Plant Science
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annuals, Extending the Growing Season, Flower Seeds, Garden Maintenance, Garden Science, Hummingbird/Butterfly, Late Autumn Garden, Paths and Walkways, Perennial Garden Maintenance, Perennials for summer, Perennials for Winter Interest, Plant Science, Pollinating Insects, Seeds, Wildlife, Winter Garden
Reining in the Tumbling Floral Chaos: Mid-Summer Garden Maintenance …
Summer’s Wild, Tumbling Jumble (Juniperus squamata ‘Holger’, Hydrangea quercifolia, Amsonia hubrichtii, Adenophora confusa, Rudbeckia hirta, Sedum, Hosta and Adiantum pedatum) While out enjoying a morning stroll around the garden, taking in a blissfully cool and misty start to my day, a few flower stalks and juniper branches caught my attention by snapping at my ankles […]
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Cippolini Onions, Cold-Climate Vegetable Gardening, Early Spring Garden Plants, Garden projects for kids, Garden Science, Gourmet Garden, Herb Gardening, organic gardening, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Planting Techniques, Seed Kits, seed starting, Seed- Saving, Seeds, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager, Winter Garden
Here Comes the Sun, Doo’n Doo Doo: Gettin’ Started with Seed Starting…
On your mark, get set… Twenty degrees fahrenheit. Ow… That’s nippy! Yes, the outside temperature still says ‘winter’ loud-and-clear, but the good new is that the days are getting longer, and the sunlight is getting stronger. That means it’s just about time to get a jump on the growing season by starting seed indoors. At […]
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Children - gardening with, Children and Gardening, Cold-Climate Vegetable Gardening, Container Gardening, Cooking, Cooking with Kids, Early Spring Garden Plants, Extending the Growing Season, Garden projects for kids, Herb Gardening, Indoor Gardening, Kitchen, Onions, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Pots and Pottery, Seed Kits, Seeds, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Joyful New Beginnings: Bright-Green Herb Seedlings Emerging from the Soil…
Seedlings in the Morning Sun: Â Johnny’s Herb Disks in the Windowsill Garden (Coriandrum sativum) Lately, the weather in here in Vermont has been a bit challenging (to say the least). Even we native New Englanders start to groan when back-to-back blizzards deliver multiple feet of snow and there’s nowhere left to pile it! Three feet, […]
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Garden Journals, Garden Maintenance, garden tools, Gifts for Gardeners, Herb Gardening, Indoor Gardening, Organic Disease Control, organic gardening, Organic Insect Control, Plant Science, Planting Techniques, Record Keeping, Seed Kits, Seed- Saving, Seeds, The Seasons, Uncategorized, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager, Winter Garden, Winter Gardening
Marking Time’s Passage in the Garden: Beautiful & Practical Journals…
Keeping a permanent record of your garden is one of the keys to horticultural success! I keep records for both my vegetable plot and my ornamental gardens December 2010. It’s hard to believe that another year is drawing to a close, isn’t it? While flipping through my garden journal last week, I couldn’t help but […]
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Autumn, Celebrations, Corn Mazes, Farm Events, Garden Science, Halloween, Mazes and Labyrinths, New England, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Vermont
“He Who Walks Behind the Rows”… Lost in a Labyrinth of Stalks & Tassels: Exploring the Art of the Corn Maze
“He Who Walks Behind the Rows”… Clouds gather, dark and low on the horizon. The daylight is fading. You’ve been driving through miles of cornfields and back country roads. Suddenly, something  —a child?— darts across the cracked pavement and into the corn rows. Immediately, you pull over and step from the warmth of your car. […]
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Annual Flowers, annuals, Books, Garden projects for kids, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Seed- Saving, Seeds, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Closing the Circle: Save Your Seeds! Special Guest Post by John Miller ….. Plus Seed Saving Books & Resources
It may only be September, but guest-blogger John Miller of the Old Schoolhouse Plantery is already thinking about next spring… Come January, the main horticultural activity for many gardeners —myself included— is thumbing through the newly arrived seed catalogues; dreaming of warm summer days and freshly-picked produce from the garden. A trip to the supermarket […]
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companion planting, Cooking, Garden Maintenance, Gourmet Garden, Homemade Remedies: Anti-Fungal, Organic Disease Control, organic gardening, Organic Insect Control, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Recipes, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Sweet Summertime Risotto with Zucchini, Basil & Golden Peppers & Cultural Notes and Tips from the Kitchen Garden…
Summertime Risotto â“’ 2010 Michaela at TGE Endless summer. Between the deep green leaves in my kitchen garden, zucchini plants offer up their tender, young fruit and bell peppers glisten in the morning sun. Green and purple basil plants —pinched to form bushy mounds— brush my ankles, scenting the air as I walk along the […]
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Garden Maintenance, Gourmet Garden, Organic Disease Control, organic gardening, Organic Insect Control, Plant Science, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Chinese Proverb: The Best Fertilizer is The Gardener’s Shadow…
The Gardener and Her Shadow Delivering Fish Emulsion to Cippolini Onions… Photo â“’ 2010 Michaela at TGE Morning Chores After the Rain Storm. Photo â“’ 2010 Michaela at TGE High winds, driving rain, thunder and lighting; a violent band of storms shook me wide awake last night and when I heard hail on the tin […]
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Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Seeds, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
The Pleasure of Growing Semi-Leafless Peas: Guest Post by John Miller of The Old School House Plantery…
