Watering mistakes kill plants sooner than nearly any other factor, and letting plants sit in standing water is one of the common ones. J. P. Casey, author of Treatise on the Culture and Growth of Different Sorts of Flower Roots, and of Green House Plants Kept in Rooms (1821), notes: “All green house plants… must […]
Gardens
When you arrange flowers, it’s critical to place them in containers that will showcase the blooms–not detract from their beauty. Back at the turn of the 20th century, Gertrude Jekyll was a respected authority on home decor, and her expertise on vases still holds true today. If you don’t own any (or enough) formal vases, […]
There are two temperature ranges that will determine what you can grow in a given location. … The low temperature range would be a night reading of just above freezing and a daytime reading in the mid-40s Fahrenheit. In that range, you could winter over geraniums and delicate perennials. … The second temperature range is […]
VIDEOS: Start Seeds Indoors Harvest Garlic Weed Control Tomato Plant Tips What’s the secret to getting your tomato plants to fruit early? What are the keys behind easy and effective weeding? And just what goes into creating rich, wonderful compost? Longtime organic gardener Tracie Smith has the answers. The New England born Tracie is as […]
Clarence Rhodes, celebrated rosarian and longtime judge for the American Rose Society, lives in Portland, Maine, where this retired electrical engineer has dispelled the notion that New England’s harsh winters kill the prospects of anything outside of, say, an ‘Elina’, ‘Dublin Bay’, or ‘Hot Princess’. More than 250 bushes consume his backyard, line his driveway, […]
Gardens
Edible Flowers | Rose Petal Jam
I can’t help myself. In the summer they’re everywhere I like to be: along the beach path from my parents’ summer rental in Cotuit, Massachusetts … surrounding my friend’s Nantucket “shack” … along the harbor walk from Charlestown to South Boston … hugging the length of the Province Lands bike path on the tip of […]
Gardens
Roses | Advice from Suzy Verrier
Yankee Classic from June 1992 “I hate to tell you,” Suzy Verrier said, pausing sympathetically, “but your roses are wimps.” “Come again?” I wasn’t sure I had heard her correctly. “Wimps,” she repeated. “They’re wimpy commercial roses that are packaged and sold like canned tuna.” Another pause. “They’re fine, I suppose, if you like canned […]
Maine native Tom Seymour is an expert on foraging for edible wild plants. [slideshow post_id=”96094″] Eating wild doesn’t always require venturing far. “A vacant lot in town may have more to find than the Allagash Wilderness,” says Tom Seymour. A few years ago in Maine’s Moosehead Lake region, Seymour led a plant seminar whose participants […]
Gardens
Bedrooms: New England’s Finest
1. Lay your head on super-healthy organic pillows (standard size $55-$114; European $50-$132; shams and cases $30-$38). HEART OF VERMONT, Barre, VT . 800-639-4123; heartofvermont.com 2. Undyed, unbleached flannel sheets and pillowcases ($28-$58) are toasty on cold nights; a cashmere throw ($248) adds a layer of luxury. GARNET HILL, Franconia, NH. 800-870-3513; garnethill.com 3. This […]
Gardens
Spinach for Winter
For all would-be winter gardeners, Coleman suggests going with spinach, which can be harvested four times, growing well into February. “It keeps renewing itself,” he says.
Gardens
Hoop Houses
Coleman says you can find simple, inexpensive options out there to protect your plants. If you’re already using a cold frame, he recommends getting six unused 2x4s and building an A-frame around the structure, then wrapping the new enclosure in greenhouse plastic. No cold frame? No problem. Coleman is also a big fan of “hoop […]
Gardens
Begin in August
Coleman’s winter planting begins in early August and extends through mid-September, a period he likes to refer to as a “second spring.” “You have to get the plants established while the growing season still has something left to it,” he says.