Savvy Gardening

Planting bare-root strawberries: A step-by-step guide

I love puttering about the garden and discovering a ripe strawberry that the resident chipmunk hasn’t yet discovered. You can establish your own strawberry patch by planting bare-root strawberries. In your garden, your landscape, or a container on your balcony, a few well-tended strawberry plants can offer delicious berries throughout the summer. I promise you, what you grow at home is in a whole different taste category than what you find at the grocery store.

How far apart to plant carrots for the biggest and best quality roots

Written by Niki Jabbour

As long as you prepare the planting bed properly and know how far apart to plant carrots, you should be able to harvest loads of these sweet treats. If you’ve never grown your own before, you’ll probably be shocked by just how much better they can taste than the bagged carrots you can find in large grocery store chains. What’s more, there are specialty carrot varieties you can choose to best match your growing conditions, season length, climate, and the ways you prefer to use this popular root veggie. In this article you’ll get expert tips on spacing carrots for the biggest and best quality roots.

Plants for containers in the shade: 17 beautiful choices

Written by Jessica Walliser

Choosing the best plants for containers in the shade doesn’t have to mean settling for a pot of “just green.” In fact, containers in reduced light are where textures, colorful flowers and foliage, and unique plant forms really shine—especially because these pots are often placed near doors, walkways, and seating areas; places where we spend a lot of time. In this article, I’ll introduce 17 of my favorite plants for containers in the shade and share tips for combining them like a pro.
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When to cut back amaryllis leaves—and help your bulb to rebloom!

Written by Tara Nolan

Growing an amaryllis indoors brings a little magic and color to a room in the dead of winter. Long, luscious green foliage emerges from the bulb before sending up a stalk that will open to reveal gorgeous, lily-like blooms. For an extra bit of magic, if you know when to cut back amaryllis leaves and flowers, you can coax the bulb to flower again the following year. It just takes a little bit of patience and planning.

Fast growing flowers from seed: 10 easy options

Written by Niki Jabbour

Planting fast growing flowers is an easy way to transform your garden is a short amount of time. Quick growers like calendula, zinnias, and cosmos start to bloom in less than two months with the show continuing until the end of the growing season. In this article you’ll discover 10 of the best fast growing flowers to start from seed, get expert tips on when and how to plant them, and discover the top varieties to grow.

Planting ranunculus: How to grow these beautiful flowers

Written by Jessica Walliser

Ranunculus are adored for their multi-petaled, rose-like flowers and their ability to elevate bouquets and cut flower arrangements. Success with these plants comes down to timing, preparation, and understanding their ideal growing conditions and growth cycle. As a former market farmer, I’ve grown many ranunculus blooms for the cut flower bouquets we sold at our regional farmer’s markets. This guide to planting ranunculus shares my techniques and walks you through everything you need to know, from pre-planting prep to seasonal care. The advice here works if you want to grow ranunculus in containers or in the ground outdoors.
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