Topics
Special Series
Ecological Gardening
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The Espalier Method: What You Need to Know
The French word espalier refers both to a plant grown in a pattern on a flat plane and to the vertical support, such as a wire, trellis, wall, or fence, that it grows against.
By Karen Davis Cutler -
Inviting Caterpillars Into Your Garden
Early naturalists believed that caterpillars and butterflies were separate, unrelated insects. How surprised they would have been by the notion of gardening to attract caterpillars! Yet, to further the cause of butterflies, providing host plants that feed the caterpillars is as important as filling flower beds with bright, nectar-rich blooms that provide nourishment for the adults.
By Claire Hagen Dole -
Garlic Mustard: A Palatable Pest
Native to Europe, this cool-season biennial is wreaking havoc on deciduous forests from New England west to Wisconsin and south to Tennessee.
By Niall Dunne -
Drought-Proofing Your Garden: Essential Water-Saving Strategies and Plant List
A drought emergency is a time to take steps to substantially reduce water use in the garden. Here's some tips on how to conserve water with drought-tolerant plants and longer-term solutions to your garden more compatible with natural precipitation patterns.
By Janet Marinelli and Niall Dunne -
What and How to Compost
What can I put in the compost pile? What does composting mean, and how does it work?
By BBG Staff -
Seed Specifics
Fortunately, a Ph.D. in botany or genetics isn't necessary to grow plants successfully from seed. But this article on seed basics will help you better understand what seeds are, where they come from, their role in plant reproduction, and why they are so critical to the health and survival of plant species.
By Peter Loewer -
Planting a Native Grass Lawn Step By Step
Follow these basic steps to plant a lawn of native grasses no matter where you live.
By Stevie Daniels -
Low & Slow Fescues
For years fescues languished as obscure players in the turfgrass pantheon, relegated to second-class status as components of shade-tolerant seed mixtures. These attractive, fine-textured grasses are finally coming into their own.
By Stevie Daniels -
How Compost Builds the Soil
Soil is a living community that requires nurture. And well-nurtured soil in turn nurtures the plants that are part of it.
By Grace Gershuny -
Everything You Need (Or Don’t Need) to Compost: A Guide to Equipment
If you are a casual, carefree sort, you can just toss your organics into a corner of the garden and they'll slowly become humus without any intervention. But depending on your personality and the amount of time and money you are willing to put into composting, you can also get fully outfitted with an array of composting gadgets and accessories, from auger-shaped aerating tools to herbal compounds designed to inoculate your compost with "medicinal and homeopathic forces."
By Beth Hanson
