Friday, May 21, 2010

a bulletproof boxwood



The front of my house is a cottage garden and for years I've been fantasizing about putting boxwoods in it, but haven't because of the site-a hot sunny western exposure and frigid winds from the lake almost guarantee winter burn and that awful orangey yellow color they get from too much exposure.

But, I think there's hope in sight. This fall I planted 'north star'; a boxwood introduced by Proven Winners that is reported to withstand tough conditions. As an experiment, I planted one in a container and four out in the front garden. At the end of winter, there was a very slight yellowing on the new growth that quickly grew out, and the foliage was rich and dark green. 'North Star' has a mature height of 3'-a good size for a small garden. If you're looking around for a bulletproof boxwood, this one is a winner!

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Go Native!

In planning your gardens and plantings for the season, please consider some of the wonderful native plants that you may find at your local nurseries. There are ones for every garden location and type. Whether you like flowers, butterfly attracting plants, or interesting foliage, there is a native plant perfect for you.

And if you are already a native plant devotee, you might be interested in an article I wrote for another blog. It is my own answer to a "native plant smackdown." I hope you enjoy!

-kim