Hartley Magazine

All the latest news, hints, tips and advice from our experts

In Praise of Powder Coating

Of course, any Hartley Botanic structure is colored using the powder coating process. That happens at the factory. But I never thought about using it for small items.  If you have rusted tables, chairs, containers, or shelving that you’ve never have gotten around to refurbishing with a coat of spray paint, consider powder coating instead. […]

Plants Do Wheelies Between Greenhouse and Home

One of the traditional benefits of a greenhouse is to supply your home with décor—particularly cut flowers—in the off seasons. This month, I’m talking to Nicholas Staddon, a garden expert with a deep knowledge of plants, and company spokesperson for Everde Growers, a nationwide wholesale company, that features a wide assortment of plants, from trees […]

What Plants Belong in your Winter Greenhouse?

Autumn is arriving, night time temps are dropping. But your garden, especially your containers, have finally come into their own at the end of the season. You’d love to carry some of this beauty on inside a greenhouse. But how do you decide which ones should be sheltered? That’s a question C.L. Fornari examined in […]

Plant and Prune Now?—Dan Robinson tells why

Fall is a brilliant time for planting. The ground is still warm enough to encourage root growth, and the fierce battering of summer heat has lifted, which means less work for you. But there’s another reason autumn is the best time for both new plantings and the shaping of certain woody plants, either in the […]

Long-Blooming Flowers – Garden Experts Offer Their Choices

It’s that time of year when flowers, all kinds of flowers, take center stage. This month, I’ve asked my garden colleagues—from Alaska to Puerto Rico—to nominate their longest bloomers. Consider adding these power-packed blossoms to your garden. Many may be started in the greenhouse for next year’s long-running displays. Alaska Pat Ryan, Education Specialist at […]

Go Plant Shopping in Your Own Garden – Your greenhouse can help

Let’s face it, a real joy of gardening comes from buying plants. However, consider taking cuttings from tried-and-true plants in your own garden or greenhouse. It’s a game of numbers. This replication allows you to design with large drifts of the same plant, or repeat certain plants in various containers in order to visually unite […]

Herbs to Start in the Greenhouse

The other day, I joined my grandchildren’s outdoor school class as they visited a nearby, but remote, Oregon nursery, The Thyme Garden. To get there necessitated an hour-and-a-half car trip, part of it on roads that twisted over the side of Marys Peak, the tallest mountain in the Coast Range of the Siuslaw National Forest. […]

Greenhouse Furniture – How to Find What You Need

Let’s say you’ve got your greenhouse. Now, let’s figure out the furnishings. Much depends on how you plan to use it. Is this the space where you will start your early vegetables? Is it going to be home to happy houseplants and your tender tropicals in the winter? Is it a light and bright extension […]

Showtime for a Victorian Greenhouse

It’s that time again! From coast to coast, indoor garden shows are offering solace to those who are winter-weary. These exhibitions are bursting with color and fragrance, great plants to buy, and great ideas to take away—especially from the extravagant display gardens that make up the heart of the shows.  And for several years now, […]

Small Items Give Big Help in the Greenhouse

Confined spaces, like in most greenhouses, need organization. The goal when working—seed sowing, transplanting, potting up —is to be able to grab the best tool for the job as soon as you require it, and smaller sized tools are easier to store.  You can line them up, place them on a shelf, hang them on […]