Winter has raged into Chicago. It was down in the teens a week before Thanksgiving, the kind of weather that freezes the soil like concrete and drives even diehard gardeners like me to the shelter of a greenhouse. I canāt quit gardening yet, though, because I have a problem: Some 300 bulbs I didnāt manage […]
While some herbs overwinter in sunny windows or greenhouses, and others dry well for later, thereās a handful of culinary herbs thatā to my mindā are best grown only during summer and enjoyed when fresh. Though they can be preserved one way or another, thereās no substitute for their fresh presence in summerās signature dishes. […]
The latter days of April were an unnerving experience for many gardeners. I watched rain soaked, fearful and powerless as heavy rain and hailstones battered my apple blossoms and chill winds blew, yet now that āweatherā has passed, Iām thankful that the garden seems remarkably intact. A quick check with the soil thermometer revealed that […]
You know those social media postings where a friend invites you to put up one favorite photo a day on some subject, without any label or caption? Just post a pretty picture. Itās harmless fun and you get to see some places and things you wouldnāt otherwise (all in the best possible taste, of course!). […]
Outside,Oregon gray skies dump cold and windy rain-it’s that moment of no-color, before spring’s panoply of blossoms. But inside my sunroom, I’m greeted with colors-not only shades of green, but reds, yellows, blues and bright whites. This month I celebrate my top reliable winter bloomers for greenhouse or sunny windowsill. These are the toughest survivors […]
The summerās too dry, or the summerās too wetāweather swings across the U.S. are dramatic. Now more than ever, gardeners should consider steady and efficient water delivery for the times when plants need it. In the past, a permanent installation involved a choiceāeither underground pipes with sprayer heads, or drip with flexible half-inch pipe and […]
In the colder months, birds bring color and motion to gardens at rest, whether you watch them from a kitchen window or enjoy their antics through the glass of a cozy greenhouse. When I have questions about feeding my winged denizens, I turn to Dan Gleason, owner of Wild Birds Unlimited in Eugene. Dan taught […]
Colour is such a personal thing and most of us have a favourite. Mine of course is orange and itās the choice of an exuberant Leo lady. You see I was born on the hottest day of the year, in July, and my mother never let me forget it. Iām unusual I know, for orange […]
Before all our minutes are swallowed by the holidays, and while thereās still space in the greenhouseāpending the onslaught of spring seedlingsāletās consider a special winter bonus for greenhouse-owning gardenersāthe privelege of enjoying winter-blooming plants! All the plants suggested below will thrive in bright sun and cool temperaturesāideally between 40 and 50 degrees. Remember that […]
Finallyāafter a notably cold spring, itās time to shift my sun room plants outdoors. Over the years Iāve noticed that certain plants make the move more easily than others. Some show their displeasure by dropping leaves (the brunfelsia), getting sticky indoors before winterās end (the Meyer lemon) or simply not thriving outside (the dracaena). So […]
A glasshouse gem often seen on a kitchen window sill is the Hot-water plant with its long flowering display of pastel trumpet blooms. Related to Gloxinias several dozen species were introduced from Central America in the late 18C early 19C. These were tropical plants requiring hot house conditions and were soon hybridised to be more […]
In the last 30 years I’ve had two gardens and, although there were only 20 miles apart, they were as different as chalk and cheese, a bit like my children! My old garden in Hook Norton in Oxfordshire, famous for its beer, was a stoneās throw away from the church. The one-acre garden was on […]
