March/April 2022

Horticulture

Horticulture Magazine

Horticulture1 min read
Horticulture
Editor Meghan Shinn Contributing Editor Jennifer Howell Scott Beuerlein | Thomas Christopher | Greg Coppa Jeff Cox | Niki Jabbour | Mary Purpura Associate Art Director Carrie Topp Executive Editor Kristin Beane Sullivan Executive Art Director Eri
Horticulture2 min read
Editor’s Note
I fell in love with oakleaf hydrangea in the kiddie section of our local amusement park. My oldest child was probably three at the time. Hoping to ease my dizziness at watching her ride the tiny carousel, I focused for a moment on the backdrop of shr
Horticulture3 min readArchitecture
The Bee Lawn
FOR A GENERATION NOW, lawns have been landscape villains to environmentally inclined gardeners. True, lawns provide an attractive setting for flower beds and shrubbery, and a traffic-tolerant play space for children and adults. But traditional turf d
Horticulture3 min read
Plums Up!
THERE ARE SO MANY delicious types of tomatoes to grow. I try to find space for all of them, including plum tomatoes. These plants yield dense, typically oval-shaped fruits that are used for canning as well as making thick, rich tomato sauce. Also cal
Horticulture1 min readArchitecture
Early Spring Checklist
Prep! Mild March days are perfect for a quick garden inspection. I like to check my raised beds and vertical structures for winter damage. Loose or rotted boards are fixed or replaced and tunnels and trellises repaired for the coming season. Sow! Ma
Horticulture6 min read
Joy Within Beech
MY HALF-ACRE YARD was pretty much a blank slate when I purchased my home in 1976. It never had a good soil base, and much of what it did have was made up of dredgings from a nearby saltwater harbor. I still occasionally find shells when I dig down a
Horticulture4 min readArchitecture
Timeless Beauty
I THINK SOMETIMES we spoil the perfection of our moments by looking for reasons for things to be wrong. We gardeners, especially, tend to be critical of our most flamboyant plants. For instance, at the bottom of our vegetable garden’s fence is the gr
Horticulture8 min read
Douglas Tallamy
AS A PROFESSOR at the University of Delaware, Douglas Tallamy shares the intricacies of entomology with insect lovers on the cusp of scientific careers. His work extends much further, too, in the books and lectures that he crafts for nature-loving la
Horticulture5 min read
Your Piece Of The Park
WHAT IF YOU COULD HELP boost biodiversity, increase your opportunities for nature exposure and establish robust ecological communities in your own back yard? And what if, by doing so, you could also participate in a grand experiment whose designer du
Horticulture4 min readArchitecture
Super Sedges
No doubt about it, people love lawns. They love the neat look of turfgrass, the seas of green. However, lawns are a problem. A big problem. Lawns fragment valuable habitat, displace wildlife and pollinators, encourage the overuse of herbicides and pe
Horticulture1 min read
The Grass That Isn’t
Carex species look like and act like grass, but they aren’t grass. So what are they? These plants are sedges, which belong to the family Cyperaceae. True grasses fall in the Graminaceae. Sedges and grasses differ in their stems. Sedge stems are solid
Horticulture1 min readArchitecture
Sources For Sedges
Carex can be challenging to establish from seed. Plants are generally sold in pots or plugs, which represent an easy and economical way to establish swaths of modern lawn. If you can’t yet find a good selection of sedges locally, try the following ma
Horticulture1 min readArchitecture
Broad Appeal
Among the myriad forms and habits taken by woody plants, perhaps the most versatile shape is the vase. Trees and shrubs that show a narrow base and broad top lend themselves to diverse functions in formal and relaxed garden styles alike. What’s more,
Horticulture4 min read
Weighing The Options
After gardening (experimenting!) in the shade for more than 30 years, I continue to appreciate plant combinations that offer both color and texture. Successful mixed plantings in shade hinge on not only an understanding of the cultural needs of each
Horticulture4 min read
A Winter Fling
Winter arrives. The bulbs are planted. Maybe I’ve even cleaned the beds and raked just enough leaves that it looks like someone lives here. I do not relish this season. Yes, the physical rest is welcome, along with the crisp nights, the hot drinks. I
Horticulture4 min read
THE beet GROWS ON
The beet (Beta vulgaris) is a cool-season vegetable crop bursting in rich flavor and packed with nutritional value, offering antioxidants as well as vitamins A and C, fiber and even iron. Though we picture beets as round and crimson in color (“red as
Horticulture1 min read
Cool Beets
This snow-white beet received an All-America Selections award in 2015. Judges noted it has no earthy flavor, just sweetness. 50 days to harvest. An adaptable, reliable beet with rounded red roots and superior storability. Very flavorful. 50 days to h
Horticulture1 min read
Beat ‘Em Or Join ‘Em?
Friends: Because beets mature fairly quickly, they can follow early-season crops such as lettuce and peas, taking the place of these plants as they go out of season. Garlic is reported to improve the flavor of beets when these crops are grown as comp
Horticulture1 min readArchitecture
CHEEKWOOD ESTATE & GARDENS
ONCE THE FAMILY HOME of Mabel and Leslie Cheek, the extraordinary 1930s Cheekwood Estate, with its 30,000-square-foot mansion and 55-acre grounds, today serves the public as a botanical garden, arboretum and museum with period rooms and art galleries
Horticulture2 min read
Opening This Spring: Colorscapes
Beginning May 7, visitors to Cheekwood can explore humankind’s understanding of color through Colorscapes, an immersive exhibition from Chicago-based artists Petra Bachmaier and Sean Gallero of the collaborative Luftwerk. This significant, site-speci
Horticulture2 min readArchitecture
Books For The Planet
In Grow Now, Emily Murphy offers a complete handbook for gardening for the good of the planet and all of its inhabitants. Drawing from her background in regenerative organic gardening, ethnobotany and environmental science, she covers techniques that
Horticulture1 min read
5 Favorite Plants At Cheekwood
A bamboo native to the eastern United States, this wet-soil plant provides shelter for rabbits and terrestrial birds while guarding against erosion. Full sun. USDA Zones 5–9. Best known for its role in brewing beer, the hops vine also makes a fine o
Horticulture3 min readArchitecture
Plants We Love
EACH YEAR, a panel of Kentucky plants-people come together to choose—after some debate—a handful of trees, shrubs and perennials to highlight as particularly valuable players in the gardens of the Bluegrass State (and beyond). The agreed-upon species
Horticulture2 min read
Risk vs. Reward
FOR THE GEEKIEST AMONG US, high risk/high reward plants are the holy grail. These rare and mythical beauties have it all. Well, everything except a will to live. Yet, sometimes, miraculously, they actually survive. Occasionally, they’ll even look as

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