What is Chinese Rhubarb? You’ve likely heard of rhubarb but may not be familiar with its uses. Rhubarbs are of the buckwheat family and are a diverse group of plants. There are several rhubarb varieties, but this one is botanically called Rheum palmatum var. tanguticum. It is related to the edible rhubarb (Rheum rhabarbarum), sometimes referred to as R. xhybridum or R. xcultorum. Can you eat Chinese rhubarb? No. This rhubarb variety is largely ornamental....

How Often to Water Anthuriums Anthuriums are slow-growing plants that produce flat, spade-shaped leaves and strange, colorful flowers. The most noticeable part of the flower is the spathe, which is actually a single leaf that ranges in color from milk white to deep burgundy. Rising above the spathe is the spadix, a tall, narrow spike in varying colors that is the actual flower. Watering anthuriums is easy, though a little counterintuitive....

Why Does My Holly Have Spots on its Leaves? White spots on holly leaves can almost always be chalked up to one of two things – scale or mites. Both are tiny pests that stab into the leaves of the plant and suck out its juices. If you have a scale infestation, the white spots will be slightly raised and conical in shape – this is the shell that protects the tiny creature underneath....

Preparing Delphinium Plants for Winter In preparation for winterizing delphiniums, water the plants regularly as winter approaches and continue until the ground freezes so hard it can no longer absorb moisture. Don’t water with a sprinkler; get in there with a hose and let it trickle until the roots are thoroughly saturated. It’s important that the ground is damp going into winter so the roots don’t become too dry. The plant will continue to evaporate moisture through the leaves, but the frozen ground won’t accept water to replace the lost moisture....

Giving Container Plants as Gifts A plant is a great gift idea and a versatile one too. Just about anyone will be pleased to receive a houseplant, potted herb, or a plant that can go into the garden. Even friends and family who are not gardeners can enjoy a potted plant. A gift-wrapped plant is a rare type of gift that actually lasts. Depending on the plant type and how it’s cared for, a plant given to a loved one could last them for decades....

What Makes Planting Apples in Zone 7 Different? With lots of plants, the biggest temperature concern is freeze damage. While this is a problem with apple trees, it’s not the only thing to take into consideration. Apples, like many fruit trees, have chilling requirements. This means they need a certain number of hours below 45 degrees F. (7 C.) in order to enter and emerge from dormancy and set new flowers and fruit....

That’s where “garden to table” comes in. The very purpose of vegetable gardening is to provide organic, healthy, delicious fare for the table. So here are a few garden-to-table tips that can help keep us all on track. Garden to Table Meaning Think of “garden to table” as your own, very personal version of the social movement called “farm to table,” that has been shaking up restaurants around the country for the last decade....

What’s interesting, and even a factor in anemone plant care, is how each of these types grow. For instance, the spring-blooming anemone plants will generally grow from rhizomes or tubers. Fall-flowering types, however, usually have fibrous or tuberous roots. Growing Anemone Windflower You can grow anemones just about anywhere. However, caution should be taken with respect to their location, as their spreading growth habit can become rather invasive. Therefore, when growing anemone windflowers, you may want to consider placing them in bottomless containers prior to putting them in the garden....

Are All Bleeding Hearts the Same? The short answer is no. If you expect different bleeding heart plants to be similar, think again. In fact, bleeding heart vine and bleeding heart bush belong to different families. One difference between a bleeding heart bush and vine is that each as its own scientific name. Bleeding heart bush is called Dicentra spectablis and is a member of the Fumariaceae family. Bleeding heart vine is Clerodendron thomsoniae and is in the Verbenaceae family....

When caring for home stands, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the diseases of blackberries and their remedies. A very common problem in certain cultivars is blackberry calico virus (BCV) – a carlavirus, sometimes known as blackberry calico disease. It affects thornless cultivars, as well as wild and standard commercial canes. What is Blackberry Calico Virus? BCV is a widespread virus belonging to the carlavirus group. It seems to be nearly universally present in older plantings of blackberries throughout the Pacific Northwest....

