Coneflowers (Echinacea) are herbaceous, drought-tolerant, deer-resistant perennial plants growing up to 4 feet in height.
Use drip irrigation, mulch, wider spacing and proper fertilization to reduce disease.
Tower Hill Botanic Garden offers an online, informative, in-depth hour long talk on the importance of native plants in supporting ecosystems and how to choose the right ones for your particular piece of paradise.
Create a delicious, chilled dill sauce for fish by combining 1 cup of plain yogurt, 3 tablespoons of minced, fresh dill and 1 ½ teaspoons of Dijon mustard. Keeping peace lilies and philodendrons as houseplants help to purify the air in your home. These common houseplants help to remove benzene, ammonia and other toxic chemicals […]
If space is limited in the vegetable garden, avoid crops such as pumpkins, sweet corn, winter squash and melons. All of these require ample room to grow.
Consider sowing seeds of dill when choosing plants for the herb garden. Seeds of dill are best sown directly in the ground; transplanting is not always successful. Plant early in the spring when the threat of frost has passed in rows 2 -3 feet apart. When the seedlings are approximately 2” tall, thin them to 10” – 12” apart.
Agaves such as A. filifera, A. miradorensis and A. Victoria-reginae are good choices for window sill or tabletop houseplants. They love a sunny, south-facing window and a cactus potting soil mixture. Watering is required only approximately once per week and fertilize in the spring and summer only. Will produce offsets which can be removed and repotted in spring or summer. Agaves are an easy, low-maintenance houseplant.
Hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) attracts honey bees, butterflies and bumble bees to the landscape. If it is growing prolifically, hummingbirds will be attracted as well. Hyssop is a small, aromatic, lavender-like shrub growing up to 2’ tall. In mid-to-late summer blue, pink or white flowers appear with blue being the most common. Thriving in full sun to part shade, hyssop is hardy in zones 4-9.
If a cyclamen is among the decorations in your home this holiday season, keep them in bright, yet indirect, light in a cool room (ideally 65 degrees). Water from the bottom and fertilize every two weeks.
When choosing cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus) as an annual for your garden next summer, you will also be attracting several species of pollinators including hummingbirds, butterflies and bees.
Plant Something Massachusetts is a project of Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape Association, and was originally established in partnership with Massachusetts Flower Growers’ Association.
