Many of the insects drawn to a garden are beneficial. Bees and butterflies pollinate flowers and fruits, and predatory insects such as lady beetles and lacewings feed on the pests gardeners fear. Not every bug in the garden is helpful, though. Some of the most popular plants, from eggplants to roses, are also hotspots for […]
Peonies are among the longest-lived perennials in the garden, with established clumps that keep flowering for decades in the same spot. That permanence is exactly what makes transplanting a challenge: a settled peony does not want to move. Sometimes moving is the only way to save it. A peony planted a decade ago may now
Yellow leaves on outdoor plants are one of the most common landscape complaints, and the same symptom can come from a dozen different problems. Chlorophyll gives leaves their green color, and when chlorophyll production slows, the yellow pigments already present in the leaf show through. Too little light, irregular watering, nutrient shortages, high soil pH,
Black or brown spots on magnolia leaves are a sign of a stressed tree, and when the problem turns severe the foliage drops until the canopy looks nearly bare. The condition shows up most often in moist conditions, which is why magnolia, a common tree across humid southeastern regions, is so frequently affected. Catching the
Growing flowers from seed is the most economical way to fill a garden, costing a fraction of what you would pay for mature plants. A single packet of zinnia or marigold seed sells for about $2 to $4 and can produce dozens of plants, while nursery six-packs routinely run $5 to $12 apiece. The gap
Blood meal is a dry, high-nitrogen powder made from slaughterhouse blood, and it ranks among the fastest-acting organic fertilizers for vegetable beds, lawns, and ornamental borders. Because the nitrogen is already in a form plants can use, leafy growth responds within days of application. Garden work rarely happens in isolation: the same planning that goes
Firepower nandina is a dwarf cultivar of heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica) that puts out lime-green foliage in summer and bright red leaves in fall, with the color holding through winter in mild climates. The common name comes from the bamboo-like appearance of its upright stems, though the plant is not a bamboo at all. It
Basil is one of the most popular herbs for home gardens, and most of the time it rewards a gardener with weeks of fragrant leaves. Then a hot afternoon arrives and the whole plant droops as if it has given up. A wilting basil plant is rarely a mystery. It is usually sending a clear
A productive vegetable garden depends on a steady return of nutrients to the soil. Every harvest pulls nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium out of the ground, and when nothing goes back in, the plants run out of fuel. The consequences of skipping that obligation build quietly, much like what happens when you back out of a
Gardeners who planted creeping bellflower for its pretty lavender-blue flowers learned the hard way that this plant chokes out other flowers and proves almost impossible to eradicate. Brought originally from Europe as an ornamental, the plant is known for its bell-shaped nodding purple flowers on erect purplish stems that grow up to 4 feet tall.
