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However, there are exceptions, as a few newer rosemary cultivars have been bred to survive temperatures as low as USDA zone 6 with ample winter protection. Ask your local garden center about ‘Arp,’ ‘Athens Blue Spire,’ and ‘Madeline Hill.’ Read on to learn about protecting rosemary plants in winter. How to Protect Rosemary in Winter Here are some tips for winterizing rosemary plants: Plant rosemary in a sunny, sheltered location where the plant is protected from harsh winter winds....

When to Trim Weigela It is best to prune weigela shrubs in the late spring after they have finished blooming. Trimming weigela bushes right after they bloom will keep you from inadvertently pruning off next year’s flowers. This is because weigela blooms on wood that it is a year old. The wood that grows this year will bloom next year. Pruning weigelas after blooming means that you’ll pruning before the blooming wood has a chance to grow....

Reasons a Radish Does Not Form Bulbs With their nippy flavor and chubby rounded bodies, radishes are pleasing even to children and picky vegetable eaters. Another attractive attribute is how quickly you can eat them from seed to edible root. Most varieties are ready in 3 to 4 weeks, a relatively low seed to produce time when compared to many crops. If you are wondering why do radishes not form in your seedbed, perhaps you haven’t prepared the soil correctly or you may be combating Mother Nature....

What is a Red Rome Apple? Red Rome apples trees are spur-bearing trees that allow fruit to form on each limb, which means more fruit! Because of their prolific yields, they were once referred to as ‘mortgage maker.’ As mentioned, they are not nor were they named for the Eternal City of Roma, but for the small town of Ohio that shares that venerable name. Initially, however, this apple was named for its discoverer, Joel Gillet, who found a chance seedling in a shipment of trees that looked unlike any of the others....

Regrowing Bok Choy Plants in Water Growing bok choy from a stalk is easy. •Chop off the base of the bok choy, much like you would slice the base of a bunch of celery. •Place the bok choy in a bowl or saucer of warm water, with the cut side facing up. Set the bowl on a windowsill or another sunny location. •Change the water every day or two. It’s also a good idea to occasionally mist the center of the plant to keep it well-hydrated....

Rejuvenating Old Fruit Trees Some fruit trees are easier than others to restore, so you’ll need to figure out what kind of trees you have before you decide on a course of action. If you aren’t sure what type of trees you have, take twig samples to your local extension office for identification. When you are thinking of reviving an old fruit tree, apple and pear trees are the easiest to work with....

Choosing Plants for River Banks Many homeowners visualize a long expanse of lawn going down to the river, providing unobstructed views and velvety green expanses. Grass is often not the optimal choice, however, since its fertilizing and pesticide needs can foul water due to run-off. Professional thoughts on river bank landscaping indicate that native plants are a better choice. These can frame views, provide animal habitat and fodder, and require less maintenance and upkeep than a lawn....

Why Do You Fold the Tops of Onions? If you plan to use the onions right away, folding onion tops isn’t really necessary. However, if your goal is to store the onions for the winter, rolling down onion tops encourages the onion to turn brown and stop taking up water, thus boosting the final process of ripening. When sap no longer flows through the onion plant, growth stops and the onion will soon be ready to harvest and cure for storage....

Rough Goldenrod Information Goldenrod is native to many parts of the U.S. and is easily identifiable as a bright, golden yellow clump of flowers so characteristic to fields and meadows in fall. These perennial flowers grow to a height of 2 to 5 feet (61 cm. to 1.5 m.). The flowers are yellow and small but grow in large clusters, blooming between August and September. The leaves of rough goldenrod, sometimes called wrinkled goldenrod, are toothed, deeply veined, and rough in texture....

Salep Plant Information Salep is at the heart of a traditional Turkish beverage. Where does salep come from? It is found in the roots of many orchid species such as: Anacamptis pyramidalis Dactylorhiza romana Dactylorhiza osmanica var. osmanica Himantoglossum affine Ophrys fusca, Ophrys. holosericea, Ophrys mammosa Orchis anatolica Orchis coriophora Orchis italica Orchis mascula ssp. pinetorum Orchis morio Orchis palustris Orchis simia Orchis spitzelii Orchis tridentate Serapias vomeracea ssp. orientali...

