Scopolia carniolica var. brevifolia is rarely found in gardens. It has interesting shinny leaves that develop very early in spring, followed by low-key flowers at a time when few perennials are flowering. It has cream-yellow flowers while the main species, Scopolia carniolica, has chocolate-red flowers. The plant pictured here was a gift from my friend at BotanyCa, a great source for rare seeds.
I love moss on rocks and trees, and even growing on the ground, provided it is in the right spot – as determined by my aesthetic sensibilities. It is not nearly as welcome in the lawn although I don’t really mind having it there. Moss in the lawn is considered by many as a big problem and this has led to a number of myths about moss.
Some people try to grow moss, but that is not as easy as it sounds. Moss is kind of strange that way; some people are constantly trying to kill it, while others are trying to grow it.
My goal for this post is to understand moss better by exploring the many moss myths.
What is so special about heirloom seeds? I see a lot of online questions from people looking to source heirloom seeds. Are these seeds really that much better, or is this just another new craze or fad?
People grow their own food mostly to be healthier and they believe heirloom seeds are better for you. Is this true? Do they produce better tasting food, or produce a better yield? What is the real value in heirlooms?
Maybe the attraction to heirloom has more to do with tradition as suggested by this comment; “To the gardeners who love them (heirlooms), it matters that ‘Mortgage Lifter’ tomato came from a man who bred his own tomato plants, selling enough of them to pay off his mortgage”.
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Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora ‘George Davison’ is a little-known late summer flowering plant. In my zone 5 garden it starts flowering around mid-August for about a month. The yellow-orange flowers add quite a sparkle in a garden when most perennials are starting to shut down for the year.
Is tomato seed fermentation required? There are quite a few methods described on the internet for collecting and cleaning tomato seed, but which one works best? How do we define ‘best’? What works well for a commercial seed company may not be the best option for a home gardener.
A very common option is the ‘tomato seed fermentation’ method. Some say that it is absolutely necessary in order to get a high germination rate, but not everyone uses it, and they still claim to get good germination.
It is also believed that fermentation reduces pathogens on the seed. In this post, I will look at the science behind collecting and cleaning tomato seeds.
I hear about a lot of people planting garlic in winter or even early spring. In most cases they never report how well the crop turned out so I wondered, how good is the crop if you plant late? Can you plant in spring, in a cold climate, and still get a good crop?
Have you ever gone into the garden to collect some special seeds only to find that they are all gone? The neat trick in this post will ensure that you never lose seeds again. You can even go on vacation while they are ripening and still collect them when you get home.
The airways were full of a news story that reported, “potting mix caused the death of a Christchurch gardener”. It got a huge number of comments on Facebook gardening groups and clearly everyone believed the story and was surprised that they could get Legionnaires’ disease, also known as legionellosis from soil and potting mix.
How true was the story? Did this person die from Legionnaires’ disease as a result of exposure to potting mix? What kind of potting mix was it? What is the risk of this happening to another gardener, especially to you? Should you do something different in the garden to protect yourself? All good questions that will be answered in this blog post.
Primula veris is best known as the common cowslip. With a name like that you would think everyone grew it, but it’s not common in gardens or nurseries which is really odd since this is a very easy to grow primula that sparkles every spring.
Scientists used genetic manipulation to add a rabbit gene into a houseplant to increase its ability to remove toxic VOC chemicals from the air in your home. Can these plants improve the air quality in your home?
Will the general public accept GMO houseplants? When can you expect to see this plant-animal-HEPA filter in your local nursery? It has been approved for sale in Canada.
The Germination test measures seed viability and can help gardeners figure out why things are not growing from seed.
Last year my planted carrot seed did not germinate very well. Was the seed still viable, or did I plant the seed too deep? Maybe it got too cold and the seedlings died, or maybe they were eaten by slugs? Did I fertilize enough?
I also collected some tomato and bean seeds last year. I wonder if they are viable? And what about the old seeds I have stored in my fridge; should I use them this year or buy new ones?
These questions can all be answered with a very simple seed viability germination test that you can do at home.
The year is 1919 and a 2 year old girl died next to a poinsettia tree. The cause, poinsettia poisoning. Ever since then people have been aware that this lovely Christmas plant can be dangerous in the home.
Now for the real truth about the poisonous poinsettia ……
