Category: Home & Garden

Perhaps the most popular native shrub in the whole encyclopedia is Mountain Laurel. The eastern mountains from New England to Georgia are full of it, but nobody finds it tiresome. Its evergreen foliage is an asset, but what sweeps the public off their feet is the brilliant show of bloom in June. It is altogether irresistible.

Naturally, Laurel is much planted and much transplanted. There is so much of it in the woods that the amateur horticulturist is constantly tempted to help himself. Yet in many cases, he would be better off, horticultural and financially, if he would buy his plants from some good nursery. In wild land, with its boulders and ledges, the Laurel roots range far and wide. It is very hard to dig these plants with even fairly good roots. But if grown in good, well-drained nursery land they can be lifted, “balled and burlapped,” with perfect roots. The results when planted are, of course, very much better.

In planting from the nursery one has the further advantage that the planting season can be much extended; and as the average amateur is always late at his planting, this constitutes a distinct gain.

Certain practical conditions have to he met to succeed with Mountain Laurel, but they are not very difficult. In the first place, the soil should be acid. Also, it ought not to be too dry and sandy. Fairly well-drained, rocky, or gravelly soil is the Laurel’s natural preference. Then there ought to be some shade. Laurel dislikes full sun, though the dense shade is almost as inimical. A position along the border of woodland is almost ideal, but the plants will thrive in sparse deciduous woods if other conditions are favorable.

The two mistakes most commonly made in planting Mountain Laurel are, first, the digging of wild plants, and second, placing them in open situations where they get full sun. Of course, many mistakes are made, too, in planting in unsuitable soils, but the beginner is more apt to think about this problem and try to meet it.

by F. A. Waugh

Photo credit: Arx Fortis at English Wikipedia

The fall is the perfect time to plant garlic in your garden. Compared to spring-planted garlic, fall garlic produces larger bulbs, matures earlier, and often has fewer disease problems. Additionally, certain types of garlic, mainly hard-neck types like Rocambole, will not mature in time from spring planting.

Of the three types of garlic, soft-neck garlic is the type most often found in supermarkets. It stores for a number of months and can be braided into attractive hangings. Alternatively, hard-neck types store for a much shorter time but have a much more pungent flavor. Elephant garlic, a member of the leek family, is an extremely mild-flavored garlic. The individual cloves can often be 2 inches wide and are great for roasting. In areas where summers are cool and damp, elephant garlic is an excellent choice.

• Just before planting, separate each of the cloves from the main bulb, keeping the skin on.
• Sprinkle a high phosphorus fertilizer like Flower Power down the row.
• Plant the cloves 2 inches deep, pointy-side up, 4 inches apart.
• Elephant garlic should be planted 10 inches apart to ensure that the plants have enough room.

In the springtime, when the green tips start to emerge, garlic should be side-dressed with fertilizer again. Place the fertilizer 2 inches away from the row and lightly scratch it into the soil. During the growing season, keep garlic evenly watered. If this is not possible, keep a mulch on the soil around the plants to help conserve water in between waterings.

The hard-neck types of garlic usually send up flowering heads. Although beautiful, these heads should be removed as they drain energy from the bulbs. The heads can be added to stir-fries for a mild garlic taste. For more information on recipes and using garlic, try the Garlic Page.

When the tops turn yellow, stop watering and allow the bulbs to cure in the soil for 2 weeks. Harvest the garlic by pulling the whole plant out of the soil, tying the leaves together, and then placing the bulbs on a rack in a warm, dry spot. Soft-neck garlic can be braided and hung for long-term storage. The hard-neck types must be used within 1 or 2 months.

Make sure you keep some bulbs aside for replanting!

Easy tricks to keep your garden producing

Gardens need not stop producing food once cold weather comes. Many vegetables are suited to growing in cooler temperatures and can withstand frosts. The key to a successful fall/winter garden lies in the planning.

• Choose the right variety. Certain varieties of vegetables have more frost tolerance than others. This is indicated in the seed catalogs or on the tags in the nursery containers. For example, not all types of lettuce can be grown in the fall but Winter Density Romaine can withstand light frosts.
• Make sure the soil is well drained. Standing water, not frost is a big problem for fall vegetables. Grow on raised beds or, if there is no option, in containers.
• Use protective covers. Floating row covers, often marketed as Reemay or Agrofabric can be draped over plants to provide 1 to 2 degrees of frost protection.
• Use a cold frame or cloche. In very cold winter areas, vegetables can still be grown in a cold frame or under a plastic cloche.
• Use a mulch. If floating covers or cloches cannot be used with your plants, a deep mulch of straw is an excellent insulator.

Where are the fish? You walk outside to feed your fish one day and when you reach your pond you find all your beautiful fish gone. How can this be? You look for Fred, Lucy, TA, and all your other fish but can’t find them. Your heart races to your mouth, you run around your pond, you check your skimmer, you want to scream but can’t, and you search your yard. Where or where can they be? Did a neighbor take them; did your wife sell them? Did a thief come during the night? There is a good chance that a thief did come during the night. That thief even wears his mask all the time.

