Don’t Forget to Order Bulbs for Summer Blooms!

Posted on February 27, 2021 | Leave a comment

Many gardeners focus on obtaining seed now to start their garden in the spring. But given the increased interest in gardening it may be best for gardeners to also focus on ordering summer-blooming bulbs as soon as possible. It will be too cold to plant them now in the DC metro area and some nurseries do not even ship them until later when it is warmer. But given the high demand for seeds, gardeners may want to select and order their summer blooming bulbs now to make sure they have them when it is time to plant in May. Continue reading →

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Subscribe to Pegplant’s Post: Gardening Newsletter for the DC Metro Area

Posted on February 22, 2021 | Leave a comment

Enter your e-mail here to subscribe to Pegplant’s Post, an e-newsletter about gardening in the Washington DC metropolitan area. This monthly communication lists local gardening events, recently published gardening books, recipes, articles, and tips specific to this area. Each issue also features the opportunity to win a free plant or gardening-related product. For the upcoming March 2021 Pegplant’s Post, the giveaway is a 16-quart bag of Organic Mechanic’s Seed Starting Blend Potting Soil.

Organic Mechanics is a manufacturer and distributer of premier organic potting soil and soil amendments. Founded by Mark Highland in 2006, Organic Mechanics is based in Pennsylvania. Products include insect frass, biochar blend, cactus and succulent blend, potting soil, Fuhgeddaboudit! root zone feeder packs, hardwood bark mulch, worm castings, rice hulls, potting soil, container potting soil, and more. All the products are organic, peat free, and made with locally sourced ingredients. Home gardeners can purchase through the Organic Mechanics website or through retail locations listed on their website such as independent garden centers, natural food stores, farmer markets, and botanical gardens. Mark also wrote the Practical Organic Gardening: The No Nonsense Guide to Growing Naturally book and gives lectures emphasizing the importance of organic gardening and soil health.

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Spring-Blooming Crocus

Posted on February 11, 2021 | 1 comment
crocus

crocus at Brookside Gardens

February brings the spring crocus. These ephemeral beauties are actually perennials. After blooming in February and March, they go dormant in the summer and reappear next spring. Crocus are grown from corms, which are relatively small and cheap compared to other spring blooming bulbs. Continue reading →

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Growing Potatoes: Easy, Fun, and Delicious!

Posted on February 6, 2021 | 5 comments

leavesWhen you are ordering your seeds, don’t forget to order your seed potatoes. “Seed potatoes” are potatoes for planting, not a true seed. Think of them as “starter” tubers. Seed potatoes are planted outdoors about 4 weeks before the average last frost date. In the DC metro area, this is March and many gardeners use St. Patrick’s Day as the traditional day of planting but later in March is okay too. Continue reading →

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Sixteen Seed Starting Tips

Posted on January 29, 2021 | 2 comments

marigoldsGardeners like to start seeds indoors to get a jump start on warm season plants such as tomatoes, peppers, and melons. They also start seeds indoors to be able to grow plants that have a longer growing season than the season in which they live. Before you begin to sow seeds indoors, read these sixteen seed starting tips to have as much success as possible. If you haven’t ordered your seeds yet, here is a list of seed companies. Continue reading →

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What Does GMO Really Mean for Home Gardeners?

Posted on January 23, 2021 | 3 comments

no gmo signI love seed catalogs. Reading them is an easy, simple way to learn about growing plants and new plant introductions. I grow many of my edibles from seed — it’s fun, economical, and rewarding. But I am not willing to pay extra for the “non-GMO” or “GMO-free” claim I see on almost every catalog now. Even more importantly, seed catalogs should make it clear that they are offering non-GE seed, which isn’t even available to the home gardeners anyway so they are not really “offering” any more than the next seed catalog. Continue reading →

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Winter Blooming Witch Hazel

Posted on January 14, 2021 | Leave a comment
Early Bird

Early Bird

One of my favorite winter bloomers is witch hazel, a small shrub like tree.  The flowers themselves are only a few inches, but their unique shape and ability to cover dark, bare stems with flashes of color add quite a bit of excitement in winter gardens. The flowers are really clusters of four petals shaped like thin ribbons emanating from a dark, leathery base called a calyx. Depending on the cultivar, these inch to two inch long ribbons are translucent yellow or mustard yellow, red/orange or brown/orange, or scarlet red or rust red. On warm winter days, the ribbons unfurl but as temperatures drop, the ribbons curl back as a protective mechanism against the cold. Continue reading →

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Appreciate Your Houseplant Today

Posted on January 10, 2021 | Leave a comment

Small Arrowhead Plant

Today, January 10, 2021, is Houseplant Appreciation Day. To celebrate, consider purchasing one (or all) of these low-light, low-maintenance houseplants. Houseplants should be appreciated — they have a lot to offer us.  Houseplants improve air quality by removing chemicals and carbon dioxide and supplying oxygen. Houseplants provide a positive psychological impact by increasing memory retention and concentration and reducing stress. They add beauty and color and can be used as a structural component to divide a room. Continue reading →

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Growing and Cooking with Oregano and Marjoram

Posted on January 1, 2021 | 3 comments

Flowering Greek Oregano

When I give my presentation on culinary herbs I always talk about oregano and marjoram together. I treat them as cousins, and in this country, they are most known for the “oregano” flavor. Although we use the term “oregano” for a specific type of culinary herb, it really is a flavor produced by different types of plants. Some of these are not related to what we think of as the oregano plant.

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Seed Sources for Flowers, Vegetables, and Herbs

Posted on December 28, 2020 | 1 comment

Time to ring in the New Year with 2021 garden plans, including more seed packets! Below is a list of online seed companies as well as companies that still publish and mail seed catalogs. Many of these catalogs are free.

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