beyond hanging up a bird feeder. You must provide sustenance and shelter for birds to truly thrive in your garden. Here are some tips to attract them and make them want to stay.

After the torrential rains of December, it is a wonder that anything is blooming in Pacific Northwest gardens. Thankfully there are great plants that survive the downpours and even flourish when everything else is a soggy mess. Along with the plants surviving, there are insects that winter over in the trees, and they love to see the sunshine just like we do. As soon as the lukewarm sun starts hitting the trees, the groggy bees stumble out looking for some food (kind of reminds me of teenagers). It is essential that we gardeners provide early-blooming plants for these very important members of our planet. Interestingly, some bees are not at all particular about their food supply, while others are. Our goal should be to provide both native food sources and ornamental garden food sources. Nature’s creatures have a way of adapting to what is available, but they also search for specifics. The following are a few of my favorite late-winter-blooming plants for pollinators.

Selecting a perfect indoor plant gift is made easy with our Best Indoor Plants for Gifting! From the lucky Jade Plant to the low-maintenance Peace Lily, each plant, like Orchids or Poinsettias, offers unique qualities for meaningful gifts.

It is important to differentiate between pepper plants and their look like weeds to keep your garden clutter free and safe.

In his classic book Mormon Country, author Wallace Stegner noted that nineteenth century Mormons planted rows of Lombardy poplar trees wherever they established settlements in the territory that is now Utah. The trees served as windbreaks and boundary markers, but they were also the flags that marked the advance of Mormon civilization in a hostile territory. In my hometown and lots of other towns all over the United States elm trees served a similar function, marking the spread of middle class residential neighborhoods during the end of the nineteenth and the first third of the twentieth centuries. In the 1960’s almost all of those tall elegant trees fell prey to Dutch Elm Disease, making each municipality a little poorer.

Planting a tree takes a lot of thought. We may have to consider if we want a tree that is:

Jonathan Steinbeck / Getty Images

Today I went out my back door and noticed that one of my rosebushes was, unexpectedly, sporting a fresh new flower bud.  It was within a day or so of opening up–small, greenish and obviously defiant of the season.  The bud was an oddity on a rosebush that is itself an oddity.  When I bought the small white-flowered shrub last summer it had one blossom that was half white and half red, and looked as if it had been half-dipped in red paint.  Though my February bud was not a “half and half” flower, I took its appearance as a harbinger of spring, plucked it, and delivered it to a friend who shares my belief in such things.

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”.