One of the main predators to ponds that do not have steep sides at least 2 feet deep is the Raccoon. These adorable-looking creatures are nocturnal (night) feeders and their main dish is protein that comes from streams and ponds. Raccoons generally won’t enter the water if they can’t wade into it. They usually can’t hold onto their fish and swim.

They will climb over the roof of your house to get to the source of food. They can also destroy your plants trying to get to your fish. The best control for these is to live trap them. If you do live trap them they must be moved 20 miles from your pond or they will find their way back to your yard. Some people have used tampons soaked in fox urine and suspended these around their ponds. A good dog will help but raccoons can lead your dog into the water, get on their head, and drown your dog in as little as 6-8 inches of water.

Herons are other predators that have not only eaten fish but have also wounded fish with their bill trying to spear them. These large birds can stand 4 feet tall and can clear your pond of fish in short order. They feed during both day and night. Herons are a protected bird. It is unlawful to capture or harm them in any way. A statue decoy may keep them away but during the breeding season (spring) herons feed only a short distance from their nests.

The great Blue Heron is reputedly a solitary feeder but during this breeding-nesting time, they sometimes feed in groups of two or three. Using a statue at this time is like an open dinner invitation. I have even been told that a live heron even tried to get friendly with a decoy. You can even try putting a shiny object in your yard to scare them away. It has been always reported that they would walk up to the water. This being the case, a low line (fishing line) or fencing around the pond would work very well in keeping them out and away from your fish.

Herons will walk into the line but will not lift their feet to step over. Herons are fairly intelligent birds. I have been hearing reports that herons have been landing directly in the shallows of ponds. A woman from Flushing reported a heron landed right in her waterfall. Her falls were within 3 feet of her living room window and the heron’s wings brushed the window and she was afraid her window would break.

A new method of keeping herons at bay from your pond is the use of a water scarecrow. This is a motion-sensor sprinkler that is hooked up to your garden hose. The only downfall is that after a few times of being sprayed with water, the herons become comfortable with it. Loud music or noise will keep them away for a while. Whatever you do, keep moving your device around the yard to keep the herons unfamiliar with the strategy.

The best way to keep herons away from your fish is to place blackbird netting over your pond. You must keep it out of the water so that fish and frogs do not get trapped. It also has to be high enough so that the heron can’t spear your fish through the net. Make sure it is secured around the bottom so that they can’t get under it.

On a visit to a wildlife sanctuary in Florida, I had a chance to see herons up close. When the workers went into the area with the herons, the workers wore helmets with full-face protectors. This I learned was to protect them from the strike of the heron’s long neck and long sharp bill. They strike with the speed of lightning.

Herons aim right between the eyes of their attacker with such power that they punch a hole into the skull. So don’t think you can chase them out of your yard. Some may fly but you could meet up with a very stubborn one that will not fly.

Kingfisher is another bird that can clean out your pond in a short time. They perch in trees or on wires and catch fish by splash-diving or hovering high over your pond and swooping down. The Belted Kingfisher is a medium-sized blue-gray with white underparts and a band across its chest. It has a large, bushy head and a stout, pointed bill.

In May of 2000 I purchased a beautiful black butterfly koi. I introduced it to my pond around 11:00 am. Around 3:00 pm while I was sitting in my Michigan Room taking pride in my pond and fish I noticed a large bird had landed in the top of my silver maple. The maple was sheared off by a windstorm a few weeks earlier. I knew it was some kind of a hawk.

It had blackish-brown top and was white below with a head that was mostly white with a broad black cheek patch. It was taller than the Cooper Hawk. As it took to the air and I witnessed the spectacular sight of it diving feet-first into my pond, snatching my black butterfly koi and carrying it off aligned head first, in its talons. I ran outside, shouted a few choice words and watched as my $20.00 koi passed over the neighborhood. If you guessed it was an Osprey, you’re right. This bird was reported hanging around For-Mar Nature Preserve for about three weeks. I live just down the road from there.

Mink and Egrets are other predators.

Heavily planted bog or marginal plants around your pond can deter animals. Submerged plants can offer some shelter for your fish. Large pipes or milk crates in the bottom of your pond can give your fish someplace to hide and seek shelter from predators. Be on guard and don’t let your fish be a predator feast.

Darlene Jennings, The Pond Lady

(Darlene is a MSU Advanced Master Gardener and founder of Mid-Michigan Pond & Water Garden Club)

Most of us can’t afford ‘grand design’ in our gardens, bringing in professionals for TV-style makeover. But we are always looking for hints, tips and ideas that will give our gardens a distinctive look. It can be as simple as where to place a deckchair or arranging a group plants. Here Ruth Chivers takes a look at what we can learn from the major summer Shows.

It’s that time of year again. Flower Show season has started and visiting shows is all about taking ideas home with you. You’ll find new plants, new features, new design ideas. You don’t have to spend a fortune either.

Just take a good notebook and/or a camera. In fact, it’s a good idea to limit Show purchases, unless you have the ideal spot for a new plant variety that you fall in love with. That’s the theory anyway, and most plantaholics can’t resist temptation. Chelsea is different – unless you go on the last day of the show, plant purchases mean placing orders – delayed gratification! For many gardeners Chelsea is the high point of the Show season. In the last few years, design ideas at the Show have tended to illustrate our reluctance to look forward when it comes to garden design – a sort of collective gardening nostalgia. Still, it’s worth looking closely at the details. This is where ideas are found.

