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Why grow broccoli from seeds? Broccoli plants are the same species of plant (Brassica oleracea) as many other brassicas (also called cole crops), including cauliflower, kale, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts. Over many generations, the original Brassica oleracea has been selected for various traits, giving us an array of different vegetables with very different appearances. Broccoli is among the most popular, and there are many benefits to growing it from seed....

To show you just how easy it is to grow roses in containers, we’ve teamed up with the good folks at Easy Elegance® Roses. Easy Elegance® Roses are a gardeners dream! Not only do they have beautiful blooms that repeat all summer long, but the compact plants are tough, cold hardy, and disease resistant. No fussing required! Picking the best containers for potted roses Start your potted rose garden off right by picking the best container for the job....

Vegepod Container Garden: Deck and patio gardeners will love the Vegepod Container Garden, a well-designed system that allows intensive gardening in very small spaces. This instant garden is the perfect way for gardeners, including new food gardeners and families, to grow some of their own food. It measures 39-inches square and 10-inches high, allowing plenty of space for your favorite veggies, herbs, and edible flowers. My Vegepod took about 30 minutes to put together and was then placed on my sunny back deck....

Papalo is an attractive plant, growing up to three-feet tall with gently scalloped, blue-green leaves. It makes a great pot plant, but I like to tuck it in my raised beds with other edibles. I sourced my seed from Johnny’s Seeds, and sowed the seed indoors in early April. As a Mexican herb, it’s sensitive to cold weather, so don’t move it to the garden until after the last spring frost....

Wreath making is usually a pretty chilly task to do outside, especially if you’re trying to twist fine florist wire around each branch that you add. I’ll bundle up to make the container outside. But for the wreath, most years I’ll set up shop on the living room floor, spreading my branches out on top of newspaper, so I can easily choose what I need as I work through my DIY craft with a cup of hot tea close at hand....

Not all weeds are created equal. I don’t freak out at the dandelions that pop up in my lawn. I do try to keep them in check a bit, but dandelions actually have their virtues. The roots, which can reach pretty deeply into the soil help to loosen hard-packed soil. They’re also edible and the pollinators like them. And so, as long as my entire front garden is not a dandelion patch, I can happily co-exist with a few....

Why Grow Bells of Ireland? Deceivingly simple to grow, the blossoms of Bells of Ireland, Moluccella laevis, are real crowd-pleasers. But not for their flashy color (they’re green). Instead, they garner such attention for their sheer individuality. Looking like no other flower out there, Bells of Ireland stand tall and shout out their uniqueness by just being one heck of a fun plant. They’re a fantastic addition to garden beds and have a lovely, sweet, vanilla-like fragrance....

Types of weeping trees There are many types of weeping trees, but for the most part, weeping is not a common plant trait. Weeping trees are often created (or discovered, as the case may be) in one of three ways. Through grafting. To create weeping trees through grafting, branches with a weeping habit are grafted onto a straight trunk and allowed to cascade down from the top. Each individual tree is created separately and the trait is not carried from one generation to the next....

What is powdery mildew? Powdery mildew infections are caused by several different species of fungus. Each species has its own preferred host plants. The species of powdery mildew that affects squash foliage (Erysiphe cichoracearum) is different from those that target peas (Erysiphe pisi) or eggplants (Leveillula taurica). Interestingly, this fungus lives on the outside of the leaves and does not penetrate the interior tissue. It can only grow on the surface of the leaf....

What is a soldier beetle? Soldier beetles are in the family Cantharidae. There are around 470 different species worldwide, many of which are in the genus Chauliognathus. All species of the soldier beetle are soft-bodied with pliable, leathery-like wing covers (called elytra). The family gained the common name of soldier beetles because one of the first members of the family to be described was bright red, reminding the discoverer of the British red coats....

Daylilies (Hemerocallis spp) grow in most regions across North America, thriving in hardiness zones 3 to 9. This popular plant is called a ‘daylily’ because each flower blooms for just one day. That said, the flower stems, called ‘scapes’ have many buds so the flowering period lasts for weeks. These flowering perennials are grown for their bold and brightly colored flowers, I also appreciate their attractive, spiky foliage. It emerges early in the season and offers garden interest from spring through autumn....

