Gardening Tips

New York Asters, sometimes called “Michaelmas daisy, ”are native plants that burst into bloom in August filling the late summer gardens with daisy-shaped flowers in blues, purples, pinks and white — and some of them have double blooms. They can grow three to five feet...

Hydrangea paniculata, or the “Panicle Hydrangea,” is one of the most cold hardy of all the hydrangea — and because they bloom on current seasons growth, they are guaranteed to bloom every summer. These beautiful shrubs grow 10-20 feet tall depending on the variety,...

Asclepias tuberosa or the common butterfly weed is one of many native herbaceous perennials that burst into full bloom in June. The plants have very thick roots and form a mounded clump of green foliage in May, then in June the beautiful flowers begin to open, a...

One of the most wonderful surprises of spring is the emergence of some herbaceous perennials that have been dormant all winter long. As the soil warms up the plants begin to push their foliage out into the warm spring air. Some need all summer before the flowers...

All the bulbs that were planted in the fall sprout foliage in March and produce beautiful brightly colored flowers in April. Tulips are bulbs that prefer to live in colder areas than our Eastern Shore of Maryland, but some will still be able to survive our hot...

Starting seeds indoors in the early spring allows the home gardener the chance to try many varieties of plants with the smallest amount of money. Buying a few different variety seed packages of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, annual herbs and flowers can provide...

February is always a cold month and the ground can be covered with snow or frost, but with the occasional warm days there are landscape plants that will bloom despite the chilly weather. The Oregon Grape Holly is a native shrub that often blooms very early in the...

January may be a winter wonderland or just really cold and the plants we have in the garden can take a new look that might just dazzle the eyes. A light dusting of snow can change the look of a garden from brown ground with brown sticks to white sparkly groundcover...

Winter gardens look their best with evergreen plants to brighten up the landscape with the glossy green, steely blues and dark green to purple foliage. One plant that would fit a small to medium winter Eastern Shore landscape is the Variegated English Holly,...

November is an excellent time to start composting especially if your yard is full of trees. Many homeowners will rake all their leaves down to the roadway so the county can take them to the landfill — but by composting the leaves the homeowner can create a wonderful...