What’s more, with very few pests or other issues to worry about, these hardy perennials are incredibly easy to grow! Nepeta spp. Nepeta is a genus of flowering perennials in the mint family, including popular herbs such as catnip and Faassen’s catmint. Many feature attractive aromatic foliage and long blooming flowers that pollinators love. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....

The shrubby plants feature needle-like leaves of silvery-green and upright flower spikes in shades of mauve, pink, purple, and white that flower at different times over summer, depending on the type. Lavandula spp. An herb with many uses, sweetly perfumed lavender is an easy-care plant that makes a gorgeous addition throughout the garden. A durable and reliable performer in beds, borders, and containers, the color and heady fragrance is simply fantastic when planted in drifts or used in a low barrier or informal hedge....

There’s more than one way to make herbal tea with M. officinalis, and I encourage you to try both cold and hot infusions to experience the difference between the two. Lemon balm, Melissa officinalis, is a staple in my herb garden for a few reasons. Firstly, this easy-to-grow aromatic plant provides plentiful harvests during summertime. And secondly, the aerial parts make a delicious and calming herbal infusion. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products....

Zone 5 is considered a fringe zone for this type, as the shrub itself is cold hardy, but sometimes the flower buds that set on the previous year’s wood are not able to tolerate the cold temperatures characteristic of this zone. Forsythia suspensa Weeping forsythia, Forsythia suspensa, is a one of the parent species of a popular hybrid known as border forsythia, or F. x intermedia. Appreciated for its arching canes and yellow blossoms, this shrub generally grows to heights of six to 10 feet in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 to 8....

Also known as “Arrowhead vine” due to the erratic arrowhead-like shape of its leaves, Syngonium is a famous houseplant and these Pink Syngonium Pictures in this post will make you realize why. Don’t miss checking out more pink houseplants here 1. Lush Pink Arrowhead A post shared by Katie 🌞 plantsdoingplantthings (@plantsdoingplantthings) 2. Easy to Grow in Water A post shared by PERTH GARDEN CENTRE (@mixgardencentre) 3. Pink “The Color of Happiness” A post shared by Potscapes (@potscapes)...

If so, you may enjoy putting your skills to use as a citizen scientist who makes observations and submits them for inclusion in scientific projects. Scientists all over the world are conducting research on environmental topics ranging from astronomy to zoology, with the help of ordinary folks like you and me. Are you a keen observer? Do you keep a gardening journal where you note natural phenomena like the appearance of the first spring crocus, summer Japanese beetle, autumn geese flyover, and winter snow?...

Tasters put off by kale’s bitterness might like chard’s flavor better, too. Chard is more mild — its leaves taste similar to spinach (although they are unrelated), and the stalks’ flavor has been compared to that of the stalks of bok choy. Are you looking for a nutritious leafy green to add to your vegetable garden? Consider chard (Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris). A member of the beet family, this versatile vegetable is an easy to grow source of cool weather greens that’s perfect for an early spring or autumn veggie path....

With so many simple and cheap DIY options available, you can easily create one to fit your needs. Looking to start seeds indoors, improve conditions for houseplants, or protect tender perennials during colder months? Constructing an indoor mini greenhouse is an easy and affordable way to create the perfect environment for growing plants inside your house. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....

Read on to learn how to keep collard greens growing strong after a frost. While freezing temperatures and a snow-covered ground may signal the main growing season is over, it doesn’t have to mean the end of fresh garden greens. Collard greens in particular thrive in cold weather, which is lucky for me, since there isn’t much I enjoy more than sizzling up a pan of fresh homegrown collards in some garlic butter....

‘Spartan’ has a natural pyramidal growth habit with a round, tapered top that requires no pruning to stay that way. Its strong, upright growth habit has also made it the go-to for tall spiral topiaries. Juniperus chinensis ‘Spartan’ Sometimes I look at certain plants that have become wildly popular and I just don’t get it. They might be particularly prone to diseases, or maybe they’re typically disease-free but they’re kind of just blah....

