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Special Series
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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 -
An Indoor Succulent Garden—Welcome the Warmth and Wonder of the Desert into Your Home
The potted succulent garden is a miniature ecosystem that allows you to experience the warmth and wonder of the desert without having to travel all the way to places like North Africa, Australia, or Yemen. What's more, succulent plants vary widely in form, texture, and flower color, so the design potential is enormous.
By Susan Aument -
Deer-Resistant Plants: Shrubs and Trees for the Deer-Plagued Gardener
Over the past few decades, plant damage caused by deer has risen to alarming levels in North American rural and suburban gardens.
By Richard A. Larson -
Designing with Summer-Flowering Bulbs
Summer-flowering bulbs come into bloom at the same time that many perennials and annuals are at their best, and by adding them to your garden you can multiply the colors, textures, scents, shapes, and contrasts in your palette.
By Brent and Becky Heath -
Native Azaleas
North American azaleas have soft-colored blooms and loose, natural-looking growth habits. Some species bloom in summer and even early fall, and many have colorful autumn foliage.
By Richard L. Bitner -
Saffron Crocus—Conjuring Color and Flavor in the Autumn Garden
Long before flowers were cultivated solely for their good looks, they were grown to serve some practical, or even preternatural, purpose. This was especially true in the good old days of Minoan Crete, about 1500 BC, when a thriving industry and religious iconography grew up around Crocus sativus, the corm better known as saffron crocus.
By Ilene Harfenist Sternberg
