The Real Dirt

A beautiful way to add color to your garden in winter and early spring is to plant hellebores. These perennials grow low to the ground in clumps usually no more than one- and one-half feet high, with distinctive leathery, dark-green leaves. Their flowers, about two inches across, appear in clusters that…

Nearly everyone, from well-meaning beginners to experienced outdoor gardeners, has struggled at one time or another with a houseplant that seemed determined to die. Understanding the four basic needs of all houseplants can not only give you the knowledge you need to care for these plants, but also help you…

It’s cold outside! But that doesn’t have to stop you from gardening. Why not cheer up the dark days of winter by planting some herbs on a sunny windowsill indoors, and using them in your cold weather soups and stews?

How about bringing a new plant home to cheer up these dark winter days?  For the avid gardener, houseplants can be an excellent source of greenery and even flowers when the outside garden has gone gray and dormant in the doldrums of mid-winter.  The Moth Orchid, ZZ Plant, Christmas Cactus, Snake Plant,…

The plant that graced the botanical gardens of the Aztec empire over 600 years ago, and the flower of Holy Night legends, is the poinsettia (poin seh tee uh), or flor de nochebuena in Spanish. Seen everywhere for sale during a short six weeks of the year, this plant has come to symbolize Christmas. A closer…