Bean leaf beetles, Mexican bean beetles, and cucumber beetles are the most common culprits. Thankfully, there are effective organic methods available to keep these pests at bay. There is nothing worse when you are growing yummy, vibrant green beans to find them suddenly infested by pests. While there are many insects that can decimate legumes, beetles are some of the worst. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products....

To learn more about growing lilacs, check out our guide. Syringa reticulata There’s a house on my street with a large Japanese tree lilac (Syringa reticulata) growing in the middle of the yard. It produces the most beautiful clusters of fragrant, cream-colored flowers each spring, and it’s a dream to catch a whiff of them when you walk by. If you love lilacs and you want to add a lilac tree to your garden instead of – or in addition to – a shrub, this is the guide for you....

In this article, we will introduce 11 outstanding double hellebore cultivars suitable for growing in USDA Hardiness Zones 4 to 9. Helleborus is a genus in the Ranunculaceae family, containing about 20 species of late-winter blooming perennials called hellebores. It includes the widely hybridized H. orientalis. Most of the hellebore varieties available to home gardeners are derived from this species, and are often referred to generically as H. x hybridus....

Are you one of today’s harried urban gardeners, with less time to putter but more need to relax? Feel married to your lawn most of the year, but not particularly happy with the high-maintenance ol’ gal? Time-consuming demands on today’s busy homeowners don’t leave much spill-over for outdoor necessaries such as mowing, fertilizing, mulching, and weeding, let alone flower gardening! So you might think the very idea of attempting one of those flower-filled, meandering, paths-crossed, bench-friendly cottage gardens is ludicrous....

As you’re reading this article, you’ve already decided that growing vegetables in pots is something you should try. And you’re right; you can grow crops on a balcony, rooftop, patio, porch and even indoors on a windowsill. The possibilities are endless, and you can produce edibles in substantial amounts. Also Read: Windowsill Vegetable Garden Observe Identify, and Plan Take a look at the space you’ve chosen to start your container vegetable garden Take a look at the space you’ve chosen to start container vegetable gardening!...

Of all of the things that a gardener can choose to grow, vine crops are a popular choice. Growing vine crops doesn’t have to be hard. And if you live an area where they do well, you can get yourself a nice crop of plants such as pumpkins, squash, watermelons, and cucumbers, just to name a few. The first step that you need to take is preparing the soil. Getting off on the right foot is key with a successful garden for growing anything, and vine crops are not an exception....

Growing plants in a greenhouse, whether edible or ornamental, requires a little work beforehand. Learn from these common mistakes and have a successful growing season. Humidity Too much humidity can allow mold spores and diseases to run rampant in your greenhouse; too little and the plants will die of thirst. Do research ahead of time to group plants together with similar humidity needs. Grow them at the same time, or build more than one smaller greenhouse, if space permits....

Cultural treatments are the best way to control this disease, and the discussion below will walk you through the symptoms, life cycle, and control measures of white spot disease on crucifers. Cercospora / Pseudocercosporella While the fungi Cercospora or Pseudocercosporella that cause white spot can severely affect turnip, rutabaga, canola, mustard, radish, horseradish, and hybrids of turnips and mustard, they are much less likely to affect kale, collards, broccoli, or cauliflower....

In this growing guide, we will focus on how to grow and care for Tagetes tenuifolia, or signet marigolds. You may also see this plant referred to as Tagentes signata when purchasing plants or seeds. Tagetes tenuifolia Marigolds are widely recognized as one of the easiest plants to grow. They can thrive in various soil types, bloom from summer to autumn, and are incredibly hardy. In short, marigolds are marvelous....

The small, fringed flowers are massed in densely packed, flattened clusters atop tall stems and have a fragrance reminiscent of sweet cloves – although in the case of many hybrids, the scent has been bred out of them. Dianthus barbatus Among the most popular of all Dianthus species, sweet william (D. barbatus) is a favored ornamental with numerous cultivars and hybrids in a broad range of flower colors and plant sizes....