I’m a particular fan of ground covers, especially those that replace bare soil or synthetic mulches (plastics, fabrics, and the sciency-sounding “geotextiles”). That enthusiasm is tempered, however, by those invasive species, like members of Hedera, that seem to take over the world (or at least my little corner of it). So while logic might dictate a preference … Continue reading A ground cover I just love
Last month Linda posted on the need for horticultural knowledge for those trying to restore native habitats or at least establish native plants. There seems to be a pervasive notion that if we plant natives all we have to do is stick them in the ground and walk away. They’re native, right? Don’t need irrigation; don’t need … Continue reading Restoration ecologists – you need us! Part 2.
[And I don’t mean “greatest hits”, I mean “Mafia hit”] Gardeners, yardeners, and designers are on a perpetual lookout for a good hedge species. Hedges are useful in so many ways: providing backdrop for a border, making good neighbors, containing football players, etc. In reference to the latter, the field at Sanford Stadium at the … Continue reading GP Hit List: Ligustrum sinense (Chinese Privet)
I wish I were more like Holly…wandering around nurseries finding pretty and unusual annuals and perennials to get excited about. Instead, I seem to gravitate to plants that annoy me. Today while looking for some trellises (for those containerized Clematis vines that I’ve been torturing) I saw pots of the Equisetum hyemale (“a tall, evergreen, … Continue reading Why do nurseries sell this plant?
Restoration ecology – the science of restoring degraded ecosystems – is another branch of applied plant sciences. Oddly enough, very little plant science makes it into the scientific literature of this field. This has driven me nuts for a number of years after reading an endless stream of papers where no mention is made of … Continue reading Restoration ecologists – you need us!
Yep, there he is. Showed up at our state Master Gardener College, just last week. I even went to dinner with him. The snake-on-a-stick startled the bartender just a bit. The elder Bartram (his son William was also a great botanist and explorer) was the Royal Botanist to King George III and a member of … Continue reading John Bartram Lives!
While the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) continues to expand in the upper Midwest (see http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/MultiState_EABpos.pdf for a current infestation map), EAB is old news here in Michigan, especially in the southeastern part of the state. Efforts to restore urban and community forest canopy lost to EAB will continue, however, for the foreseeable future. In 2003 … Continue reading What’s old is new again
Year after year farmers in the US plants a lot of corn. A safe estimate is around 80 million acres with another 70 million acres or so going to soybeans. Corn comes from South America, soybeans are from East Asia. When we plant these crops we plant them in such a way that we exclude … Continue reading What About the Corn?
I spent yesterday flying from Seattle to Buffalo and didn’t get a chance to post the answer to the puzzle on Friday. This was an easy one for our readers – the shrub is (was?) a mesquite, and the bushy growth in the photograph is mistletoe (as identified by Bob and seconded by Ginny and … Continue reading Friday puzzle solved – better late than never!
Castor Bean – Ricinis communis. Folks who make their living creating fabulous color displays for public gardens, municipalities, and commercial parks love ‘em. Civilian gardeners/plant geeks love ‘em. People who get their knickers in a twist about poisonous plants do not. Pros: ridiculously rapid growth, huge leaves for that tropical look, tolerant of less-than-ideal conditions, … Continue reading Beantroversy