Plant combinations, colours, use of materials, container choices, individual features – something will invariably catch the eye. This is where cameras come out – it’s usually impossible to take pictures of whole gardens amongst the crowds – and pick up plant lists, mark the ones that interest you, or jot down notes. One of this year’s gardens at Chelsea will be a creation using small alpine and shade-loving plants with a stream water feature. Another, by the renowned contemporary designer Christopher Bradley-Hole, will examine the relationship between the natural world and the depiction of natural plant or landscape features in gardens. Yet another will be dominated by spectacular modern sculptures and water. So, whether you are looking for planting ideas, thought-provoking ecology statements, or an architectural spectacular, there will be a feast of ideas on show.

And it’s not only the show gardens that can give you inspiration. Garden design for lots of people is about grouping plants and the way the different nurseries do this on their stands in Chelsea and elsewhere provides a fantastic lesson. You can see how much difference grouping plants by their height, shape and leaf colour makes when it is done well, and this really is something you can easily reproduce at home.

Articles reprinted with permission from Greenfingers.com

In case you needed more evidence:

In 2018, researchers from ETH-Zurich and the University of Hawaii spread 30 dump trucks worth of coffee pulp over a roughly 100′ x 130′ area of degraded land in Costa Rica. The experiment took place on a former coffee farm that underwent rapid deforestation in the 1950s.

The coffee pulp was spread three-feet thick over the entire area.

Another plot of land near the coffee pulp dump was left alone to act as a control for the experiment.

“The results were dramatic.” Dr. Rebecca Cole, lead author of the study , said. “The area treated with a thick layer of coffee pulp turned into a small forest in only two years while the control plot remained dominated by non-native pasture grasses.”

In just two years, the area treated with coffee pulp had an 80% canopy cover, compared to just 20% of the control area. So, the coffee-pulp-treated area grew four times more rapidly. Like a jolt of caffeine, it reinvigorated biological activity in the area.

The canopy was also four times taller than that of the control.

Thank you for forwarding the article, Amanda. I actually picked up a five-gallon bucket of coffee grounds from a local shop this morning.

This article reminds me of the forest that grew where a company dumped tons of orange peels.

It’s terrible how much food waste ends up in the landfill. We’ve now got two local businesses giving us food scraps and coffee grounds. A third company has let us get lots of rotten wood shavings. The food scraps feed livestock and the compost pile, and the grounds feed the vegetables. It’s a marvelous thing.

I’ve considered getting another restaurant to contribute, but we’re already spending a few hours a week picking up and processing the “waste” we’re using now. Maybe if we get more pigs. Though if some company wanted to dump a few tons of coffee grounds out in my pasture, I wouldn’t complain.

Compost everything!

DAVID CULP is a self-professed Galanthophile, a lover and passionate, longtime collector of snowdrops in all their various incarnations. He’s also a host of the annual Galanthus Gala symposium, which happens the first weekend of March in Downingtown, PA, and virtually online, too, for those of us who want to join in without even leaving home, as I did last year, and will again this time around.

David Culp, author of “A Year at Brandywine Cottage,” and also of “The Layered Garden” (affiliate links), gardens on two acres in Downingtown, where among many botanical treasures he grows more than 200 cultivars of Galanthus or snowdrops, proof positive that he is indeed a true Galanthophile.

We talked about snowdrops: how to grow them, and multiply them, and also about his passion for collecting and more.

Plus: Comment in the box near the bottom of the page for a chance to win a copy of his book, “A Year at Brandywine Cottage.”

Read along as you listen to the Jan. 22, 2023 edition of my public-radio show and podcast using the player below. You can subscribe to all future editions on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) or Spotify (and browse my archive of podcasts here).

snowdrops, with david culp

Margaret Roach: Hi, Dave. How are you?

David Culp: Hi, Margaret. I’m fine [laughter].

Margaret: Madman. Madman. Sorry, it’s a madman alert [laughter]. You’ve got a lot of plants over there, kiddo.

David: Indeed. Yeah, I was chuckling. Yes, I am a Galanthophile, proud to say. I let my geek flag wave high.

Margaret: Exactly. So, I don’t know how many years it’s been going on, the Galanthus Gala. So just briefly, what is it? And there’s some great speakers this year, as always, so tell us just briefly what it is.

David: Well, for 20 years, I would go over to England for the RHS winter show, to see hellebores and Galanthus. And then I had this great epiphany that planes fly both ways across the Atlantic. Why can’t the Europeans and Brits come to us? And so I organized the Galanthus Gala in 2017. And as fate would have it, it snowed that day, so we moved it to my meeting house in Downingtown, it’s a 250-year-old Quaker meeting house; I moved it to there, to their schoolhouse. We’ve had vendors and we have speakers, and it’s grown and grown and grown.

I had an interest in Galanthus. It stemmed from my interest in hellebores, winter gardening in particular. Anyone can do a garden in June. [Hellebores and snowdrops, below.]

Margaret: Yes [laughter].