6 tips for attracting more bees and pollinators: Learn to identify native bees. North America is home to nearly 4,000 species of native bees, and they too are fast becoming victims of pesticide exposure, diseases, and habitat loss. Most native bees are solitary, rather than living in large colonies like European honeybees, and they are often more efficient pollinators. 250 female orchard mason bees can pollinate an acre of apple trees, a task that requires 15,000 to 20,000 European honeybees....

In the last couple of years, scientists have been encouraging gardeners to plant milkweed to help the monarch butterfly population. I planted some in my garden and asked wildflower guru Miriam Goldberger, author of Taming Wildflowers (St. Lynn’s Press, 2014) for some advice. A few tips for purchasing and planting milkweed “It’s unfortunate that such a beautiful and important plant in our North American ecosystem is named a weed,” says Miriam....

Are hydrangeas deer-resistant? The first time I planted a panicle hydrangea in my garden I was so pleased. It was a gorgeous specimen and I was envisioning months of massive flowers. The following morning however, most of the leaves were gone and all the tender branch tips were nibbled. Devastating! I learned the hard way that the answer to the popular question, ‘Are hydrangea deer-resistant?’ Is nope. Deer love hydrangeas. Hydrangeas are stunning landscape plants that offer year-round interest to the garden – lush green leaves, attractive bark, and eye-catching round, flat, or cone-shaped flowers....

Excerpted from Gardening Complete by the authors of Cool Springs Press (February, 2018) What is a Garden Pest? In order for an insect to be deemed a pest, it has to cause a significant amount of economic or aesthetic damage to a plant. Yes, a lot of insects eat plants, but most of them do not cause significant damage. And, in most cases, the harm these insects cause is not life-threatening; it just makes the plant look not so hot for a short time....

Here’s how I go about drying oregano. First, I head out to the garden with a sharp pair of herb scissors. I gather a large handful of tender, green shoots with my left hand and cut them with my right, making sure the cut ends of the stems all line up. I give the handful of oregano a few quick, brisk shakes to dislodge any insects and debris, then I wrap the base of the stems with a rubber band....

Grafted tomatoes: Here are the claims made by companies that sell grafted tomatoes: Bigger, stronger, and more vigourous plants! Excellent resistance to soilborne diseases (like Bacterial Wilt, Fusarium Wilt, and Verticillium Wilt)! Larger yield and longer harvest season! But, what’s the truth? I turned to Andrew Meffert, tomato expert and the senior trial Technician at Johnny’s Selected Seeds in Winslow, Maine, to set the record straight on grafted tomatoes. Johnny’s has been carrying grafted tomatoes for professional growers for almost a decade and Andrew has been running the trials on these plants for the past six years....

Salsa verde I freeze salsa portions in jars and enjoy it throughout the winter. It’s delicious served over chicken and fish, and I especially like adding spoonfuls to tacos! Ingredients About 10 to 12 medium-sized tomatillos (roughly the size of a plum or a golf ball – use more if they’re small) * 1 small hot pepper if you like a bit of spice * 1 to 2 cloves of minced garlic (I use a fine grater to grate it right into the food processor) * 1 tbsp of lime juice * 2 teaspoons of liquid honey * a pinch of salt * 2 to 4 green onions, thinly sliced, or fresh chives (optional) * Fresh cilantro (optional) Mixing it together Remove the husks from your tomatillos and give them a rinse to remove the sticky coating and any debris....

You may recall that last fall I wrote a post on all the reasons why you shouldn’t do a fall garden clean up. The post encouraged you to let your garden stand all winter in order to provide habitat for many of the beneficial insects and other creatures living in it. The post went viral (!!!). So now, spring has arrived, and if you didn’t do a fall garden clean up as I recommended in that post, you now have a big spring garden clean up facing you....

Why garden in raised beds As noted above, there are a lot of advantages to growing food in raised beds. I’ve been a raised bed gardener for over fifteen years and the main reason is because they require far less work than my former in-ground garden. It didn’t take me long to realize that my raised beds also help me grow crops that used to struggle when I planted them in my native clay soil....