By Claire Jones
You love spring bulbs but have a huge deer and squirrel problem? Yes, this fall you can plant a number of bulbs that they will pass up! Most people know that daffodils are always ignored by deer and rodents, but don't limit yourself to daffodils. There are many other deer/rodent resistant bulb varieties. Deer and …
Continue reading "Critter Proof Bulbs"
Halloween is around the corner and people are starting to decorate with the many types of pumpkins available at the farmer's market. The past 10 years have seen an explosion of all kinds of colors, sizes, and shapes of pumpkins, but I am in love with a diminutive one, which actually isn't a real pumpkin, …
Continue reading "Pumpkin On a Stick"
A bulb that blooms in the fall? I get a lot of puzzled looks when I try to explain Autumn Crocus or Meadow saffron. Not really a crocus, but actually in the lily family, it resembles the spring flowering crocus but the flowers are larger and chalice-shaped instead of stiffly upright. The similarity to a …
Continue reading "Autumn Crocus-Fall Super Star"
Flying under the radar for many people, Indian Pink, or Spigelia marilandica is coming into its own. A long-lived perennial that brings stunning colors to the summer garden, hummingbirds flock to these red and yellow tubular flowers arranged in clusters. Similar to firecrackers exploding in the garden, this unique native plant stops people in their …
Continue reading "Grow Native!:Indian Pink Should Be on Your Radar"
Late summer is Basil time around my house. After growing all summer in my veggie garden, it is full and bushy, even though I am using it regularly in cooking. Heat and sun loving, this summer has been both, and the Basil this year is loving it! The hydroponic stuff you buy in the grocery store …
Continue reading "Basil Bumper Crop"
As a landscape designer, a frequent request from clients is getting rid of their lawn and replacing with more natural alternatives. Water hogging and pesticide laden lawns are being replaced nowadays with different varieties of grasses, meadows, and other perennials that form a low growing mat, like thyme or mazus. Ubiquitous American Lawns Today lawns …
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Sweet Annie, Artemisia annua, is an herb I remember from the seventies and eighties. Intensely fragrant smelling green herb wreaths were made up in the fall from the branches and I would see them everywhere for sale at craft fairs and outdoor festivals. I kind of forgot about Sweet Annie for a long time until …
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Quick breads are old fashioned and retro, but so delicious! Â Since I haven't made one for ages, I was inspired to create some savory loaves when my squash harvest started to take over the refrigerator. Who hasn't been inundated with dozens of squash when they are at their peak? Even with two or three plants, …
Continue reading "Best Zucchini Bread"
Walking into the Delaware Botanic Garden on a sizzling hot morning in August, the first thing that I spotted was a a bright orange-painted box turtle scurrying down the pathway into the shelter of a nearby log. Being greeted by wildlife is typical at the soon-to-be-opened 37-acre Botanic Gardens that is located on the shores …
Continue reading "Delaware Botanic Gardens Unveiling"
As a landscape designer, I am always looking for beauty in my surroundings- beautiful fabrics, furnishings, spaces, and colors are really important to me. Extend that to my vegetable garden and I also want beautiful vegetables and fruit decorating my garden bed to eat. Heirlooms deliver on that in spades! Instead of the usual mealy …
Continue reading "Customize Your Garden With Heirlooms"
The iconic gardens of Sissinghurst, Great Dixter, Bressingham, and Beth Chatto's were on my recent UK garden tour this July. Along with many other gardens that deserve more attention and recognition, I returned home with a renewed appreciation for the diversity and passion for gardening that is encountered only in the UK. Gardening is an …
Continue reading "English Vs. American Gardens"
Cutting flowers and weeds from the side of the road for a wildflower arrangement is as simple as taking a walk down a country lane, armed with sheers and a bucket. But more often, I am driving down a rural lane and see something interesting and slam on the brakes and try to find a …
Continue reading "Foraged Flora for Seasonal Arrangements"
