How to Make Sure Your Plant is Getting Enough Light in Winter The shortest day of the year has passed, but St. Louis days are still averaging only about 9 and a half hours of daylight. That’s a far cry from the summer solstice in June, a day when we see almost 15 hours of…
Category: Home Gardening
Cold Weather Kale and Cabbage
Cabbage and kale are popular cool-weather vegetables known for their many health benefits, but did you know these lovely leafy greens come in ornamental varieties, too? Ornamental cabbages and kales have showy, colorful foliage and are typically grown as annuals in fall container plantings or massed for a late-season bedding display. The leaves come in…
All About Pumpkins
From pumpkin spice lattes to jack-o-lanterns, pumpkins have become a universal symbol of fall. Pumpkins also come from an enormously diverse plant family, Cucurbitaceae, which contains more than 100 genera and over 700 species. In the U.S., any round, orange squash is likely to be called a pumpkin, but the term “pumpkin” has no real…
Overwintering Plants
When fall approaches and temperatures begin to dip, many home gardeners wonder when it’s time to bring houseplants indoors. As a general rule of thumb, the Garden’s Kemper Center for Home Gardening recommends tropical houseplants be moved inside once temperatures drop below 50°F. If left outside, most indoor plants will suffer from cold damage. Growing…
Adding Panicle Hydrangeas to Your Home Landscape
During St. Louis summers the fluffy white or pink flowers of panicle hydrangeas are easy to spot in many home landscapes. Panicle hydrangeas (Hydrangea paniculata) are native to Japan, China, and eastern Russia where they grow on sparsely wooded mountain slopes and valleys. In the wild they can reach up to 15 feet tall with…
Home Herb Gardens
Herb gardens are popular with many home gardeners because they can be grown with little space and yield crops that can be used in many favorite recipes. Many chefs prefer the taste of fresh herbs over dried products you purchase at the store. Some popular herbs to grow in your garden include basil, rosemary, chives,…
Bringing Lightning Bugs to Your Yard
Perhaps the most magical part of summer nights is watching fireflies blink light up the twilight sky. Fireflies, or lightning bugs, are the only flying, bioluminescent insects found in Missouri. The glowing bugs are actually beetles that spend most of their lives as larvae living in soil, leaf litter, and under rotting logs. Gardens can…
Plants of Demerit 2020
Every year since 1998, the Missouri Botanical Garden has partnered with other regional horticultural institutions to select Plants of Merit, which are easy to grow, noninvasive, ornamentally attractive, less susceptible to common problems like insects or diseases, and reasonably available to purchase. Last year, to provide a full picture of what works and what doesn’t…
Plants of Merit 2020
Every year since 1998, the Missouri Botanical Garden has partnered with other regional horticultural institutions to select Plants of Merit. Plants of Merit are chosen for outstanding quality and dependable performance in Missouri, southern and central Illinois, and the Kansas City metro area. To qualify as a Plant of Merit, the plants must be easy…
Mini Victory Gardens: Growing Vegetables in Containers
There are many appealing reasons to grow your own vegetables at home. They’re fresh and flavorful, you’ll save money on your grocery bill and avoid trips to the store, and it can be very rewarding.. But if you live in an apartment or don’t have a large yard, you might feel like growing your own…
Growing a Victory Garden
During World War I, Americans were called to help the war effort at home by growing their own vegetables in “Victory Gardens” that aimed to reduce pressure on the public food supply. And they answered that call, not once but twice. By World War II, more than 20 million Victory Gardens were supplying Americans with…
Cooking with Weeds
A “mess” is a breakfast dish of German origin that involves fried chunked potatoes, onions, and whatever else you have to throw in. It’s a Sunday morning tradition in our house. In this example, I throw in wild plants available free in my own backyard. Field garlic. Photo by Wendy Applequist. This is field garlic,…