Connecticut Garden Journal

Many gardeners are either downsizing from their large vegetable gardens or have limited space to grow food. A good way to maximize your space is to grow vertically. There are a number of climbing vegetables beyond the traditional pole beans and peas, that thrive during our hot summers and offer some interesting and unusual fruits. Many gardeners love pole beans, but this Asian variety is really un...

Whether it be from kids, pets or wildlife, many times our gardens need protection. There's nothing worse than to plant a garden only to have soccer balls knock down plants, dogs dig up the bed or wild animals eat your plants. The key to protecting your plants is often a good fence. Depending on the perpetrator, the fence can be short or tall, sturdy or delicate. For young kids and small dogs, a 2-...

“Then we have the irises, rising beautiful and cool on their tall stalks, like blown glass, like pastel water momentarily frozen in a splash. . .” This Margaret Atwood quote depicts the beauty of this spring flower. Irises come in many types. Bearded iris are most common with large, colorful blooms. The clump-forming, Siberian iris has smaller, blue, pink, yellow or white flowers. Japa...

With the rising price of flowers, you might need a different plan for a Mother's Day gift this year. Certainly, you should never skimp on your mom, but even she will appreciate a thoughtful, practical and a little less expensive gift. When my mom was alive we would make an annual trek to a local greenhouse in Watertown so she could buy her geraniums for her flower boxes and containers. Whether it...

We've all seen the high price of veggies in grocery stores. That might make you think twice about purchasing a specialty vegetable like asparagus. So, why not grow your own and have it every year regardless of inflation and shortages. Select varieties adapted to our region. 'Millenium' is a Canadian variety that features all-male plants, good production and the ability to grow in a wide range of s...

Sometimes the simplest vegetables are the best. Snap beans are one of the easiest vegetables to grow and most rewarding. Many of us first grew beans in biology class in elementary school in cups sitting in the class window. The seeds are large, the plants reliable and the fruits tasty. While snap beans are easy to grow and delicious to eat, there is one group that's even more satisfying. I love gr...

Easter is here and for those celebrating, flowers are often part of the festivities. The Easter lily is probably the best known Easter flower. I remember going to church as a boy in Waterbury and having the whole building perfumed with the dozens of Easter lilies on the alter. The Easter lily is a type of summer blooming trumpet lily that's native to Japan. They're forced into bloom early in green...

Most gardeners think of Asian greens as Chinese cabbage or bok choy (or pak choi). But these traditional veggies have gotten a face lift with new colorful and different sized varieties for salads and cooking. Asian greens are fast maturing, have beautiful leaves, are easy to grow and are tasty in many foods beyond traditional Asian recipes. Asian greens are often in those baby greens salad mixes w...

Ahhh, I know it's spring when pussy willows start showing up. The stems with gray, fuzzy, catkins are fun to cut and collect for arrangements in the home. Pussy willows are native to our Northern climate and are actually important for pollinators as well. Their early blooming, fuzzy, catkins give way to flowers which are loaded pollen and nectar for emerging bees and insects. By the way, the word...

As spring is officially here, lots of gardeners are thinking about planting. If you're interested in adding native plants to your landscape, bolster plantings along stream banks, create a pollinator garden or add some edibles to your yard. Consider the Connecticut Conservation District's annual spring plant sales. The conservation districts help educate the public on the ways to preserve and reviv...

With the warmer weather many of us want to plant something and often garden peas come to mind. Peas are a good choice because they germinate in cool soils and need cool air temperatures to produce their best. However, mid-March is a little premature. It's best to wait until early April in warmer parts of the state or late April everywhere else. That doesn't mean you can't get started. There are ba...

With St. Patrick's Day coming up soon, many people will be touting green clothes, green hats and drinking green beer. Those traditions are fun but, as a horticulturist, the one tradition I don't enjoy are the green carnations. I generally love all flowers, but a white carnation dyed in green just doesn't cut it for me. If you want to give a flower for St. Patty's Day, I have some better options. T...