How to Grow an African Blood Lily Growing African blood lilies outdoors is possible only in the warm climates of USDA plant hardiness zones 9 through 12. Plant blood lily bulbs with the necks even with, or slightly above, the surface of the soil. If your soil is poor, dig in a few inches (7.5 cm.) of compost or manure, as blood lily bulbs need rich, well-drained soil. The plant thrives in either partial shade or full sunlight....

About Dogs and Catnip If your dog shows some interest in your catnip plants, don’t expect the same ecstatic reaction to the herb that felines demonstrate. Cats get a buzz from catnip, while dogs do not. But that doesn’t mean that dogs and catnip should be kept apart. If you have a catnip plant and dogs, it’s likely you’ll see your dogs in catnip plants sooner or later. But should dogs get near catnip?...

Common Cranberry Diseases Here are some of the most common diseases of cranberries: Leaf spot – There are several bacterial and fungal issues that can cause leaf spots on cranberries. These include red leaf spot, Proventuria leaf spot, Cladosporium leaf spot, early leaf spot, and Pyrenobotrys leaf spot. These diseases thrive in moisture and can usually be prevented by irrigating during the day when water has time to evaporate and ensuring the soil drains well....

Common Pepper Growing Problems and Diseases There are viruses that are transmitted by bugs called aphids. This is why it is so important to control insects in order to control pepper plant problems. Bell pepper plant diseases caused by aphids means you have to control the aphids. Aphids are a major culprit when it comes to green pepper diseases. They congregate in large groups underneath the leaves and on any new growth on the plant....

Yarrow as Compost Accelerant Is yarrow good for composting? A lot of gardeners say yes. Yarrow plants have a high concentration of sulfur, potassium, copper, phosphates, nitrates, copper, and potash. No matter what, these are beneficial nutrients to have in your compost. In fact, many gardeners use yarrow to make a useful, nutrient rich tea that can be used in a similar fashion to compost tea. How Does Yarrow Speed Up Decomposition?...

Cosmos plants may be featured at the back of a descending garden or in the middle of an island garden. Taller varieties may need staking if not planted in an area protected from the wind. Planting cosmos flowers results in many uses of the specimen, such as cut flowers for the indoor display and backgrounds for other plants. Cosmos can even be used as screens to hide unsightly elements in the landscape....

How to Plant Hardy Geraniums Growing hardy cranesbill geranium may be as easy as planting and watching it blossom when conditions are somewhat damp. Hardy geranium plants grow best in consistently moist soil when first planted but become somewhat drought tolerant when established. Growing hardy cranesbill geranium in fertile soil also encourages the plant to spread. Many varieties of hardy geranium plants exist and thrive in full sun to shady locations....

When to Transplant Daylilies The most ideal time to transplant daylily roots is after the final bloom in the summer. That said, being the totally easy-to-please perennial that they are, they can be divided up until the end of autumn, which will still give them plenty of time to establish in the ground to create gorgeous blooms next year. But wait, there’s more. Transplanting daylilies can even take place in the spring....

When to Repot Peace Lilies Does my peace lily need repotting? Peace lily is actually happy when its roots are slightly crowded, so don’t rush to repot if the plant doesn’t need it. However, if you notice roots growing through the drainage hole or circling around the surface of the potting mix, it’s time. If the roots become so compacted that water runs straight through the drainage hole without being absorbed into the potting mix, it’s time for an emergency peace lily repotting!...

Dracaena Marginata Info Dracaena is a genus of about 120 different species that come in a wide range of shapes and sizes. One of the most popular species is the Dracaena marginata, also frequently called dragon tree, Madagascar dragon tree, and red-edged dracaena. This last name is the most evident in its appearance, as it produces very long, variegated leaves that are green in the center and red on both sides....