Food for the eyes, and sometimes for the stomach, too.
Guest post by Andrea Crisp As everyone knows, each plant has its own unique smell. Scents can alter your mood in subtle ways, so when you plan your garden, why not let your nose decide the arrangements for you? If you’re planning a quiet, private garden, a mix of mild-scented flowers like lily-of-the-valleys, lilacs, and …
In this part of the world (southern Ontario) it isn’t uncommon for people to begin craving springtime as early as February. People reach out to brighter days and warmer weather anyway they can. One of the easiest ways to satisfy this need is to purchase forced bulb plants such as crocuses, tulips, narcissus and hyacinths. …
It used to be lush, vibrant red and in full bloom. It arrived wrapped in a lovely foil wrapper. But now the few leaves left are about to succumb to gravity, and more leaves are falling off. What can you do to restore it to it’s original goodness? Poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) Member of the spurge …
Pansies (Viola x wittrockiana) and violas (Viola v wittrockiana) & are plants I often associate with the Victorian Era; lace and tea in the parlor, and turn-of-the-century advertising illustrations of pansy posies with a child’s head in the centre. A strange juxtaposition between eerie beauty, bizarre old-time artwork, and Victorian formality attracts me to planting …
Although there are many plants that are forced to bloom indoors during the winter holiday season, the popularity of the amaryllis (Hippeastrum) lies in its ease of care and its large, lily-like blooms that are so reminiscent of the flowers of summer. Flower colour ranges from red as the most popular, to pink, white, yellow …
Guest post by Beate Schwirtlich More than any other, these tough and lovely plants signal the true ending of winter. They couldn’t be hardier, surviving frost and late snowfalls, unwiltingly waiting to open on a sunny day. But you’d never know it to look at their delicate blooms. These are no hothouse beauties. That’s why …