Gardening, like most every other pastime, is an on going learning experience. Much of what good gardeners learn comes from what we read in books or magazines, which we then put to the test in our gardens. Yet, some of the best lessons are passed along to us from other gardeners. Simple lessons such as [...]
I’ve been working in the landscaping field for over fifteen years and in that time I have received a lot of useful advice from experienced plantsmen. As I worked my way up the ranks from a waterer and weeder, installation laborer, to a landscape designer, the most memorable advice I ever heard was when Brent, of Brent [...]
Perennials are not like trees and shrubs. When you buy a tree you judge their branching structure and outward vigor because when you buy a tree you are paying for the time and effort that was put into growing it for several years. That’s why the price for woody plants increases exponentially with their size. [...]
Not everyone knows it but the majority of the garden plants found at your local nursery originated from a few mountain valleys in China and Japan. Plant hunting, as a profession, was a popular alternative for those less blood thirsty adventure seekers of the 1800s, most notably the leisure class of England. Gentlemen plant hunters [...]
According to our calendars spring is here, and as the daytime temperatures increase it is the time of year that I walk outside with my eyes on the ground looking for signs of life from the soil. Only when I find spring bulbs and perennial plants emerging-”pipping” is the official gardener’s term-do I begin to [...]