Picking a Fresh Christmas Tree… and Keeping It That Way
November 21st, 2012
Make sure you pick a fresh Christmas tree to start with, and then follow these steps to keep the needles on your tree through Christmas.
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How-To Category
Make Your Own Free Plants
October 16th, 2012
No need to let your tender plants croak when frost hits. Many of them are easy to start from cuttings, which lets you overwinter “babies” inside that become “mothers” for a ton of new freebies next spring. Here’s how…
Hedge Edge
May 8th, 2012
There’s more to pruning than heading out in the spring with a chainsaw in hand. Here are a few important how-to’s from an expert who prunes the topiaries at Longwood Gardens.
Forcing Branches
January 7th, 2012
Why wait until spring to see those gorgeous flowers open all over your landscape shrubs. Through an easy technique known as “forcing,” you can get cut branches to flower in winter inside the house.
Holiday Plant Survival Tips
January 5th, 2012
Lots of “brown-thumbers” end up with houseplants as holiday gifts. If you need a little help keeping those poinsettias, Christmas cactuses and Norfolk Island pines from croaking (at least right away), here’s a quick rundown on 11 types…
Winter Sowing Seeds
May 20th, 2010
Here’s a quick, easy and cheap way to start many of your own seeds early — but outside in plastic jugs instead of inside under lights. Local gardener Pat King shares her system…
“Recycling” Tender Plants for Another Season
October 16th, 2008
Those tender plants don’t have to die with the arrival of frost. Save them for another go-around next year by overwintering them as houseplants, keeping them in “suspended animation,” storing their roots or tubers or propagating them. Here’s how…
Triage in the Garden
April 3rd, 2008
Triage is a battlefield and emergency-room term that describes how to prioritize care when you’ve got way more wounded than healers. Gardeners can relate to that when there’s so much to do once winter ends. Here’s a game plan on how to triage the yard work.
The Mystery of Rose Pruning
April 6th, 2006
Not even the experts agree on how to prune roses. Here’s a look at how three rose-respected folks approach this mysterious garden job.
Conducting a Garden Symphony
April 7th, 2005
Garden maintenance is a lot like conducting a symphony. Lots of things are going on at the same time, and it’s easy for everything to quickly go out of control without you, the yard maestro, knowing what to rein in when. One key difference, though. A symphony conductor doesn’t have to worry about groundhogs eating the woodwind section.