Okay, let’s be honest: you might as well call me Scrooge McGrinch. The only parts of the holiday season I find joyful are watching A Charlie Brown Christmas and lacing my coffee with bourbon. For better or for worse, the gardening and landscaping company where I work does a tremendous amount of Christmas decorating for our clients. We wrap garlands, hang wreaths, and set up lights on indoor and outdoor trees....

You turn your back and suddenly, there are vines draping down to the floor and crawling across your bookshelves… That’s when you’ve gotta take matters into your own hands and break out those pruners. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. In order to keep your plant healthy and help it to look as nice as possible, there are a few tips you should keep in mind....

We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. Black rot cankers (primarily in northern states) Fruit rot (primarily in southern and central states) Frogeye leaf spot (primarily in southern and central states) Part of the reason why this fungus is so widespread and ready to attack your apple and crabapple trees is that it grows on the dead tissue of many other host plants....

While there are many insects that can decimate legumes, beetles are some of the worst. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. Common solutions include physical controls like row covers and organic pesticides like neem oil. Regardless of what is attacking your plants, actively keeping an eye on your garden is a great habit to get into, so you will notice pests through regular monitoring before infestations have time to grow out of control....

At that time, you could only get them from the breeder, an amateur who preferred to be called “Radiator Charlie.” In recent years, as the interest in heirloom tomatoes has surged, this cultivar is popular once again, particularly with foodie home gardeners and farm-to-table chefs. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. Eden Brothers, for example, sells organic seeds in various size packets, while Burpee offers both seeds and plants....

Okay, you could probably manage it if you tried, but you’d really have to work at it to make one of them fail. Even better, their sturdy nature is hidden beneath a surprisingly beautiful and delicate appearance. I think that’s part of what makes them such exceptional options as houseplants – they have beauty and brawn. The foliage has a distinct arrowhead-like shape, as you probably guessed by the name, but it’s the fascinating array of colors and patterns that makes them extremely appealing....

If you’re looking for a plant that’s tough, visually stunning, and capable of adhering to vertical surfaces like a botanical Spider-Man, then Boston ivy is all you need. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. In this guide, we’ll go over the many aspects of growing Boston ivy, such as propagation, cultivation, and plant health care....

We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. I’ll cover everything you need to know about growing and caring for peacock plant in this article. Here’s everything that’s up ahead: Before we get started, if you’re looking for more general guidance on how to grow calatheas, be sure to read our complete guide to growing and caring for prayer plants too!...

These marvelous plants stand out indoors because of their architectural shape and glossy, prehistoric-looking leaves. But unlike some of the other “of the moment” houseplants, like air plants and monsteras, these striking specimens are incredibly fussy. In fact, they’re so finicky that it’s a surprise to me they’ve become so popular. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....

Also known as Michaelmas daisy, this nectar-rich flower is native to the US, where it grows wild along roadways and in meadows. A close look at its vivid violet blue, pink, purple, or white blossoms reveals yellow centers teeming with butterflies and bees, nature’s most beneficial pollinators. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....

You’re not alone. Some varieties have always been in vogue (like aloe, or hen and chicks) while other more unusual species have gained huge popularity today (like living stones). And it’s hard to find a popular news article on the topic of gardening or an Instagram feed that doesn’t feature at least a few of them. Though all plants have their own unique quirks, meeting their needs doesn’t have to be difficult if you’re well informed....

We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. It is suited to cultivation in USDA Hardiness Zones 2 to 11, where it grows as an annual. Also known as bottle gourd, calabash, or birdhouse gourd, it comes in a variety of shapes and sizes and has been prized for millennia for having mature fruits with a tough outer “exocarp” that dries to a water-impermeable, wood-like consistency after they are harvested....

“Pretty” and “onion” in the same sentence? Why, yes! Early in the spring when there isn’t much green showing in the garden yet, this plant is sprouting leaves. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. I suppose there is more to tell you about this plant… such as it’s entirely edible, loves dry areas, and repels insect pests and rodents from the garden....

In a clean eating household these root tubers are like dessert, even without the added brown sugar. And if we go more than a few days without including them in a meal, we notice. So, if you’re looking for a garden crop that’s nutritious and indulgent, sweet potatoes are the answer. At breakfast, lunch, and dinner, this easily stored warm-season edible is delicious and versatile. And although it requires a good amount of space in the garden, it’s a relatively easy crop to grow....

An ancient medicinal, this perennial herb has made a resurgence in modern herb gardens for its useful therapeutic properties, particularly as a migraine remedy, as well as for its attractive daisy-like flowers that conveniently repel pests. Read on to learn how to harvest and use feverfew. What Is ­­Feverfew? This tender perennial is a member or the aster family, though it is often grown as an annual in cooler climates....

Also known as California chilies or Magdalenas, they’re large enough that you can easily stuff them, flavorful enough to stand up to other ingredients when sliced and served with fajitas or chopped and added to salsa, and fleshy enough for roasting and canning. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. Anaheims are fabulous fresh out of the garden, and this guide aims to help you in that endeavor....

Because this perennial has been among the top best-selling botanical supplements in the US for many years, creating high market demand, it is now at risk of extinction in the wild. However, this gives growers the opportunity to protect a highly vulnerable species through cultivation. Growing goldenseal will certainly make you a medicinal plant conservation steward! We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....

If you live in a warm climate with hot summers and you crave chiles rellenos for breakfast, it’s time to learn how to plant and grow your own poblano peppers. When most people think about chili peppers, a hot and spicy flavor comes to mind. The poblano is only mildly spicy. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....

In order to maximize the quantity of blooms and keep these aggressive climbers in check, it is useful to do some occasional pruning and deadheading of spent flowers. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. Pruning morning glories is not challenging. By following a few simple steps throughout the season – such as pinching back seedlings, deadheading spent blossoms, and trimming ragged vines – you will be able to encourage healthier, more manageable plants with abundant flowers....

But as most modern herbalists know, the dandelion is, in fact, a tasty, nutritious, useful, and above all, healthful herb. The roots are also extremely good for you, but stronger than the leaves, as you might expect. Roots are frequently tinctured (see below) and used as a liver tonic, heart tonic, an immune booster, and a source of potassium and vitamin C, both of which help to guard your body against cancer and cancer-causing free radicals....