David: But it takes something to do it in February and March. So I thought, well, we can do this if we just think about what plants are going to be blooming or hardy for us here. I get it, we are not England, but we can have very beautiful winter gardens if we just think about it. But it shouldn’t just rest on one genera. As passionate as I am about hellebores, I’m that passionate about Galanthus. My hellebore mentor, Elizabeth Strangman, gave me a warning when I first picked up my few pots of Galanthus. She goes, “Oh, David, be careful. These are highly addictive.” [Laughter.] And she was right. She followed with a little caveat, “And you have enough addictions.”

Margaret: Yeah, exactly. Well, it happens to the best of us. Although I have to say, I’ve managed to have a lot of plants, but not a lot of one genus of plants. I don’t know why that… why I mostly escape that. Different people have different psychological attachments or whatever. I’ve got a lot of different plants.

But anyway, so some Galanthus basics. Where are they from? When do they bloom? I mean, how many kinds are there anyway? I mean, how diverse a group is it? I think that I read on your website that the name Galanthus comes from the Greek words for… G-A-L-A for milk, and A-N-T-H-O-S for flower, milk flower, or it looks like drops of milk and so forth. Where are they from?

David: They are from… Let’s see, the Crimean region, or Northern Turkey-

Margaret: So, the Balkans and stuff?

David: The Balkans, all the way up to Southern Europe. They’ve migrated. During the Crimean war, the British soldiers would send snowdrops back to England. They were first recorded in, I think, the 1500s, in Gerard’s Herball book, but they are not native. They’ve since naturalized all around Europe and England.

Margaret: O.K. And in terms of… So again, you’re sort of mid-Atlantic, so you’re in Pennsylvania, not far from famous Longwood Gardens and so forth. So, when did they bloom for you? You have 200 or something kinds. What’s your bloom season, the range of them?

David: You know Margaret, I like to take the challenge cup [laughter]. So, my Galanthus started blooming in October. They bloom all the way through the winter, there are hundreds blooming right now, but we’re not in peak Galanthus season, mind you. They are earlier this year, thank you, not thank you, global warming.

Margaret: Yes.

David: Lots blooming right now. We’re going to have cold weather this week, but they can take it. That’s one of the things I like about them, is they can take the rigors of winter and still keep on blooming.

So they go right through the winter, all the way till April. And when people kind of kid me and say “Galanthus,” and I just stop and go, “What’s blooming in your garden right now?” That usually gives me pause, and I can say, “I have hundreds of…” And I need chlorophyll in the wintertime. I don’t know about you, but I need something green.

Margaret: Right. So, there are either species or varieties for a lot of different zones. I think on your website, again, it says 2-9, but the sweet spot is zones 4-7-ish or so, for these bulbs and…

David: Probably. My friends up in northern New York, in colder areas, they probably are growing lots of Galanthus nivalis, which are very popular in Germany and northern Europe right now. There’s a lot of breeding work being done there. So what I… I like nivalis, I grow a lot of them, they’ve naturalized here in southeastern Pennsylvania, New York. They’re the one that’s naturalized the most in the U.S.

I also like the Galanthus elwesii, because it’s a larger flower and it blooms earlier. But then there’s a whole host of hybrids. There’s four different basically species that make up the genus Galanthus, but the bulk of my collection is nivalis, gracilis, elwesii, the hybrids. But like any Galanthophile, the truth is, you’ve got to have them all, and you soon learn to work with what works with you, and go with those particular species.

Margaret: Right. Right. So, when you were talking about how you’ve had some blooming since October, and there’ll be ones blooming through April, you don’t mean the same exact flower, of course. You mean this continuing, this succession of this genus, because you’ve planted different types, you have this succession, this continuing wave of them. And we gardeners who are not Galanthophiles yet [laughter], we see them in the fall bulb catalogs, I believe. That’s when they’re sold mostly. Is that correct?

David: That’s correct. I buy them sometimes when they’re dormant bulbs. I also buy them in the green, which we do at the Gala, we sell them in the green. That’s a very good time to plant them. The truth is, the best time to get them is when you can get your hands on them [laughter]. But at the gala, there’s lots of different cultivars and species in the green.

They are in the Amaryllidaceae family, and now people are glazing over. That’s important, though, because with Amaryllidaceae you automatically go: “deer-proof.” So, they’re deer-proof. The other thing about the Amaryllis family is that they only put roots out once a year. So if you damage the roots when you’re transplanting them, they’ve lost the ability to take up that much more nutrients. So, you’re safe when they’re dormant, but even better if they’re in a container and you buy them in the green.

Did that confuse you?

Margaret: No, no. No, I get it. And when we say “in the green,” we mean that it’s up and growing, so to speak; it’s a transplant.

David: Yeah. Yeah.

Margaret: So, I’ve said repeatedly that you have hundreds of kinds [laughter] in your garden. Can you remember all the names without a cheat sheet in your hand? I mean, it must just be staggering.

David: My garden Brandywine Cottage, is… I used not to label anything. The only thing I labeled in my garden is my Galanthus collection. I don’t know if I’ve risen to new heights or sunk to new lows. I do label my Galanthus, because I’d be lost without them.

An unlabeled Galanthus, if you don’t know what it is, is just a pretty Galanthus. And that’s O.K., but if you’re a serious collector of anything, whether it be art glass, you got to know the provenance of it.

