Category: Native Plants

Bulb Gardening / climate change / Garden Design / Garden Maintenance / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Geophytes / Native Plants / Native Trees / Perennial Care / Soil Conservation / Sustainable Gardening / Water Wise / Watering / Weather / Wildlife Gardening

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Making a Resilient Drought-Tolerant Garden Part II: Techniques and Strategies

  Enthusiastic gardeners begin planning, planting, and preparing for the season to come at the first hint of spring.   Some of us may still be planting daffodils in December or January and watch for the first snowdrops to appear as the last bulbs go into the ground.  There is very little break during winter.   We are always watching the progress of our gardens and exploring sustainable gardening practices.  And our hearts remain filled with hope for the seasons to come....

climate change / Compost / Garden Design / Garden Maintenance / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Geophytes / Herbs / Native Plants / Native Trees / Perennial Care / Permaculture / Sustainable Gardening / Water Wise / Watering / Weather

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Making a Resilient Drought-Tolerant Garden Part I: Right Plant, Right Place

  Maybe it will rain, and maybe it won’t.  It has been unusually dry in our area for the past several months.  Some of the little starts I planted with high hopes in March and April have been struggling to take hold.  I need to water large areas of our garden several times a week, as though it were July already.   And regular irrigation just isn’t an option for many gardeners. We are relatively fortunate in coastal Virginia because we...

Carbon Garden / climate change / Evergreen Perennials / Evergreen Shrubs / Ferns / Flowering Shrubs / Garden Design / Garden Maintenance / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Heirloom plants / Larval Host Plants / Native Plants / Native Trees / Ornamental Shrubs / Sustainable Gardening / Water Wise / Weather / Wildlife Gardening

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Sustainable Gardening in the Shade

  When you’re planning a new garden, do you look for a sunny spot or for a bit of shade?  That used to be an easy decision.  We all know that plants need good light to grow well.  Gardening books used to advise anyone planting a small vegetable garden or flower bed to watch how the sun moves across the sky and how the shadows fall across their yard to select a good sunny spot to break ground.  Traditional gardeners...

Carbon Garden / Citizen Science / Climate Change / Evergreen Perennials / Ferns / Garden Design / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Native Plants / Restoration / Soil Conservation / Sustainable Gardening / Wildlife Gardening / Winter Gardening

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Christmas Ferns: A Small Step Towards Climate Solutions

  A Very Personal Challenge As more and more of us feel the effects of chaotic weather patterns and climate change on our own communities and families, we know that waiting for governments and corporations to ‘solve’ the problem is no longer enough.  We each explore ways that we can make a personal, positive difference in this very personal circumstance.  Whether we worry about heat or storms, flooding or high winds, we understand that communities around the planet are also...

Edible Plants / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Native Plants / Native Trees / Vegetable Gardening

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BLACK HISTORY, HOW FREED SLAVES SURVIVED IN FREEDOM PARK

In 1803, 27-year-old William Ludwell Lee died and in his will freed his slaves. Less than ten years earlier, Lee had inherited nearly 8700 acres and property that included 54 enslaved people ages 16 and older, 11 children ages 12 to 16, and a few children who were 11 and younger. While there is no evidence that Lee freed any enslaved people during his lifetime, upon his death, his slaves were freed effective January 1 in the year following his...

Beneficial Insects / Birds / Container Gardens / Garden Design / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Heirloom plants / Keystone Species / Larval Host Plants / Native Plants / Perennial Care / Sustainable Gardening / Wildlife Gardening

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Container Gardening with Native Keystone Plants

Container gardening is a great way to garden if you have limited space.  Have you ever considered growing native plants in your containers? And what might be even better than this, you ask?   Why container gardening with native keystone perennials, of course! Why Keystone Plants? Keystone plants are the “powerhouses” of native plants.  While all native plants are beneficial, keystone plants are the linchpins for entire ecosystems, providing crucial resources for the greatest number of insect species.  These keystone plants...

Carbon Garden / Garden Design / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Heirloom plants / Invasive Plants / Larval Host Plants / Native Plants / Native Trees / Organic Vegetable Gardening / Soil Conservation / Sustainable Gardening / Wildlife Gardening

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Natural Plant Fertilizers for Your Garden

  How do you fertilize your garden without buying any fertilizer?  That is a key question for gardeners and farmers throughout the world today, as it was a key concern for our ancestors who couldn’t purchase commercial fertilizers for their fields.   Soil must be fed to remain productive.   Many popular crops, like corn and cotton, deplete the soil after just a few years.  Our ancestors learned to use many natural fertilizers to keep their soil productive.   The Importance of...

Beneficial Insects / Birds / Carbon Garden / Evergreen Perennials / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Heirloom plants / Holiday Plants / Native Plants / Poisonous Plants / Wildlife Gardening / Winter

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Legends, Lore and the Truth About Mistletoe

  From November through May we can admire the living mathematics of the trunks and branches of hardwood trees.   Their leafy crowns have fallen, and their beautiful bark in all its silvery, marbled, textured variety is revealed once again. Looking up, we sometimes see lively green clusters of mistletoe shining in the treetops.  These shrubby, evergreen plants have been a part of myth and folklore since ancient times.  They live suspended between heaven and Earth, rooted into the branches of...

Beneficial Insects / Birds / Evergreen Shrubs / Flowering Shrubs / Garden Design / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Heirloom plants / Invasive Plants / Keystone Species / Native Plants / Native Trees / Ornamental Shrubs / Permaculture / Poisonous Plants / Wildlife Gardening / Winter

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A Winter Wildlife Garden- “Inviting the Stranger”

  Cardinals nest in a large evergreen shrub beside my kitchen window.  Though the shrub, Ligustrum, is frowned upon by many contemporary gardeners as invasive, the birds don’t know that.  They delight in its abundant berries and the insects that visit year-round. We delight in watching the birds come and go, even as they peer in the windows at us.  We amuse one another.  Cardinals, titmice and other birds also perch in the crape myrtle tree a little further out...

Edible Plants / Fall / Food Forest / Gardening on the Wild Side: Working in Harmony with Nature / Native Plants / Native Trees / Permaculture / Sustainable Gardening

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Foraging for Autumn Harvests

  Have you ever noticed how the strawberries you pick yourself on a warm May afternoon taste much better than the huge red berries you buy at the grocery store?  Everyone who has grown their own tomatoes, lettuce, or apples knows how much better homegrown food can taste.  You still need to be selective about what seeds you buy because some varieties of carrots and squash taste better than others, and some prove more resistant to disease. Putting in a...