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Nowadays, I spend a lot of time gazing at the lilac bush I’ve planted in view of my kitchen window and dreaming up places to plant more. When I was a kid, my dad built my sister and me a zipline running from a spruce tree to a playhouse in our garden. I loved the zipline, but my favorite part was the little platform high in the spruce tree. I’d go up there to read books and eat snacks....

All are low-growing, woody shrubs, with small roundish leaves and purple flowers. Part of the mint (Lamiaceae) family, thyme is known for its many culinary, medicinal, and ornamental uses. Thymus vulgaris If you could put summer in a bottle and save it, it would probably smell a lot like thyme. The perennial culinary herb has always been associated with the scents and flavor notes of the season for me because of how prolific it is in my gardens at this time of year....

Plants Thinking of growing sugarcane in your garden, backyard, or somewhere near your home? This miraculous plant has many different uses outside of being a sweetener for many different types of food. However, it's not the easiest plants for novice gardeners to use to earn their green thumbs. Learn all you need to know about how to plant, grow, and care for sugarcane plants. By Jason White Last updated: October 28, 2021 | 15 min read Sugarcane is a ubiquitous and deep-rooted plant around the globe....

Today, they can be used to flavor everything from desserts and meat to, of course, gin. If you’re looking for some ideas to use up the fruits, here’s what we’ll tackle coming in this article: It’s about time juniper berries got the attention they deserve. These common plants grow all over the Northern Hemisphere and the berries not only feed wildlife, but humans can use them herbally, in the home, and in the kitchen as well....

Quick to germinate, low maintenance, and great for canning and freezing, this prized legume is one of the most rewarding seasonal veggies to grow. If you’re hoping to grow more of your own food this year, green beans are a great place to start. Although easy enough to pick up at the grocery store, nothing beats the taste and nutrition of homegrown veggies. And fortunately, green beans are one of the easiest veggies to grow!...

Unexpected issues are so common that people who try their hand at growing them frequently give up, assuming they’re simply plant killers. Do you have a “black thumb?” For plants of the Nepenthes genus – also known as pitcher plants or “monkey cups” – figuring out the how’s and when’s of watering rank at the top of the list of challenges for many who bring them home. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products....

Winterizing is an important part of the process to help hollyhocks live their best life. But before you start worrying that you’re in for a complex and challenging road ahead, don’t panic. The process is incredibly simple. Hollyhocks are gorgeous with their tall stalks of frilly flowers. They’re so pretty that they would even be worth growing if they were super fussy. Luckily, they’re not! They are surprisingly low-maintenance, given their showy appearance....

This opens up your options to enjoy exciting new cultivars, and saves quite a bit of money in your gardening budget, to boot. Ah, the pungent smell of marigolds – their distinctive fragrance tells me that summer has most definitely arrived. And once summer is at full tilt, I love seeing their happy yellow, orange, and red flowers brightening up my garden. If you’re a fan of marigolds too, you probably purchase a flat or two every year to add to your own vegetable garden, or arrange in your flower beds or planters....

Here’s what we’ll cover: As implied by its name, you might assume the ornamental sweet potato vine is for decoration only. Is this plant edible, like the root vegetable we know and love, or is it merely for show? We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. What Are Ornamental Sweet Potatoes? Best known for their colorful green or purple leaves, this vining plant works well indoors and out....

Let’s take a closer look at what this essential nutrient has to offer: We’ve been told since we were young that eating carrots will help our eyesight… or maybe it was just my mom who said that? There is some truth to this common recommendation because carrots, and several other types of vegetables, happen to be a good source of vitamin A. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products....

Hardy fuchsias, however, can live in places that see temperatures ranging down to -5°F. That means you can enjoy the uniquely ravishing blossoms that these lovelies offer up for more than just one year. Fuchsia magellanica There is something so beautifully ephemeral about fuchsias. You don’t get the chance to know and understand them as intimately as you would a plant that you care for year after year, such as a rose....

It has specific medicinal properties that are unique from those of the other parts of the plant. One of my all-time favorite herbs, stinging nettle has been grown and foraged for food, and used in textiles and medicine, for thousands of years across many parts of the world. You may be aware that you can harvest and eat the leaves, but did you know the root is also usable? We link to vendors to help you find relevant products....

Since then, I’ve vowed that if I ever build a house from scratch again, I’ll be there when they clear the lot so that they don’t cut down more than they need to. When I moved into my small, new house with a big patch of barren dirt for a backyard, I knew I needed to fill it with trees. Before it had been cleared for construction, it was a beautiful slice of forest....

This condition is usually an indication of an infestation from aphids, whiteflies, soft scale, leafhoppers, mealybugs, spotted lanternflies, and other insects with piercing mouthparts that feed on plant sap. Are parts of your plants covered with black splotches or a dark coating? If so, it’s possible they are suffering from a condition called sooty mold. Sooty mold is the common name for several types of fungi that grow on the sweet secretions left behind by sap-sucking insects that feed on your plants....

I love choosing winter squash seed varieties to plant each year almost as much as I enjoy actually eating the fruits of my labor. Almost. When you plant a crop like zucchini, it’s all about savoring the moment, and enjoying summer’s bounty. Growing winter squash on the other hand – that shows you’re thinking ahead. So, treat your future self to a feast – pick winter squash varieties that will fit your growing season and the dimensions of your garden, and please your palate....

Hearty and vigorous plants, the pretty fruits grow in large clusters in a rainbow of colors – chocolate, mahogany, orange, red, yellow, almost black, and pink, in a solid hue or even with tiger stripes. Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme Do you love the idea of picking sweet, ripe tomatoes fresh from the vine but aren’t sure how to begin? Cherry tomatoes are great plants to start with. Rewarding for the new and experienced gardener alike, they’re wonderfully productive and easy to grow – a single plant can produce a reliable crop of bite-sized fruits from early summer until fall....

If you live in the right growing zone, you may be lucky enough to grow not only a traditional spring vegetable garden, but also a fall vegetable garden. This applies to gardeners in the South, who are blessed with a long growing period. If this is the year you’re going to finally find time to get that southern fall vegetable garden in the ground, enjoy this article with tips and tricks for ensuring you have a bountiful crop!...

If it looks good at the end of summer, should you try to overwinter it, or should you pull it up and put it on the compost pile? There are plenty of reasons why you might want to know whether kale, Brassica oleracea, the star of many a spring or fall veggie garden, is an annual or a perennial. Armed with this knowledge, you will be able to answer some of the other questions you may have about growing this cruciferous crop in your garden....

This plant is referred to both as “Asian jasmine” and “Asiatic jasmine.” And in Florida, they call it “minima jasmine.” You may also see it called “dwarf jasmine.” Incidentally, Florida friends, this plant is salt tolerant. Trachelospermum asiaticum An almost-ubiquitous ground cover in much of the American South, Asiatic jasmine is actually not jasmine at all, though it is Asian, with origins in Korea and Japan. It takes the second half of its name from its fragrant flowers, which – under ideal conditions – perfume the air in springtime....

They are so sweet and delicious, even my family of skeptics can get on board. I love kale. I could happily eat it at any time, cooked in any style. My family, however, isn’t quite so enthralled. It has taken a bit of prodding and experimentation on my end, but I have finally found a few varieties that they can get excited about too. Napini is a term for the tender flowering shoots of kale plants, typically harvested from Siberian kale varieties....