Savvy Gardening

Garlic varieties: Choosing the types of garlic to grow in your garden

When you’re in the produce section at the grocery store, you’re not presented with endless garlic varieties. You usually get one choice. And the label with the price is simply “garlic.” But there are a number of garlic cultivars, originating anywhere from Asia to Russia to France, classified under groups (which I’ll explain below), each with their own characteristics. It’s fun to grow more than one type of garlic. Then the following year, once you’ve harvested and cured your crop, you can savor the subtle differences in flavor.

Choosing the right fruit trees for your climate

by Tara NolanComments (0)

Choosing the right fruit trees for your climate is an important step in deciding what to grow in your garden. Before you head to the nursery, do a little research to determine which fruit you enjoy that will thrive in your growing zone. You want to make sure you select something you will eat and enjoy!

A tree with white flowers: 21 beautiful choices for the home garden

by Niki JabbourComments (0)

Looking for a tree with white flowers? There are many beautiful white-flowering trees for the home landscape offering spring, summer, or even autumn blooms. White flowers brighten up the garden, day and night, with some trees producing small, delicate flower clusters and others huge, show-stopping blooms. Many flowering trees also add fragrance to the garden and attract bees and other pollinators. Below you’ll discover 21 terrific white-flowering trees in a range of sizes and forms to help you find the perfect specimen for your garden.

Japanese painted fern: A hardy perennial for shady gardens

by Jessica WalliserComments (0)

Gardeners looking to add a bit of excitement to a shady corner of the landscape need to look no further than the Japanese painted fern. Known botanically as Athyrium niponicum, this drama queen boasts silvery sweeps of soft mounded foliage that are almost luminescent. Unlike the typical green fronds of other fern types, this species produces blue-gray foliage with wine-colored mid-ribs. And to make this plant even more noteworthy, it’s very hardy and easy to care for. In this article, I’ll share all the ins and outs of growing the Japanese painted fern in outdoor gardens.
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Rainbow carrots: The best red, purple, yellow and white varieties to grow

by Niki JabbourComments (0)

Harvesting rainbow carrots is like digging for treasure; you never which color you’re going to get until you pull up the roots. I love growing purple, red, yellow, and white carrots in my garden as they’re just as easy to grow as orange varieties but add vibrant colors to raw and cooked dishes. You can buy pre-blended rainbow carrot seeds or you can mix your own. Keep reading to learn more about growing a rainbow of roots and the best colored carrots to plant in the garden.

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Aster Purple Dome: A fall-blooming perennial for your garden

by Jessica WalliserComments (0)

When many of the perennial flowers in your garden are wrapping up their performance for the year, Aster Purple Dome is just starting to step onto the stage. Known botanically as Symphyotrichum novae-angliae ‘Purple Dome’ (syn. Aster novae-angliae), this late-blooming plant is a true star of the fall garden. Yes, the dark green foliage looks unassuming all season long, but when the days begin to shorten and early autumn arrives, things change. The buds burst open to reveal clusters of hundreds of inch-wide, daisy-like blooms in rich shades of purple. But this plant’s beauty is more than skin deep. There are also plenty of other reasons to include it in your garden. In this article, I’ll share Purple Dome’s many noteworthy traits and offer tips for growing it successfully.
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