Establish A Community -- In Your Shade Garden Part 1: What Is A Plant Community?
I love lush beds of hostas! I love the variety of colors and shapes and sizes and bloom stalks. I love how hardy they are and how little maintenance they need. Unfortunately, our neighborhood deer love them as much as I do. After losing plant after plant to their voracious appetites, I knew I had …
What's In Bloom Today?
The often mistakenly maligned perennial, Goldenrod (Solidago ) is beginning its annual fall show. Goldenrod is a stunning, easy to grow herbaceous perennial that is often falsely accused of causing hay fever. The truth is, wind-blown pollen from plants like ragweed (pictured below) are actually the offenders. Depending on the specific species, bright yellow blooms …
What's in Bloom Today?
The native Missouri wildflower commonly called Black-eyed Susan is in full bloom right now. Known for their bursts of bright, yellow to yellow-orange blooms, black-eyed Susans, or Rudbeckia hirta, are favorites of butterflies but avoided by deer and rabbits because of their hairy foliage. They are biennials or short-lived perennials and will easily …
What's In Bloom Today?
Allium “Millenium” is currently a show stopper in the August garden. Just when other blooms in the garden are beginning to look summer worn, this allium variety begins to shine. Unlike its spring blooming cousins, this hybrid ornamental allium stands only 12 to 18 inches tall and blooms beginning in July and …
What's In Bloom Today?
Liatris spicata, commonly known as blazing star, is at the height of its bloom right now in Kansas City. A native wet prairie perennial, blazing star is easily grown in average to medium soil that is well-drained. An excellent choice for rain gardens, blazing star tolerates moist soil during the summer, but will succumb …
Fall Migration Is Around the Corner -- and Monarchs Need Our Help
Yesterday my Monarch Waystation certification and sign came in the mail; I now officially manage the 25,045th registered stopping point for Monarchs. When we get it mounted, it will be the fourth waystation sign in our larger neighborhood and the first one on our street. I’m hoping that some of my neighbors, especially the synthetic …
Patience Is the Key To A Successful Butterfly Garden
One of my favorite things to do this summer is to quietly sit on my deck, watching dozens of butterflies floating through the yard enjoying the nectar buffet I’ve planted. This is the first year that I’ve had a steady stream of visitors and it feels like the time, effort and money I’ve put into …
Nightlife
I have a new favorite time of day. For years, the early morning hours, just as the sun was beginning to rise, was my magic hour. Everyone else was tucked in bed fast asleep; I could wander the yard at my own pace without feeling guilty that someone needed something from me RIGHT NOW. Those …
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