When it’s cold outside, many people shift their gardening aspirations from beautiful backyards to maintaining lovely houseplants. But if you aren’t gifted with a green thumb, you may find houseplants more frustrating than fulfilling. Don’t worry! The Kemper Center for Home Gardening has you covered. Below are the staff’s top recommendations for indestructible houseplants, sure…
Category: Home Gardening
Sipping on Gin and Juniper
The addition of juniper was by design, and perhaps good marketing because it had long been revered for its medicinal properties.
When to Prune Your Hydrangeas
As you’re winding down gardening during the colder weather, it’s a great time to think about pruning your plants. Knowing exactly when to prune plants can be tricky, and varies plant by plant, prompting many questions for home gardeners. Specifically, many want to know if winter is the best time to prune hydrangeas, or if…
Winter Checklist for Your Garden
As the temperatures fall outside and winter is on the horizon, it’s time to make sure your garden is ready for a frosty winter. There are of course the major tasks, like bringing your houseplants inside, but don’t forget the smaller tasks that are important for your garden’s health, too. To help, the staff from…
Ask the Garden: Your Tree Questions
The Missouri Botanical Garden is celebrating its colorful fall foliage with Tree Week from October 29 to November 4. The week will highlight the Garden’s impressive tree collection, and the staff who care for it, with tours and other opportunities for guests to learn more about it. As part of that focus, we’d also like to…
Fall Color in Your Yard
As temperatures cool off, it’s finally starting to feel like autumn outside. This means it’s time to enjoy bold fall foliage. But that doesn’t have to be limited to the red, orange, and yellow leaves of trees in the fall. Grasses, shrubs, and showy berries can all add beautiful color to your garden in the…
Air Plant Upkeep
Tillandsias, commonly known as air plants, are popular house plants because of their unique, spiky shape and a notion that they’re easy to care for. In truth, the plants can actually be a little tricky. Light and water are the two most important factors to consider when caring for your air plant. Air plants like…
Propagating Perennials
As the sun sets on summer, it’s time to start thinking about dividing your perennials. The end of July through September is the best time to divide most spring and summer blooming perennials, like irises and peonies, because it gives them a chance to develop good root systems before cold weather sets in. Given proper care,…
Spice Up Your Garden with Ornamental Peppers
Looking to add a pop of color to your garden? Ornamental peppers, a showy annual with colorful foliage and fruits, can add color and a whimsical aesthetic to your backyard. Peppers are becoming increasingly popular as ornamental plants for home gardens. The fruits are actually safe to eat, but the flavor and heat can make…
Grow Your Own Salsa Garden
The St. Louis Cardinals are heating up. And if you believe the hype, Matt Carpenter’s secret salsa may have something to do with the team’s summer resurgence. .@MattCarp13 with a new career-high by smashing his 29th home run! WHAT IS IN THAT SALSA!#ItsGottaBeTheSalsa 🔥 pic.twitter.com/pVI4To6eDL — St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 5, 2018 This is…
Best Practices for Battling Pests
Gardening can be a gratifying hobby, with rewards in the form of beautiful flowers, lush plants and delicious produce, but it can yield frustrations. For many gardeners, pests are at the top of that list. If you are looking for some ways to deal with insects who are eating plants in your garden, the Kemper…
Watering Your Plants While You’re Away
Summer has been a scorcher this year in St. Louis. With the excessive heat and little rain, it’s even more important than usual to frequently water your garden. That’s easy enough when you’re at home and able to turn on the hose for your plants every day, but what about when you’re leaving town for…
