Home gardeners and farmers look to the past and see their future at the National Heirloom Exposition. Heirloom vegetables —those open-pollinated varieties older than 50 years—have long been treasured by gardeners and farmers alike for their wide-ranging flavors, extended harvest times, and often odd-lot looks. This September, the niche horticultural pursuits of organic practices, seed […]

As the air turns crisp and winter casts a shadow on these early fall days, who can ignore the fact that everyday becomes shorter too? Will there be enough light on winter’s shortest days for your indoor plants? Although the quantity of solar radiation the earth receives just outside the atmosphere is nearly constant,  the […]

I’ve been bustling around the garden for the last few weeks, getting all the  tender plants in out of the cold. Tropical plants, such as all our common houseplants, need to move indoors by the time nighttime temperatures are consistently in the low 50s, weeks before the first frost would kill them outright. This is […]

I recently attended a three-day plant-o-rama—a garden study weekend sponsored by the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon. Each morning, all 500-plus of us (some from as far away as England) gathered at the University of Portland to listen to horticultural stars like designer Nan Sinton, landscape architect Bernard Trainor, and edibles expert Jack Staub. Afternoons […]

It’s everywhere in the news—baby-boomers are aging. And coincidentally, there’s an increase in products that help aging bodies cope with gardening tasks. There are the scooters, like the “Deluxe Tractor Scoot,” which enables gardeners to work from a seated position, and “Gardener’s Kneelers,” which flips over to become a bench– both offered by Gardener’s Supply. […]

One of the most satisfying things about a garden is that it makes you part of the entire cycle of nature, from seed to sprout to flower to fruit to compost. That’s especially true if you save seeds from your plants at the end of summer to replant the next year. There’s nothing quite like […]

Residents of Needham, Massachusetts, are being taught how to properly cultivate their own produce by instructors, greenhouse enthusiasts might be interested to hear. Every Tuesday morning and Thursday evening classes take place to teach people about the intricacies of gardening and benefits of veg. An instructor at the site Jeane Gerber, who told NeedhamPatch that […]

South Carolina greenhouse owners are being offered free gardening classes at the Walhalla branch of the Ocenee Public Library after the book repository struck up a partnership with Clemson University. Classes are due to start on September 13th, with the first seminar titled Plant Wars: Nature vs Alien. The classes will run until June 2012. […]

School children in Austin, Texas, are being encouraged to grow their own food and eat healthily in a bid to tackle the nationwide problem of obesity, greenhouse enthusiasts might be interested to hear. The School Garden Grant Program, set up by the Whole Kids Foundation in partnership with FoodCorps, is designed to help schools encourage […]

Greenhouse enthusiasts who like to partake in a spot of fruit growing may be interested in a new website that has been set up to encourage sustainable living. Lori Barudoni has launched lemonsforlimes.com, which enables people to trade surplus fruit they have grown with others in their local area. The system is based around zip […]

A keen gardener who has seen the process of growing food passed down through generations of her family has revealed the savings she makes, greenhouse owners may be interested to hear. Betty Pierce told the Jackson Sun that she saves between $200 and $250 a month by nurturing her own fruit and vegetables. She said […]