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For most of us, gardening is limited during the winter months, but there are still many ways to help others. Read on for tips and ideas for holiday garden giving. Holiday Garden Giving: Holiday Donations Arrange a community clean-up, then spend the day pulling weeds and hauling away trash. A community event instills pride and encourages people to spruce up their yards. Next time you visit your local drive-through coffee stand, surprise the folks in the car behind you by paying for a cup of coffee or hot chocolate....

The Importance of Gardener Sun Protection The most important reason to pay attention to sun exposure is to reduce the risk of developing skin cancer. Millions of people receive a diagnosis of skin cancer every year. The good news is that this is one of the most preventable types of cancer. Another reason to avoid too much sun is the damage it can do to your skin’s appearance over time—of course, having a gardening sunburn is no fun either....

Choosing Plants for Romance and Beauty A romantic garden doesn’t have to just be about love and relationship status. It can also be about celebrating natural beauty. The choice of plants for romance and an intimate feel is important. While all plants are beautiful, consider those that work well together to create a harmony of colors and textures. Also important are plants that are naturalistic, think more along the lines of English cottage garden versus French formal....

Types & Uses of Lobelia Plants While there are numerous varieties of lobelia plants, only a few are commonly seen in the home garden—L. inflata (Indian tobacco), L. cardinalis (Cardinal flower), and L. siphilitica. Interesting enough, the name of Indian tobacco derived from the fact that Native Americans once smoked lobelia plant to treat asthma. Also known as pukeweed, doctors once prescribed the plant to induce vomiting. Although most varieties are compact, growing only 3 to 5 inches (7....

When to Harvest Rhubarb How to tell when rhubarb is ripe is as easy as walking out to the plant. To be honest, rhubarb is “ripe” all spring and summer. But for the health of the plant, there are certain times that you should make your rhubarb harvest. The best time when to harvest rhubarb is when the stalks of the leaves reach at least 10 inches (25 cm.) long. This will ensure that the plant has established itself well enough for the year to be able to tolerate being harvested....

Savory Uses after Harvesting With its peppery taste and spicy aroma, it’s no wonder that savory has found its way into a plethora of dishes. Bean dishes are often associated with savory, and it is often combined with other herbs such as those comprising Herbes de Provence, a classic French combination of herbs. Savory is also said to have an aphrodisiac effect and is useful as an antiseptic and as tonic for digestive ailments....

Mango Fruit Harvest Mangos (Mangifera indica) reside in the family Anacardiaceae along with cashews, spondia, and pistachios. Mangos originated in the Indo-Burma region of India and are grown throughout the tropical to subtropical lowlands of the world. They have been cultivated in India for over 4,000 years, gradually making their way to the Americas during the 18th century. Mangos are grown commercially in Florida and are suited to landscape specimens along the southeastern and southwestern coastal areas....

Radishes make a great addition to any salad, giving it both color and some added natural flavor. Some will also add a bit of fire to the salad for those that like something hot in their meal. They also make a great fresh-from-the-garden treat. Just pull them from the ground, wash off the dirt, clip off the top, and bottom feeder roots and you are ready to enjoy them. What does a radish need to grow?...

Retaining Soil Moisture Keeping garden beds weeded helps in retaining moisture in the soil. Excessive weeds can rob soil and desirable plants of the water and nutrients they need. Unfortunately, many weeds can thrive and flourish in dry, sandy soils where other plants struggle. If your soil dries out too quickly, mulch can help with retaining soil moisture and helps prevent water evaporation. When mulching for moisture retention, use a thick layer of mulch 2 to 4 inches (5-10 cm....

Ginseng as a Medicinal Herb In the United States, ginseng is extremely popular, second only to Ginkgo biloba. In fact, ginseng is incorporated into such varied products as tea, chewing gum, chips, health drinks, and tinctures. Medicinal ginseng is lauded for a host of miraculous cures, and has been used as an antidepressant, blood thinner, and immune system booster. Supporters say it relieves maladies ranging from upper respiratory infections to addiction to high blood sugar....

