It pains me to see customers spending hundreds of dollars on new plants and simultaneously refusing to spend a few more on a bag or two of compost and a box of starter fertilizer. These two items are not unnecessary “add-ons” that the retailer is just trying to add to the sale, they are critical components of a successful transplanting process - or as I like to refer to them as “plant insurance”. Unless you have phenomenal soil, you should always add compost and starter fertilizers when you are planting new plants. Here is why…
Now that spring has officially arrived and the sun has returned, our gardens are beginning to brim with activity. Bees are buzzing about visiting early flowers, foliage is emerging everywhere, and plants are awakening from winter dormancy. Perennials in particular are a welcome sight for this gardener’s eyes, as they finally spring back to life and…
When you have been gardening for over 60 years, like I have, you see a lot of trends and fads come and go. A recent trip down memory lane jogged a few for me around the subject of growing vegetables. Two that I remember well are French Intensive Gardening (or Biodynamic Gardening), and Square Foot Gardening. Here’s a little background…
The Golfing Gardener
Trevor Cameron
The kingdom of plants is filled with many desirable shrubs, including many old-fashioned forms and newer hybrids. Gardeners (including me) love many of the numerous old school selections while also embracing newer more modern forms. One of these plants, Weigelia florida, has been a proven performer in local gardens for decades, providing showy spring flowers, excellent…