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Collecting and Storing Seeds
Fine Gardening — When I was new to gardening, I depended upon the kindness of friends and strangers to help fill my beds. Unfortunately, I was too green to realize what treasures I had in hand until I'd wasted them. When an elderly friend gave me her heirloom, ...More…
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Phlox paniculata
Fine Gardening — Learn how to eliminate plant diseases by understanding and managing the conditions that cause them One of the most mystifying things that can happen in your garden is when a plant gets a disease. How did it happen? Will it spread? Will all my ...More…
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Amendments that Can Give Your Soil a Boost
Fine Gardening — Ever hear the story about the little old lady who grows prizewinning roses by sprinkling the ground beneath them with Epsom salts? The question is: Should we follow her lead? Not necessarily. Epsom salts are not magic; they are magnesium sulfate, ...More…
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Use Mulch to Manage Your Soil Conditions
Fine Gardening — If you look around at all the landscape trees planted in islands of red bark chips these days, it's hard to believe that garden mulching was virtually unknown half a century ago. Nature, of course, has mulched for eons as each year's leaves have . ...More…
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Whip Your Garden Into Shape
Fine Gardening — To spruce things up in a hurry, use this simple, three-step method As much as we love our gardens, there is nothing so stressful as when we open them to party guests or a neighborhood tour. Part of the pleasure of gardening is sharing our ...More…
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Preventing and Repairing Winter Damage
Fine Gardening — Learn how to identify, prevent, and fix it--no matter where you live Over my many years of dealing with winter damage, I have experienced just about every kind under the sun-or snow, I should say. From an evergreen shrub's burned leaves to the ...More…
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Plants that Taste as Good as they Look
Fine Gardening — From ground covers to trees, these fruit-bearing plants merit a place in your ornamental garden The proverb "You can't have your cake and eat it too" does not apply to gardening. Gardens are often segregated into sections for plants that ...More…
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How to Prune Conifers
Fine Gardening — These plants are unforgiving, so make the right cuts for the right reasons Part of the allure of conifers is that they are usually low-maintenance plants. Many conifers have evolved in regions with low rainfall, poor soil conditions, and extreme ...More…
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Conifers for Shade
Fine Gardening — Yes, you can grow evergreens trees and shrubs in shade. Who knew? Several years ago, my husband and I relocated from Connecticut to the shores of Lake Ontario. I brought along a few truckloads of my favorite perennials and happily plunked them ...More…
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American cranberry bush viburnum
Fine Gardening — These plants add late-season dazzle to a garden when most plants are winding down Plants that yell, "Hey, look at me," can sometimes seem hard to come by in fall and winter. Because most plants are heading into dormancy at this time, flowers and ...More…
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Sedges - Fine Gardening Article
Fine Gardening — These grasslike perennials act as dazzling stars or demure suporters in sun and shade After touting the virtues of sedges for more than 20 years, I'm thrilled that these stalwart perennials are finally becoming popular. I'd be hard-pressed to ...More…
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Perennials for the Edge
Fine Gardening — These short and sweet plants deserve a spot in the front row along beds and walkways and in containers. Many years ago, when I first spoke at a well-attended perennial conference, the person introducing me asked if someone had a box because I'm ...More…