Question #1: What should you do about million bells that get brown? Here’s a question from reader Jim Barbati: “Every year in mid-August my million bells begin to brown out on the underside of the plant. I think the cause may be white flies. Any ideas about how to control this? Thank you.” Question...
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Clean up your yard, but leave the mulch in place When the forsythia is in bloom, that’s a good time to cut back your rose bushes and take the mulch off your garden beds, said Dawn Trippie-Thompson, owner, with her husband Ken Thompson, of Thompson Brothers Greenhouses, 8850 Clarence Center Rd., Clarence Center. That’s...
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For decades, impatiens has been the go-to flower for the shade. But now that a blight is wiping out these wonderful flowers, you’ll have to rethink your plant choices for shady gardens. Some garden centers won’t sell impatiens at all this year, while others will grow a limited supply but will sell them without...
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You’ll be able to plant cool-weather vegetables soon, said Julie Emerling, who is in charge of herbs and vegetables at Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark St., Hamburg. People know the rule of thumb is that you wait until Memorial Day to do most of your planting. That’s because for many of our plants, we need...
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Want to add a tropical feeling to your yard? Here are seven plant suggestions from the folks at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Road, Williamsville. You can see some of these plants when you visit Mischler’s next week at Plantasia, which has a theme of “Backyard Oasis.” (See the related article for...
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I saw this idea in several places on Pinterest and I just had to try it. When you’re done with a bunch of celery, you’re left with a stump. I used to toss that stump into the compost pile. Then on Pinterest I saw that you can use it to start a new celery...
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The birthday flower for January is the carnation, which is one of my favorite flowers. It has everything you could want in a flower– a beautiful shape, a wide variety of colors and a delightful fragrance. But some people look down on the magnificent carnation. “The carnation got a bad reputation,” said Maggie Wittmer,...
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The traditional poinsettia is beautiful with its red and green coloring, but there are many varieties that you might like even more. You can see many new and nontraditional varieties of poinsettias at Mischler’sFlorist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Rd., Williamsville. Mischler’s has also set up a display of poinsettias that you can use...
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“I haven’t bought canna lilies in years because they multiply,” said Kristen Suto of Busti Avenue, Buffalo. We visited her lush front yard, which has a view of the Niagara River, during Garden Walk Buffalo in July. Suto has canna lilies in pots and in beds throughout her gardens. The yellow flower in the...
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2013 has been named the Year of the Wildflower by the National Garden Bureau, the non-profit organization promoting gardening on behalf of the horticulture industry. Each year, the National Garden Bureau showcases a plant in each of three categories: vegetable/edible, annual and perennial. The showcased plants are supposed to be popular, easy-to-grow, widely adaptable, genetically...
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