The Laptop Gardener

Leaving the Garden for a Guilt-free Vacation
Even though gardeners have a strong bond with their garden, there are occasions when it is necessary to spend time away from home – visiting other people’s gardens is always a good excuse for me to travel.
Summer is one of those times when the cottage, camp, road or even [...]

The beauty of Clematis is evident no matter what name it is called – traveller’s joy, old man’s beard, leather flower, vase vine or virgin’s bower.
The large, exquisite blooms of the Jackmanii type of clematis and similar types are really spectacular in the summer. With a little care, this durable and dependable, large flowering clematis [...]

 
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society names the 2010 Gold Medal Winners
The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) has chosen five outstanding woody plants as their 2010 Gold Medal plant winners.
Since 1979, the Gold Medal program has recognized plants of outstanding merit, though often underused and they may not necessarily be new to the nursery trade. The winners are chosen [...]

The tough beauty – Red Yucca.
Firstly, Red Yucca is not a real Yucca! And secondly, the flowers are not really red either. So, now that the misleading common name is fully exposed, perhaps there should be a move to more correctly call this plant the “Rose-Coral Yucca Imposter”. Red Yucca, (Hesperaloe [...]

Natural Botanical Aromatherapy
The power of fragrant flowers extends far beyond the ability to attract pollinating insects, moths or butterflies. Floral scents like roses are one of the most popular smells for humans too. Just look to the perfume industry and notice the effort that is put into trying to reproduce the authentic fragrance of garden [...]

The Texas Garden Almanac is a giant monthly calendar (in book form) full of helpful tips about what to do in the garden based on the unique Texas environment. Very easy to use, the Texas Garden Almanac is set up so that all you have to do is open the book to the appropriate month and [...]

Early Warnings of Tomato Late Blight Problems in the Northeast
Cornell University was the first to sound the alarm on June 26th that a “very destructive and very infectious disease is killing tomato and potato plants in gardens and commercial farms in the eastern U.S. , “ says Dr. Meg McGrath, Associate Professor, who is a [...]

Hardy Plants to Create a Tropical Looking Garden
One of the hot trends in gardening for the last couple of years has been to create a lush, Southern tropical oasis right in your own back yard.  Transforming a ho-hum garden into a tropical paradise by using masses of brightly coloured blooms or attractive berries set off [...]

First Editions Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea
New from Bailey Nurseries in St. Paul, Minnesota is a hydrangea that is a triple-dipped treat for your garden.  It changes through three colors as it blooms.  This hydrangea paniculata’s enormous blooms start out a creamy vanilla-white, changing to a soft pink and finally to a ripe strawberry-red. The unique red [...]

The Gardens and Citrus Groves of Polk County
If you set a map of Florida up on a dart board, a seasoned player will easily be able to get a dart to hit right smack on Central Florida and probably will be able to make the bull’s eye, money shot right on Polk County.  Polk County [...]