Many of you no doubt noticed that new bug in town late last winter – the spotted lanternfly. This rather large (pinky-sized) flying insect with the spotted grayish-tan wings (red underneath) has now made its way from its initial 2014 invading point of Berks County to throughout the Harrisburg area. Lanternfly adults […]
So many plants to pick from… but which ones are the best? One bit of homework to go on is plants that have won awards from various plant-trial and plant-selection programs. Each year, organizations of growers, horticulturists, researchers, and other plant experts bestow awards on top plant performers – some new, some […]
I hope you got your 2021 supply of seeds already. If not, you’d better get busy ASAP because we’re seeing another seed slam in which seed-sellers can’t get seeds in the packets and out the door fast enough to keep up with another huge-demand year. For the second year in a row, […]
It’s hard to imagine Longwood Gardens getting much bigger or better. This magnificent botanical legacy of industrialist Pierre du Pont already graces 1,100 acres of Chester County countryside with elegant formal gardens, fountains that rival Versailles, a meadow garden that alone covers 86 acres, and just about every plant cultivated for garden use. […]
Picking superior varieties is especially important in vegetable gardening since there are so many choices with so much variability in performance. No plant is perfect and bullet-proof in all aspects and all places, but it is possible to breed for specific traits. So what we have is a fairly large and ever-changing […]
A miniature version of the popular Knock Out rose, a super-short clematis that can be used as a groundcover, and three new dark-leafed shrubs are among the best new trees and shrubs debuting in the 2021 growing season. Growers, local garden centers, and other plant experts picked the following for my annual January […]
Ajugas with multi-colored leaves, compact versions of two pollinator-magnet native flowers, and three exceptionally good-looking herbs are among a banner slate of interesting new perennial flowers debuting in the 2021 growing season. Growers, local garden centers, and other plant experts picked the following choices for my annual January four-part, best-new-plants series. The […]
A showy new sweet potato vine, two heavy-blooming new begonias, and arguably the best yellow petunia yet top the list of interesting new annual flowers debuting in 2021. Growers, local garden centers, and other plant experts picked those and more for my four-part, best-new-plants series that I compile each January – a good […]
If even a fraction of the estimated 16 million new gardeners who tried growing their own food for the first time last year goes at it again this year, demand will remain high for vegetable seeds and young, spring-time transplants. The bottom line is that you’d better get your seed orders in early […]
Droves of stuck-at-home families started food gardens and carved relaxation areas out of their yards this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Gardening trend-watchers say those will carry over as the biggest two gardening trends on the 2021 horizon as well. As we close the door on 2020, here’s the dirt […]