As I cook the last of my frozen sweet peppers from last summer, I'm thinking about this year's crop. I love growing peppers. I've experimented over the years with different varieties and have found a few that grow really well for me. For sweet peppers I lean towards the bull's horn type. These Italian frying peppers grow easily and produce abundantly. And they turn their mature color, such as red,...

They're baaack. At least some of them. I recently returned from speaking at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show in Seattle. It was a blast speaking in front of a live audience again, and with masking and vaccination requirements, it felt pretty safe. Next up, I'll be speaking at the Connecticut Flower & Garden Show at the convention center in Hartford on Saturday. I'll be talking about crea...

It's getting to be indoor seed starting seed time. It's nice starting your own vegetables and flowers indoors from seed. You can grow many more plants for less cost and get to choose from a wider range of varieties. Even if you're not an indoor seed starter, at some point you're probably going to be buying potting soil. That's where soil mixes can become confusing. There are seed starting or germi...

Valentine's Day is almost upon us and the flower of this special day is roses. It's estimated 250 million roses are grown for Valentine's Day. While it's great to receive cut flower roses, perhaps getting the whole plant might be a better gift. There may not be full-sized rose plants in garden centers yet, but there are miniature roses. Mini roses are regular rose plants, just bred to be smaller....

Winter is a good time of year to plan some new gardens. One area that always puzzles gardeners is shade. Finding the right perennial flowers to grow in the shade can be challenging. That's mostly because all shade isn't created equal. The first step is to determine the type of shade you have. Part shade means that at some point there is sun on that area during the day. It could be a few hours in t...

When I talk about begonias, most gardeners think of the wax begonias, ubiquitous in garden centers in spring. These are great bedding plants for shady spots in our yard. They're good in the ground and in containers. But there are many other begonias and can be great houseplants. These also flower, but some of the best houseplant types have attractive and interesting leaves. Angel wings begonias ge...

This time of year I start getting itchy to plant something. It's too early to repot houseplants and certainly too early to start seeds, like tomatoes, indoors. But there are some veggies that can be started this early. Onions are a lot easier to grow from seed than you think. I started growing onions from seed indoors under grow lights a number of years ago because I noticed my local garden center...

Indoor succulent houseplants are very popular. You see them arranged in small pots as centerpieces or growing by themselves in shallow bowls. They're easy houseplants because most are slow growing, shallow rooted and don't require regular watering. But they do need a brightly lit room. Probably the two most popular succulents are aloe and jade. Aloe vera is a well-known succulent for the skin soot...

New Years is usually a time I reserve for leafing through the stacks of seed catalogs I have been receiving since November. I'm always looking for some unusual or improved vegetable varieties to grow. Being in the horticultural media, I often receive trial samples of plants from growers to try out. Last year we got a few winners that I really liked in the garden. If you're a small space gardener a...

The holidays are still upon us and you might be thinking of a nice garden gift to give someone when you get together. Instead of the traditional cut flowers, consider a moth orchid. Moth orchids or Phalenopsis , are one the easiest orchids to grow indoors. There are hundreds of varieties that grace garden centers, home centers, florists and grocery stores. Once in flower, as long as you do some ba...

It happens every year. You invite friends and family over for the holidays and invariably, someone brings you a holiday plant as a gift. Now, you may know what to do with poinsettias, holiday cactus and amaryllis, but what about those unusual plants that are sometimes given? Let me walk you through their care. Florists and garden centers are stocking more unusual holiday plants. Some are actually...

Hopefully you've been able to purchase a live holiday tree this year. Many know of national Christmas tree shortages due to supply chain issues. But there are also local growers who still have trees, so check around. You can also use a balled and burlap tree that's planted after the holiday. Once you have your live holiday tree home, caring for it makes a difference. The first step is to recut the...

We're right in the thick decorating and gift wrapping for the holidays. Many love to grow holiday plants to brighten the season. The most common are amaryllis , poinsettia and Christmas cactus . But if you're looking for a different holiday plant to add color and cheer to your holiday table, I have a few ideas. Kalanchoe is a houseplant that packs a big flower punch with clusters of bright yellow,...