What is Overwintering? Overwintering plants simply means protecting plants from the cold in a sheltered place, like your home, basement, garage, etc. Some plants can be taken in your house where they continue to grow as houseplants. Some plants need to go through a dormancy period and will need to be overwintered in a cool, dark space such as a garage or basement. Others may require storing of their bulbs inside through the winter....

Although they are often grown in the ground, container grown Knock Out roses tend to do just as well. Read on and learn how to grow and care for Knock Out roses in containers. Growing Knock Out Roses in Containers Follow these tips on caring for potted Knock Out rose plants: Knock Out roses are best planted in spring, which gives the roots time to settle in before frosty weather arrives in autumn....

Kwanzan Cherry Tree Info If you’ve been to Washington D.C. in the spring, you’ve no doubt been in awe of the numerous flowering cherry trees lining the avenues. Many of these beauties are Kwanzan cherry trees. Not only are they stunning in the spring, but they lend beautiful fall color and the trees are sterile, so they do not produce fruit, making them the perfect specimens along roadways and sidewalks. Native to China, Japan, and Korea, the tree’s original name is ‘Sekiyama,’ but it is rarely found under this name....

About Lantana Control in Gardens Lantana is an ornamental shrub that is popular with home gardeners. It has colorful flowers that are small but grow in tight clusters. They change color with time, going from white to pink to purple or from yellow to orange to red, and put on quite a display. Native to the West Indies, lantana is a perennial in warmer climates and an annual or an indoor container plant in cooler regions....

About Moss and Lichen on Fruit Trees Lichen and mosses on trees conjure up romantic images of oaks in Louisiana covered in lacy nets of the stuff. While they both give trees a bit of character, do they actually harm them? Fruit tree lichen is most common in rural areas where the air is clear. Moss on a fruit tree can occur anywhere, provided temperatures are mild and there is plentiful moisture....

Mandevilla or Dipladenia Dipladenia is in the Mandevilla family but has a decidedly different growth pattern. Mandevilla vines climb up vertical structures to seek the canopy light. Dipladenia is a bushier plant whose stems grow down and hang. The two plants have similar brightly colored flowers, but mandevilla has a larger flower typically in red. Both plants need the same bright light and dipladenia care is the same as that for the mandevilla vine....

Mesquite Plant Info Mesquite plants (Prosopis) are found wild on flood plains, near streams and rivers, and in fields and grazing pastures. The plants have a unique ability to harvest moisture from the driest soils. The tree has a deep root structure, except where grown near waterways. In these areas, it has two different root systems, one deep and one shallow. Full mesquite plant info must also include the fact that they are legumes....

About Mountain Laurel Cold Hardiness Mountain laurels are native broadleaf evergreen shrubs beloved by gardeners for their vivid spring flowers. The foliage is also attractive and the shrubs look beautiful in borders or natural gardens. As native shrubs, mountain laurels are low-maintenance in the garden and know how to take care of themselves. Mountain laurel cold hardiness allow these shrubs to thrive in the summers and winters of USDA plant hardiness zones 5 through 9....

What are Parasitic Plants? What are parasitic plants? The simple explanation is that they are heterotrophic, meaning that they are plants that rely on other plants in whole, or in part, for their water and nutrition. They are able to siphon these resources from another plant because they possess modified roots, called haustoria, which penetrate undetected into the pipeline, or vascular system, of their host. I liken it to a computer virus latching onto your computer system undetected, siphoning and draining your resources....

What are Little Marvel Peas? Small space gardeners rejoice. There is a semi-dwarf pea plant that produces copious peas on diminutive plants. If you thought there was no way you could grow your own shelling peas, Little Marvel pea plants will prove you wrong. Best of all, the peas stay sweet and tender even when fully ripe. The variety of pea ‘Little Marvel’ is a compact plant that will produce a lot of tasty peas....