Margaret: Yes. So, I look at the lists from collectors who sell them, or some of the sources that Galanthophiles would shop at, not your basic mail-order bulb catalog, mass-market bulb catalog, which has a few kinds. And I see some for $30, which I assume is for a bulb, and some for close to $500 for a bulb. So, some of them are really, really, really expensive.

And so if I splurge on even a $30 bulb, if I splurge on one, what happens? What is that little creature doing? How long does it… How does it multiply? Does it multiply only underground? Do they self-sow? What’s their method of becoming more than one in my garden?

David: Well, both.

Margaret: O.K.

David: And I’ve confessed that I’ve paid maybe way too much for a single bulb of Galanthus. It’s kind of like Tulip Mania right now. They fetch huge prices from $1,400 down to $30. And I offer just basic elwesii in the pot, to the very expensive ones at my table, and at the Gala, you’ll see them all price ranges. You buy what you’re willing to gamble and plant in the ground.

And people laugh and say, “You paid that much for a bulb?” And I said, “Well, how’s your 401k done? My investment in that bulb usually doubles within one year.”

Margaret: Oh!

David: So, you can expect that to probably double within a year, maybe two at the most. But if it’s damaged, the roots are damaged, it might take another year for it to pull up its socks and bloom for you. But it reliably increases very slowly, and makes a large clump.

It does self-seed. I’m afraid I’ll never have a really tidy garden again, because I let my Galanthus go, hoping that they’ll seed around. And you can’t mulch… I don’t mulch, anyhow, I use leaf mold on my garden, but they will self-sow around, and you get some interesting hybrids. When you have this many cultivars intermingling and having wine and doing what in the middle of the night [laughter], you’re going to have some interesting hybrids.

Margaret: So they’re not just botanical Bitcoin, they’re also sexy creatures [laughter].

David: They are.

Margaret: So, you’re known—and I mentioned earlier in the introduction that one of your books that you’ve written is called “The Layered Garden”—and so you’re known design-wise as a proponent of the technique of layering plants. Not just sticking one thing here and one thing there and so forth, and having this succession and complexity of beauty in the garden unfolding. How did Galanthus fit into that strategy? So, where did they go and where do they belong in the garden?

David: Well, they start the year. That’s why we have the Gala in March. It’s like the kickoff of spring. As soon as my garden starts blooming with the Galanthus and the Crocus tommasinianus and the hellebores, it’s spring. I don’t go by the exact calendar. I let my garden tell me what season it is; I watch it. So, my garden starts blooming here in zone… I think we’re still… Who knows? 6b or 7. Again, the global warming factor makes it hard. We haven’t had snow here in Philadelphia in two years, we’re expecting our first measurable snowfall tomorrow.

Margaret: Yes. I saw that in the paper. Yes.

David: But they start now, it’s a seasonal layer… To your point about collecting, I kind of staged my garden: it’s Galanthus, hellebore time, then into Narcissus, then into tulip. There’s basic genera that goes throughout the year, so you’re doing succession planting by genus, as well as spatial layering. It’s trees, shrubs, ground layer, you’re planting all those layers in the garden.

Margaret: Do Galanthus do better with more or less light, or what are some of the good niches within the garden, light-wise and other condition-wise, that they like?

David: Shade is preferred. You can push them more towards full sun, you might want to give them a little bit of shade in the summertime. A lot of the species that are more southerly in their distribution actually like more sun, I would say, like reginae-olgae, which is named after the queen of Greece. She needs more sun, that one needs more sun, because it’s native to Greece.

Margaret: I see.

David: So I have them in full sun. What Galanthus tend not to like is overly moist soils, like soggy soils. The one that’s probably the more tolerant of moisture-retentive—I’m saying tolerant, not -proof—might be nivalis, but I would stay away from overly wet, boggy soils when it comes to Galanthus.

Margaret: I think bulbs in general, and not all, but most, I feel that way, that they don’t want to be in a sump.

David: They don’t.

Margaret: Yeah. And if I had a good size group of something… The only ones I really have are the two most familiar that you mentioned, and even here in what used to be zone 5b until the other day [laughter], when they announced that it was 6a, with the unusually mild winter we had until this week, they were starting to come up under the leaf litter, they were starting to push. And even neighbors had a couple flowers here and there.

So, if I get a good-sized clump, and I want to say divide them and put some elsewhere, do I do it when they’re “in the green”? Do I do it when they’re up and running? Is there a good time?

David: I do. I’m a bit pragmatic. The optimal time is when they start going dormant, when the leaves start to yellow. But the truth is, Margaret, I do it when they’re in the full green, and I usually… Well, I’m always in a hurry, so I’ll take a clump, maybe a sizable clump, and I divide it in thirds. I divide it, leave one clump where it was, I put two other clumps elsewhere.

Immediately, no matter if it’s raining out, you want to water it in, to make sure that the soil has contact with the roots. That’s important. But it’s kind of like insurance, too. If something happens to one clump, you still have two more elsewhere. If you just have one clump that’s prized, and that clump for some reason disappears… I think dividing not only gives you more for the garden, but also serves as a kind of insurance, that you still have your prized bulbs available.

Margaret: Right. I was looking through your list, you have a list of ones that, as you said, that they turned out to be a good investment, because you can also sell some, as you get more and more and more of certain ones.