What is Agretti? Popular in Italy and hot in high-end Italian restaurants in the United States, agretti is an 18-inch wide by 25-inch tall (45.5 x 63.5 cm.) herb plant. This annual has long, chive-like foliage and when mature, in about 50 days or so, looks like a large chive plant. Salsola Soda Information The flavor of agretti has been described variously as a bit bitter, almost sour, to a more pleasant description of a plant with a pleasant crunch, hint of bitterness, and the tang of salt....

Growing Schizanthus When growing Schizanthus, the biggest condition you need to provide is an early start and mostly cool weather. This plant will stop producing once the heat of summer arrives, so begin it indoors about three months before your last frost date in the spring. Sprinkle the seeds on top of a pot of finely sifted compost, then cover them with a sprinkling of the same compost. Mist the soil with a fine spray, then cover the pot with a piece of plexiglass, glass, or plastic....

The key to this woodland retreat? Layering and incorporating shade plants for texture in woodland gardens under trees. Native Plants for Texture in a Shade Garden Shade plants are naturally found growing as understory plants beneath trees. They occupy a unique niche and provide habitat, food, and protection for many woodland creatures. Many shade plants don’t have flashy blooms, but what they do have is texture and often colorful foliage....

Can Beer Be Composted? Those new to composting may have some trepidation introducing anything “out of the norm” to the compost pile. It is true that a compost pile requires a delicate balance between carbon and nitrogen, moisture, and sufficient aeration in order to create enough heat to break down. Too much or too little of one thing can disrupt the balance, leading to a wet, stinky pile or a dry one where nothing breaks down....

Why are My Lemons Soft? Understanding why you may have soft lemons means understanding how lemons ripen. Here’s the thing, lemons may be bright yellow before they are ready to eat, or they may still be green but perfectly juicy and citrusy inside. This, of course, means that the ripeness of lemons isn’t easy to decipher based on color alone. While size is somewhat of an indicator, the best way to tell if a lemon is ready to eat is to taste it....

What is Straightneck Squash? Straightneck squash plants are a type of summer squash. Straightneck squash varieties bear small, yellow fruits with subtle flavor. As their name would imply, these squash plants have a straight “neck” which attaches to the plant. Summer squashes are ideal additions in areas with short growing seasons, as plants mature quite quickly. Straightneck squash is also a favorite plant for succession sowing and in the fall vegetable garden....

Strawberry Geranium Information Also called strawberry begonia, creeping saxifrage, and creeping rockfoil, strawberry geranium plants are native to Korea, Japan, and eastern China. Despite the name, they are not actually geraniums or begonias. Instead, they’re low-to-the-ground evergreen perennials that spread through runners as strawberry plants do. The leaves, which look like those of begonia or geranium (hence the common names), are wide, round, and veined with silver against a dark green background....

What are the uses for subalpine fir? Homeowners use these firs for landscaping, but that’s not all. Anyone considering the various ways these firs can serve in a backyard should read on. We’ll give all the subalpine fir tree information you need. Subalpine Fir Tree Information Subalpine fir trees can take many different forms, depending on where they are growing. In the mountains, subalpine fir trees grow tall but remain very narrow....

Sugarcane Fertilizer and Macro-nutrients Studies have shown the main sugarcane nutrient requirements are nitrogen, phosphorus, magnesium, sulfur and silicon. The exact amounts of these nutrients depend upon your soil, but at least it’s a place to start. The soil pH will affect the plant’s ability to absorb and added nutrients and must be 6.0 to 6.5 for optimal results. Other factors will affect the exact amount of nutrient absorbed, such as heavy soil, which can minimize uptake of nitrogen....

Sweet Potatoes with Scurf Sweet potato scurf is a fungal disease caused by the fungus Monilochaeles infuscans. It grows and produces spores on the sweet potato skin. This scurf only affects sweet potatoes and their close relative the morning glory, but does not affect other crops. For instance, silver scurf, caused by Helminthosporium solani, only affects potatoes. This fungal disease is also only skin deep and does not affect the edibility of sweet potatoes....