Semi-leafless Peas – Photo â“’ John Miller of the Old School House Plantery In this part of New England, peas are a traditional vegetable to serve with July 4th meals, as well as in various summertime bar-b-que and picnic salads. I am sitting here, having just picked my first pod of the year (the pea’s […]
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Bee-Friendly Gardens, Berries, Birds, Container Garden Fruits, Fragrance, Garden Maintenance, Gourmet Garden, Indoor Gardening, organic gardening, Organic Insect Control, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, strawberries, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Ruby-Red, Fragrant Fraises des Bois: Life’s Sweetest Little Luxuries…
Fraises des Bois, or alpine strawberries, offer a continuous supply of summertime fruit – Photo â“’ Michaela at TGE Oh the magic of Fraises des Bois! To me, they look as if they belong at the center of a tiny table in an enchanted forest; one set just for leprechauns, fairies, nymphs and elves. Alpine […]
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organic gardening, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Seeds, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Growing Great Leeks and Onions the British Way: Guest Post by John Miller of the Old School House Plantery
Triple Planted Lincoln Leeks and Savoy Cabbage,(with Garden Fork for Scale) Triple Planted Onions It’s the middle of May in New England and winter seems to be finally releasing its grip on the climate! Late last week I was planting onions and leeks and I invited Michaela to stop by as I knew what a […]
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Insects/Entomology, Native Plants, Organic Insect Control, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Viburnum, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Native Plant Seminar Discussions: Viburnum Beetle Alert…
Healthy Viburnum trilobum foliage and flower buds Over the weekend, I presented a talk on native plants for ornamental landscape use to a fantastic group of New England gardeners, and some very good questions were raised about alien pests and diseases of North American native plants. One of the gardeners participating in the workshop mentioned […]
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Early Spring Garden Plants, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager
Love Me Two Times Baby: Extend Springtime Crops with Repeat Sowing in Timed Intervals – One for Tomorrow, and One Just for Today…
My Second Spinach Crop… Vegetable gardening tips from Jim Morrison? Well why not? When it comes to hedonistic behavior, I am all for taking his lusty advice in the garden: love me two times baby – one for tomorrow and one just for today! Actually, why not love over, and over, and over? After all, […]
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Beneficial Animals and Insects, Berries, Birds, Blueberries - growing tips, Cooking, flowering shrubs, Fruit for home gardens, Garden Design, Garden Science, Gourmet Garden, Ground Covers, Honeybee Friendly Gardening, Late Autumn Garden, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Organic Disease Control, organic gardening, Plant Science, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, pruning, Recipes, shrubs, Shrubs for fall color, Shrubs for Winter Interest, Shrubs with Colorful Twigs/Stems, Vaccinium, Vegetable Gardening, Woody Plants
A Rhapsody in Blue: Selecting and Planting Vaccinium corymbosum, (Highbush Blueberry), Plus a Favorite Recipe for Blueberry-Lemon Bread…
A Rhapsody in Blue What would you say if I told you that I know of an amazing cold-hardy shrub, with creamy, bell-like spring flowers, glossy green leaves, brilliant fall foliage, colorful winter stems and an attractive, well-rounded form? Interested yet? It may come as a surprise that the shrub I am describing is none […]
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annuals, Books, Garden Science, Gourmet Garden, Herb Gardening, Indoor Gardening, Plant Propagation, Plant Science, Seed Kits, Seeds, Winter Garden
Think Spring: It’s Time to Start Sowing Early Kitchen Garden Seeds …
The kitchen garden at Ferncliff, late May 2009 … It’s always exciting when the first boxes of vegetable, herb and flower seed begin to arrive in the mail. I know, I know. I am a bit like a little kid – but I have to check the mail every day to see if there is […]
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Beneficial Animals and Insects, Books, Garden Maintenance, Garden Science, Insects/Entomology, Organic Disease Control, organic gardening, Organic Insect Control, Plant Science, Uncategorized, Vegetable Gardening
A New Year’s Resolution for Gardeners: Making Informed Choices About Gardening Practices and Products to Support a Healthy, Natural Environment…
We  ♥ Mother Earth The new year often brings about a desire for change and personal reckoning. We make promises, resolutions and plans to better ourselves and the world around us. Over the past couple of years, many people have committed to building environmentally conscious, self-sufficient lives. As a result, gardening, particularly vegetable gardening, has […]
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flowering shrubs, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Late Autumn Garden, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Plant Science, shrubs, Shrubs for fall color, Shrubs with Colorful Twigs/Stems, Woody Plants
On a Cold, Wet November Morning the Red Twigs of Tartarian Dogwood are Still Burning Bright…
Tartarian dogwood, (Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’), at Ferncliff in November… There’s nothing like a dose of brilliant scarlet color to lift the spirits in dreary weather! On this damp, grey November morning, the twigs of Tartarian dogwood glow like red-hot embers in a bonfire. Isn’t it spectacular? Nature can be quite the artiste! This glorious woody […]
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Discovering the Botany of Desire…
The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s Eye View of the World Like most people, I am a fairly busy person, and I don’t have a great deal of time to wander about bookstores – especially during the growing season. In fact, most of my reading over the past few summers has been limited to the […]
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