And there were some familiar names, you just mentioned one that was named for a Greek queen or something, but I saw that there was one that you recommend, and it wasn’t a super-expensive one. It’s called Bertram Anderson. And it’s funny, because in the years that I’ve grown plants, I’ve had two other plants named for Bertram Anderson [laughter], a Pulmonaria and a Sedum. So, he must’ve been some great gardener, Bertram Anderson.

David: Yeah. And what happens, once a snowdrop’s named after you, or a person, anyone, that person becomes an immortal. So, you’re immortal after there are snowdrops named after you. Bertram Anderson was a great gardener. And I love the different names of snowdrops. That’s part of the lure of snowdrops, of being a Galanthophile, who it’s named after, the garden that it came from, the provenance. That’s part of the history. That’s important to me. [Above, Galanthus ‘Phil Cornish.’]

Margaret: Well, it was fun, as I said, looking at the list. It’s like, ooh, I just want to find out who all those people and all those places that all the varieties are named for, because you’d get this whole rich history by doing that, working backwards from that list of named cultivars of Galanthus. You’d get this whole history of our obsession with gardening over the centuries. I think he was in the Cotswolds region, right, Bertram Anderson?

David: That’s a big area of Galanthophiles. There’s a lot of them in the Cotswolds. They’re basically a two-hour… I hesitate to say that, because they’re spread everywhere, but usually when I go over, it’s within a two-hour push outside of London. But there are great Galanthophiles in Ireland. They have Galanthus shows and sales in Germany, in Belgium. I mean, it’s sweeping Europe right now.

Margaret: Mm-hmm. So, in all of these varieties, what are just… I know it’s hard to… I feel like I have to get down on the ground and crawl around and look closely at them, because these are not up in your face kind of, or it’s not as big as a knee-high red tulip or something. You have to really look closely at the subtleties. But some of them are more frilly, like almost double, I guess, the flowers, and some have more green edging. Are those the differences… What are you looking at as a collector to add to your collections?

David: Well, I don’t know of a genus that is… One of the things that appeals to me about snowdrops are their utter simplicity. But then again, I don’t know of a genus that’s so highly nuanced. It’s about how long the claw is, how they taper at the end, how the green tips… How the shading is: Is it a blotch, is it striped? It’s all about these subtleties. Your eye, once it is trained to look at subtleties, whether it be Galanthus or any other plant in the garden, you become a better gardener as you start looking at subtleties.

That being said, I’ve seen gardens just have one species, like Painswick in England, which is all I think nivalis, and it’s a very popular and very effective landscape. But it’s looking at those details that sharpens your eye. And the other thing about Galanthus, it’s a time you can gather with friends like at the gala, and not have any guilt feelings about leaving your garden, because nothing else is going on. You can actually talk with fellow gardeners at that time of the year. It’s kind of a gardener’s sport, if you will.

Margaret: Yeah. So, let’s talk about the Gala. I was excited to see that you’re having… I mean, you have presenters, people who do talks, and again, they’re going to be broadcast virtually also, so people can buy, as I did, a virtual ticket, as well as attend in person in Downingtown, Pa. But like Nancy Goodwin, one of the… I mean, I remember a million years ago, the first time I went to her Southeastern garden, and just the astonishment of what she had accomplished. So, there are some really great speakers, so tell us a little bit about what’s going to go on, whether in person or virtually at the gala.

David: We start Friday with the virtual happy hour, and it’s kind of… Social activity is part of being a Galanthophile. There’s a social aspect to it. So we have a trivia game which is great fun, because… I’ll tell you a little secret. Because it’s five hours… We’re ahead of England five hours, so they’ve always gone through cocktail time by the time we have the happy hour, and you can see it sometimes in their responses [laughter], which is great fun. We have the happy hour, and we have Nancy Goodwin speaking, and I’m just honored to introduce her. She’s, as you said, an iconic garden in the South.

A lot of gardeners in the South think that Galanthus aren’t hardy for them, because it’s too warm. Well, I just want to point to Nancy Goodwin, who’s been doing Galanthus in her garden for 30 years. She’s known right now with her Galanthus collection for having the winter walk. She has a lot of fall-blooming Galanthus in her garden. But I just wanted to have her speak because she’s such a good gardener, and has been doing Galanthus, and help dispel that myth that you can’t grow them in the South. I actually have a busload coming from Tennessee to the gala this year.

Margaret: Oh, great.

David: And they’ve been coming several years, we have several busloads coming to the gala. Then on Saturday, we have the curator of Utrecht Gardens speaking on DNA tracing in snowdrops, to make sure how the Galanthus have moved from the Mediterranean upwards through Europe. They’re actually doing DNA tracing to make sure they have the right cultivars and species in the garden, that they’re historically correct as well. I think that’s fascinating, that we’ve moved in that direction, not just in Galanthus but plant-wide. I think DNA tracing is going to change the way Linnaean nomenclature is today.

And then we have the director of the Gothenburg Botanical Garden in Sweden, which is the largest bulb collection in the world.

Margaret: Wow.

