TheGardenLady received this question from Jennifer. I have a shady area under my pine trees where nothing grows except weeds. I want to plant some blueberries and other acid loving plants there. Do you have some suggestions on plants that would love very acidic soil and full shade? When one has a very shady area […]
TheGardenLady received this question from Diane. I planted some Gladiolus bulbs in the spring and they were coming up beautifully. Today I noticed the leaves on one of them were turning yellow. I haven’t had any bloom yet but the stalks were very green and hardy. What can I do for this plant? Why would […]
TheGardenLady received this question from Sheila. In order to be thrifty I would like to take some lavender cuttings to make a border in a sunny area by my mailbox. I have an established plant and some rooting compound. What next? Any advice. There are two ways to propagate lavender. One is by seed and […]
In the last two posts (here and here) TheGardenLady explained the problem with invasive plants and how they came to the United States respectively. In this post TheGardenLady will give a list of 10 of the invasive trees and shrubs in great parts of the US: 1. Tree of Heaven, Ailanthus altissima – This might […]
In the last post, TheGardenLady explained the problems caused by invasive plants – that is, plants that have come into the environment and take over the native plants’ environments, eventually choking out the native plants. In this post, TheGardenLady explains how invasive plants came to this country. Some invasive species came accidentally in ship ballast, […]
Here are the open hours for Carolyn Walker’s shade garden. Saturday, May 23, from 9 am to Noon Sunday, May 24, from Noon to 3 pm Monday, May 25, from 2 pm to 5 pm Anyone who wishes to visit Carolyn’s shade garden, should read the following: Please pull into the driveway and park along […]
This May TheGardenLady attended a lecture called “Weeds in Nature’s Garden…the problem of invasive species” given by Bruce Barbour who is a Rutgers Cooperative Extension Environmental Agent. There are invasive plant species, invasive animal species and invasive disease species. This is a fascinating and scary topic. For example, the April 20th, 2009, New Yorker magazine […]
TheGardenLady received this question from Gay. What do you recommend to eradicate Oxalis in coastal climate (SF Bay area)? This is not the ornamental type, it is invasive with a succulent flower stem and yellow blossom. Oxalis – Oxalis corniculata L. , yellow wood sorrel is an invasive plant in California. This GardenLady always tries […]
One Sunday in May TheGardenLady was invited to lunch at Lacroix Restaurant in the Rittenhouse Hotel on Rittenhouse Square. The restaurant advertises itself as having one of the 10 best hotel brunches in the US. TheGardenLady will not talk about the wonderful ambiance of the restaurant or the fantastic service we had that day nor […]
TheGardenLady received this question from Marvin. I like your article on using leaves as fertilizer. What specific nutrients are added and how much? I use them in my garden and have sugar maple leaves. By recycling leaves you are doing what nature does. But leaves by themselves take a long time to break down. Especially […]