On Growing Garlic and Breaking the Rules

All of the books will tell you (even my own), that you should not allow your garlic plants to produce full flowers. Cut them off when they’re still closed (called scapes). And it’s true. If you want to grow big, juicy garlic bulbs you’ll need to cut off the scapes as they emerge in early

Learning from Nature: Observations on Cold Hardy Cacti

Throughout my gardening life there have been many plants that I tried to grow with middling success, until I observed them growing in the wild. Sarracenia (pitcher plants), venus fly trap (Dioneae muscipula), episcia, and ginger are just a few that come to mind. Seeing them in their natural habitat helped me understand something about

A Few Film Photos Taken in the Alpine Garden at the Denver Botanic

The large inflorescence in the background of this photo belongs to Agave parryi, an agave that can be hardy to -18C (according to “High and Dry: Gardening with Cold-Hardy Dryland Plants” by Robert Nold), depending on the growing conditions. Recently, I have been learning about some of the hardier agaves and was pleased to see

Speaking at the Denver Botanic Gardens

Hello. How are you? It’s been quiet here for a bit. Deadlines and such. I will probably be a little light on posting for a while longer, but I am just over the hump. I’m gonna make it after-all! Perhaps when this is all said and done I should make a trip to Minnesota just

My Mind is Blown at the Denver Botanic

This one is a little taste for my friend Barry who really wants to make it to see the alpine garden at the Denver Botanic Garden, someday. I have no idea, but WHAT? The aliens are here. This last shot is of the “Ponderosa Garden” near the entrance. Denver is incredible. I am loving it

Nylon Hedgehog Cactus

Davin and I were taken with this flowering cactus (Echinocereus viridiflorus) in the Alpine Garden at the Denver Botanic Gardens. Here’s an in context shot so that you can see how the plant was growing in a stone trough. I looked the genus up on the United States Department of Agriculture Plants Database and was

Above the Tree Line

How cool to be so high I could actually see where the trees stopped. Just like that. No more trees. While in Denver, a friend of ours (thanks Ross!) generously offered to take us up to Mt. Goliath, an alpine area that is managed by the Denver Botanic Gardens. As an alpine plant fan this

Getting Her Goat

Guest post by Hillary Rosner “Using goats to battle weeds is gaining popularity in the West, where noxious and invasive plant species are pervasive and poor management has left a lot of land in bad shape.” The lawnmower was broken. Not that I knew how to use it, anyway, as I’d spent my whole life