David: Not just the United States. But he’s going to be talking about his love of Galanthus, and more importantly I think, just as importantly, are the companion plants, the companion bulbs to bloom with them, so it’s not just one genus, it’s about making a garden, Margaret. About…

Margaret: Speaking of layering [laughter].

David: It’s about making a garden, and what goes with that plant? Yes. That’s right; thank you.

Margaret: Well, David Culp, we’re almost basically out of time. But I always have fun, as people could tell, because I was cackling throughout, talking to you.

David: You should have fun.

Margaret: A fellow plant nut of… a longtime plant nut like me. So, thank you so much, and I’ll talk to you again soon, I hope.

David: Thank you, Margaret. I look forward to seeing you soon, and everyone at the Gala. Happy gardening.

more on galanthus from david culp

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MY WEEKLY public-radio show, rated a “top-5 garden podcast” by “The Guardian” newspaper in the UK, began its 14th year in March 2023. It’s produced at Robin Hood Radio, the smallest NPR station in the nation. Listen locally in the Hudson Valley (NY)-Berkshires (MA)-Litchfield Hills (CT) Mondays at 8:30 AM Eastern, rerun at 8:30 Saturdays. Or play the Jan. 22, 2023 show using the player near the top of this transcript. You can subscribe to all future editions on iTunes/Apple Podcasts or Spotify (and browse my archive of podcasts here).

I admire tenacity. It is a trait that I strive for myself and have tried to instill in my child. I am moved when I hear stories about people who overcome adversity or achieve great things by trying repeatedly until they reach their goals. And yet, when a great example of tenacity occurs right in my own backyard, I find myself strangely unmoved.

The model of tenacity is crabgrass (Digitaria), and now is its high season. For those who have just moved in from some barren planet, crabgrass is an annual weed that appears in mid to late summer. It emerges from the ground to form spreading mats of growth. It takes over if given even half a chance, and is very difficult to irradicate. The Latin name for the genus, Digitaria, is very appropriate. “Digitus” is the Latin word for finger, and crabgrass is distinguished by the long finger-like projections that it sends out in all directions. Long ago someone looked at a crabgrass plant with its “fingers” fully spread and decided that it looked like a green crab, hence the common name.

As with many irksome things, the government was responsible for crabgrass. In 1849 it was introduced into the United States for use as a forage plant. Crabgrass settled in faster than you can say “herbicide” and has lived here in not-so-peaceful coexistence with homeowners ever since.

I have crabgrass around the edges of my lawn and here and there in my flower beds. There would be more of it in the lawn if it were not for the clover that seems to out-compete it. On balance I don’t mind the clover, so I concentrate my efforts on removing the crabgrass from amidst the flowers. Beds, where the spaces between plants have been covered with layers of newspaper topped with mulch, are well defended against crabgrass and other weeds. In sufficient quantities mulch by itself also deters the weed’s spread. When crabgrass does rear its ugly head, I usually hand weed, being careful not to wait so long that the crabgrass sets seed.

Crabgrass is so tenacious that it has spread itself all over the Internet as well. My eye is drawn to the website of a well-known herbicide producer. After going over the undesirable traits of crabgrass, the text reads, “crabgrass can overtake large sections of your yard throughout a season or two, especially if you have an older, tired lawn that hasn’t been renovated for many years.” Since this describes my lawn to a “T”, I take note.

Generally I try to steer clear of herbicides because of what they might do to the more desirable plants, not to mention the local birds, beneficial insects, my cats and any other sentient entity in the area. Fortunately, the University of Minnesota Extension Service has help for people like me. They claim that a healthy dense lawn, properly tended and fertilized, is the best protection against crabgrass and other problem weeds. They also suggest keeping the grass at about 3-inches long. This is a little taller than some people are used to, but it shades the ground enough so that sun-loving weeds stand less of chance of sprouting. As a final alternative, the Extension Service recommends waiting until spring and applying one of the pre-emergent weed killers in areas where crabgrass plants tend to congregated

So I continue my hand weeding. It is a tranquilizing pastime, and it is a legitimate excuse to avoid cleaning my house, straightening up my desk or taking on other stultifying domestic chores. As the crabgrass piles up in the weed basket, I consider the fact that it is not without redeeming qualities.

For one thing, crabgrass does indeed make great cattle forage. Research has shown that cattle fatten up quickly on a crabgrass diet. As if that weren’t enough, cattle prefer the taste of crabgrass to almost everything else except Johnsongrass (another common weed). The researchers also discovered what home gardeners have known all along—that crabgrass grows in thin soil and cares little about adequate drainage. It is also a nitrogen lover, and responds to nitrogen supplied by legumes. This would explain why crabgrass and clover, a legume, stand proudly, shoulder to shoulder at the edge of my lawn.

You may welcome crabgrass to your north forty if you are troubled by toxic petroleum waste. In Arkansas, scientists are studying ways of rehabilitating soil around oil wellheads that has been contaminated for years by heavy oil. Sometimes the contaminated soil is a foot thick with a black crusty layer covering a deeper layer of tar-like goo. Crabgrass seed germinated in this mess at a rate of 78%. Of the seeds that germinated, 64.5% survived. Those survivors not only lived but thrived spectacularly, making it ideal for “phytormediation”–slow and steady rehabilitation of extremely contaminated soil.

