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Your Spring Garden Prep Checklist: What to do Before Planting
To prep your garden for spring, start when the ground thaws. Look for signs like spring flowers and insects. Follow a 5-step checklist: rake leaves, aerate soil, fertilize, assess tools, and prune trees. Clear leaves to uncover plants and compost them for nutrients. Loosen compacted soil and add nutrients based on last year’s plant types.…
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Year of the Dragon: The Madagascar Dragon Tree (Dracaena marginata)
The Chinese New Year just started, marking the Year of the Dragon. To celebrate, a deep dive into the Dragon Tree (Dracaena marginata) is offered. The author shares a personal connection with this plant and discusses its characteristics, propagation, care, common problems, and significance as a lucky plant. Through a personal anecdote, the acquisition and…
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Spring Garden Planning Time! (2024 Edition)
As winter transitions to spring, gardeners prepare for the upcoming season with hope and anticipation. Following a 5-step process, the planning involves reflecting on the previous year, deciding on plants and their placement, and considering their needs. New additions include various fruits, vegetables, and herbs, as well as experimental plants like Cuca-melons. The plan also…
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Seed Swap Events: Increase Your Home Seed Library & Expand Your Garden
National Seed Swap Day, typically celebrated on the last Saturday of January, provides gardeners with the opportunity to exchange seeds, cuttings, and plants. These events offer a chance to acquire a diverse range of seeds, including local varieties better suited to the area. Seed swaps also facilitate social interaction, learning opportunities, and the acquisition of…
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Gardening Outside in Winter: Extend Your Garden Season From Months to All Year Round
Many believe winter gardening is impossible, but a data analyst’s outdoor experiment proved otherwise. Hardy plants like turnips and kale thrive in winter. Late summer is ideal for planting, and plants can withstand temps as low as 35°F. Protection from wind and sufficient sunlight are key, and a winter garden yields an early spring harvest.
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New Gardening Books: Books for a Snowy January
In 2024, the author aims to review new gardening books for their blog, highlighting new and notable releases to support authors and keep readers updated on gardening trends. They share their enthusiasm for specific books, such as “Drawn to the Garden,” “Let’s Plant & Grow Together,” “The Complete Language of Herbs,” “What the Bees See,”…
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New Plant Hardiness Zones For the 2024 Gardening Season and Beyond
You may not be aware that the USDA updated the Plant Hardiness Zone Map on November 15, 2023. This changes a lot of things that we gardeners are going to face in 2024 and onward. Gardeners of all skill levels use the plant hardiness map. It determines when to plant, what will grow best in…
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Season’s Greenings at the United States Botanic Garden: A Site Visit
Light shows and exhibitions abound all around the world during the winter holiday season. While the cold keeps gardens growing their slowest (or not at all), it’s odd to think of visiting botanical gardens during this time of year. However, not all botanical gardens go into winter hibernation. During the winter holiday, the US Botanic…
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A Poinsettia Holiday Story: Planty the Watered Plant
In the spirit of the holidays, it will come as no surprise that we will often purchase a poinsettia. Poinsettias are everywhere during the holiday season. This is the unexpected true and hilarious story of a poinsettia that made its home in our hearts.
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Poinsettia History: How a Mexican Flower Became a Symbol of the Holiday Season
It’s impossible to visit a store during the holidays and not see with the showy sight of bright red, white, or multicolored heads of Poinsettias. This week, I wanted to delve into the history of how the poinsettia singlehandedly took over the plant industry for a month out of the year.