Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page.
Q. I gather from your columns that you grow many of your own transplants from seed. A few years ago I began doing the same, but unpredictable spring weather has left me unable to formulate stable timings for the seedings. A long, cold, wet spring delays transplanting and early heat waves can fry newly set out transplants.
A. Spring weather extremes of the past two years have thrown usual seeding schedules into disarray. Like you, I’ve been pondering whether, or to what degree, to make changes to my usual indoor seeding schedule, which I often begin during the last half of January, with violas and pansies, leeks and onions.
Most pansies and violas I’ve grown take 10 to 14 days to germinate, in darkness. Once they are up and growing, the transplants tend to stay neatly in compact rosettes until they are moved to bowl-shaped patio containers.
Seeding onions and leeks early is also not too risky. As soon as the seedlings are substantial enough to handle easily, but still young, I trim away the wispy bits at their tops and thin them enough to give them space to develop. They can be given another light trimming back prior to transplanting. I’ve observed that slight trimmings help to thicken onion and leek transplants.
All the predictions I’ve researched indicate El Nino’s generally warmer than usual temperatures to persist through April; however, weather forecasting is a precarious business these days, as last week’s cold temperatures remind us.
As a precaution I may delay my initial indoor seedings to the beginning of February this year. Along with the
The website greengrove.cc is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
Cross summer-blooming begonias with some of their cold-tolerant counterparts and you get the Rieger begonia—a great option for a pop of tropical color during the winter season. Pronounced “REE-ger,” the Rieger begonia is a winter flowering plant with blossoms like tea roses. Although these hybrids don’t have any scent, they more than make up for it with their riotously colorful, creamy blooms. Riegers range from reds, pinks, and bright yellows to shades of orange and stark white. What’s more, under the right conditions, they can bloom indoors for several weeks and they’re fairly easy to propagate, too.
A group of tender perennial plants, only one of which is commonly grown. This is Strelitzia Reginae, which has large ornamental leaves on long strong petioles (leafstalks), and bears brilliant orange and purple flowers, several together within a large bract, on stems 3 ft. or more high in spring. It is a native of South Africa and belongs to the Banana family, Musaceae. The name commemorates Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
Are you looking to create wow factor in your hanging basket or container garden displays? This list of the best trailing plants for hanging baskets and pots has twenty fantastic varieties to help you do just that.
While it's all too easy to track in debris from the outdoors or fall victim to other common winter messes, professional cleaning and organizing experts are determined to help you keep your space looking as fresh as possible this season.
We've been independently researching and testing products for over 120 years. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Learn more about our review process.
While it's all too easy to track in debris from the outdoors or fall victim to other common winter messes, professional cleaning and organizing experts are determined to help you keep your space looking as fresh as possible this season.
Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page.
Unlike exterior columns, interior columns can stick out like sore thumbs. Acting like visual barriers, they block clear lines of sight across a room or simply take up space. But if they are structural to the house, columns just have to be accepted as is—or, at least, that’s what you might think.
Sooner or later, every gardener falls in love with a few select perennials. Perennials are flowering plants that live many years, but die back during their dormant season which is usually winter. When planted under the right conditions, perennials grow and prosper for years, often with little attention. Each perennial has a peak season of bloom, usually lasting from one to three months. After the blooms fade, the foliage remains so the plant can renew its energy stores for repeating the show again next year. The tops of most perennials are killed back by frost, but they do return in the spring.