So while you and I and every other gardener continues the good fight against the crabgrass that outcompetes both the lawn and the ornamentals, we can celebrate the fact that someday crabgrass could help save the world. But keep pulling. Rest assured that the inroads we make on our lots will do little to hinder its ultimate triumph.

Yellow Rose
SWORD LILIES
CHANGE IN THE GARDEN
UNFORGETTABLE
FRESH VEGGIES

When acquiring plants for a shade garden, remember that plants grow slowly in the shade, so get large plants. Plants often grow differently in the shade and some experimentation with size and blooming times are in order. The following plants grow well in deep shade.

While the common Bleeding Heart will take some shade, the Fern Leaf Bleeding Heart (Dicentra formosa) thrives in full shade. It is possible to buy the Fern Leaf Bleeding Heart with red or white blossoms, but the hardiest variety has pink blooms. This perennial usually grows between 8 and 15 in (23-38 cm) tall and blooms all summer.

The Fern Leaf Bleeding Heart should be propagated by root division as it grows very slowly from seed.

Snake Root (Cimicifuga ramosa) is an interesting plant for the back of the border. Its height is dependent on the amount of light it receives, but they usually grow between 3-5 ft (90-180 cm) with a similar spread. The white blooms are born above the foliage giving fuzzy, bottle brush effect.

The Black Snakeroot, with exotic darker purplish leaves, is harder to find but well worth the hunt. Snake Root is best propagated by division.

Cranesbill (Geranium) differ from the annual geranium. The plants range in height from 1 to 3 ft.(30-90 cm) depending on the variety. The newer varieties sold in garden centers, are smaller with purple-pink flowers. They spread by rhizomes while the older varieties are blue, white or combinations of both. They spread by seed. The hybrids bloom for about a month in July while the older varieties bloom, for about 2 weeks in August.

There are a multitude of Primroses that grow in Central Alberta. Most grow in partial shade to full shade and bloom early in the season. Primroses come in all shades, sizes and colors. To view all the possibilities visit the Devonian Botanical Gardens just south of Edmonton.

The staff have been working with Primroses for years finding the hardiest varieties for Alberta. “The Primrose Del” showcases their findings. Some species appear to be short lived and need to be replaced every couple of years.

Lungwort (Pulminaria) also known by Joseph and Mary or Soldiers and Sailors, is an ideal shade plant, but will also grow in full sun. The plant grows about 8 in.(20 cm) tall and has spotted leaves. The most common variety is dark green with silver or white spots but other hybrids are also available. Lungwort blooms early in spring. Its flowers start pink but turn blue as they age. The plant occasionally needs split and will self seed if it isn’t deadheaded.

Rayflowers (Ligularia) are large plants 3-4 ft (90-120 cm) in height and width. They grow in part to deep shade. The flowers are tall spikes covered with small yellow daisies.

The huge heart shaped leaves add interest all season. For a more spectacular plant purchase the hybrids that have striking red stems. The hybrids must be propagated by division as they don’t come true from seed.

Solomon’s Seal (polgonatum multiflorum) is larger than the native variety. It grows about 2 ft. (61 cm) tall with white flowers in June. Seeds form soon after looking like round berries that begin turning red by the end of July and end up dark black by September.

The roots of Solomon’s Seal are slow spreading rhizomes that propagate easily by division.

The Ostrich Fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) is very hardy, low maintenance, shade plant. They grow to 4 ft.(1.6 M) with a similar spread. Ferns spread by underground rhizomes multiplying rapidly once established.

Fall is a great time to plant so start looking for these and other shade plants to add the garden.

Article by
Linda Tominson

There are exceptions, as may well be imagined, among the wonderful variety that is found in roses at the present day. The first exception is found in those varieties that make vigorous growth even when hard pruned; this would seem to indicate that the orthodox method is not for them. Neither, in fact, is it suitable.

If grown in a bed or border away from a wall or fence, the proper way to treat them is by means of what is known as ” pegging down.” This, rendered plain, signifies that instead of being cut back in March, the growths of the previous year are scarce, if at all, shortened (although if the tips are soft they are cut off), and they are secured to the ground by means of pegs.

This is easily accomplished by tying a piece of string to the end of the shoot and tying this to a peg stuck in the soil. This miniature rose arch will be one mass of blossom in summer. Each bud will produce a bloom or bunch of blooms according to its habit. The grower proceeds in autumn to cut out the growths that have flowered, so that fresh shoots may have it all to themselves.

They, too, are treated in the same way the following spring; thus in roses of this type there is a constant succession of young growths of great vigor taking the place of those that have given their bloom, and each year’s supply is pegged down in March. There is no danger of the supply giving out if the old shoots are regularly cut out when the flowers are over. Such roses as these take up a lot of room, and it is useless to grow them in the same bed with others of ordinary vigor, for the latter will be simply smothered.

I know this from unfortunate experience, and as my garden is of limited extent ‘ I gave up growing them in a rose bed, and now have them against a 4 or 5 feet high fence. A few sorts that I have found need this treatment are Frau Karl Druschkil Hugh Dickson, Mrs. Stewart Clark and Clio. But one may peg down any rose that makes unduly vigorous growth if one wishes to have plenty of blossoms and there is the necessary room at disposal.