Gardening Simplified

Perennials growing in the production fields of our partner, Walters Gardens.

More on Purple Pearls callicarpa: http://www.provenwinners.com/plants/callicarpa/purple-pearls-beautyberry-callicarpa

Cephalanthus about to bloom in our greenhouse. Also known as button bush, this native plant loves wet soils. #gardening #flowers

Going #nofilter on this Home Run Pink rose so you can see what a screaming beacon of color it is. Wowza! #flowers #rosechat #pink

Things are FINALLY starting to leaf out - but if you aren't seeing signs of life on rose of Sharon and weigela yet, don't worry. That's normal, and these are the two latest-to-leaf out of all popular landscape plants.

Looking for edible quince? Look elsewhere: not only does the Double Take series produce little fruit, the culinary quince is actually a totally different species, Cydonia oblonga. And it's a small tree, not a shrub like Chaenomeles, above.

April is National Safe Digging Month. Before you do any major yard work, call 811 to have your utilities marked for free. 

Need a quick and easy floral fix? Cut branches of forsythia (or other spring bloomers, like witch hazel, flowering quince, or flowering cherry), bring them indoors, and place them in water. They'll come into bloom in 2-4 weeks - more than you can say for leaving them outdoors, at least in our neck of the woods!

Invincibelle Spirit hydrangea and Banana Cream Shasta daisy

As a variety of Sambucus racemosa, Lemon Lace is smaller than Black Lace elderberry; it also has inedible red fruit.

Meet Bob Head of Seneca, South Carolina. He's the man behind Bloom-A-Thon reblooming azaleas, and he's been breeding rhododendrons and azaleas since he was 15 years old.

Ten fun horticultural facts you may not know about poinsettias: 1. They are native to southern Mexico & Guatemala. 2. They are perennials in areas warm enough for them to grow year-round. 3. In these regions, a plant can reach 10-15' tall! 4. In warm climates, they are popular garden plants and are commonly used in landscaping. 5. Poinsettias are brought into flower in greenhouses with a very specific schedule of exposure to light and dark. Even the tiniest bit of light during the daily dark periods could prevent an entire crop from flowering. 6. The scientific name for poinsettia is Euphorbia. Other types of euphorbia are grown as houseplants and hardy perennials; one species is even a common weed that you've no doubt encountered in your garden: (http://www.msuturfweeds.net/details/_/prostrate_spurge_38/). 7. Because many species of Euphorbia are highly toxic, poinsettias have long been thought of as toxic as well. However, research reveals that their toxicity is extremely low - a 50 lb. child would have to eat 500 leaves to begin to feel any toxic effects. 8. The colorful portion of the poinsettia isn't a flower at all - it is a modified leaf, designed to attract pollinators. 9. Each poinsettia "flower" actually consists of 10-20 true flowers - the funny yellow bits in the center. 10. There are well over 100 different varieties of poinsettia available, with colors ranging from white, pink, to red, different flower forms, and variegated foliage. Each year, we only see a small fraction of the different types that exist.

Boxwood flowers - few people ever notice them, as they are clearly not very showy and they bloom very early in spring. However, these non-descript little flowers emit a powerfully sweet fragrance and are an important food source for insects that emerge from dormancy on warm spring days (as evidenced by the two tiny flies at center left).

Read the remarkable story of the Medal of Honor Tree in Washington, D.C. - planted with soil collected from 16 different battlefields around the world.

Berry Heavy Gold winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata) - coming to garden centers in 2015, but too beautiful to wait to share! This incredible golden winterberry was developed in Michigan by the late Fred Case, a biology teacher and expert on orchids, trilliums, and native plants.