by Heather McCargo The seeds of wild plants have a different set of needs than those of common garden and vegetable species. Most gardeners think of spring as the time to sow seeds, but for most native plants in Maine fall to early winter is the best time. Many wildflowers, trees and shrubs have seeds that…
Gardening Basics
Dry River Beds: Possibly Your Property’s Best Feature
December 15, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Rainwater Harvesting
by Marie Chieppo For centuries water has been used as a focal point in gardens. Fountains, waterfalls and reflecting pools provide a symphony for the senses and add interest to any landscape. The extreme weather conditions we have been experiencing remind us of the ecological balance we need to work towards with many issues. Using…
For the Birds
November 11, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Landscape Design, Wildlife Habitats
by Karen Bussolini Bluebirds brighten any day, but their blast of blue and muted melodies especially lift my spirits in winter. On sunny mornings they’re like blue-clad clowns catching drops of snowmelt mid-drip as they hang upside down from the eaves of my garden shed. When every feathered creature around descends on the big old…
A Word About Weeds
November 11, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Invasive Plants
by Teri Dunn Chace Excerpts taken from How to Eradicate Invasive Plants © Copyright 2013 by Teri Dunn Chace. Published by Timber Press, Portland, OR. Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved. Worldwide Weeds Culturally, we live in a global village, thanks primarily to a dazzling array of technological advances in transportation…
Native Conifers Dominate Our Winter Forests
November 11, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Trees
story and photos by Rob Zimmer Printed with permission by the Wild Ones Journal and Rob Zimmer Nature provides stunning seasonal beauty with the many species of conifers that call North America home. They thrive in just about every habitat, and make exceptional landscape choices for those who wish to bring nature home, especially for…
High-Impact Native American Shrubs
May 15, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Native Plants
by Thomas Berger In recent years homeowners have developed a consciousness about the need to include more native plants in their gardens. But when thinking of native shrubs in particular, what often comes to mind are bulky plants that appear “out of scale” and are sparse in ornamental features. Serviceberry, Chokeberry and American Cranberry Bush…
The Disconnect Between Garden Aesthetics and Local Ecology
May 15, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Native Plants
by Curtis Jirsa Reprinted with permission from The Wild Seed Project. The horticulturist Alan Chadwick, according to his disciples, rebuked anyone caught weeding sow thistle (Sonchus) from his garden beds. “They’re all plants,” he once declared. “It’s just that, if a plant is growing where we don’t want it to grow, then we call it a…
Walk on the Wild Side
February 18, 2017 in Gardening Basics, Landscape Design
by Noel Kingsbury Reprinted with permission of the author from New Small Garden, Quarto Publishing, September 2016. Plants make a garden. There are gardens constructed without plants, but the absence of green living things in a space dubbed a ‘garden’ is more often than not a gimmick. For most people, a garden is inconceivable without…
Garden Insect Primer: Getting to Know Common Garden Insect Pest Groups and their Associated Signs of Plant Damage
November 13, 2016 in Gardening Basics, Pest Management
by Bruce Wenning There are 31 orders of insects, but of those only 11 orders contain economically important pests of trees, shrubs, garden plants, lawns, vegetable crops, wood, and fiber. Most of the insect damage caused to garden plants plaguing garden maintenance people and garden designers are concentrated in just seven orders.
A New Approach to Landscaping in Long Island: Changing the Process to Protect Our Waterways
August 15, 2016 in Gardening Basics, Stormwater Management
by Tia Novak Across Long Island, the very thing that makes the place so special is under attack: water. The degradation of water on Long Island is nothing new, but the problem has been getting increasingly worse. Stories of another pond rendered too toxic for human use are emerging more frequently than ever before. Life-long…
Rainwater for Gardens: Why Plants Love Rainwater Best
August 15, 2016 in Gardening Basics, Rainwater Harvesting
by Jesse Savou Reprinted with permission from BlueBarrelSystems.com. It might not come as a surprise that there’s no water plants love better than rainwater. Imagine your thirsty plants doused in droplets fallen fresh from the sky, their leaves expertly channeling the bounty down stalks and into the soil—right to the root zone where it is…
Tasteful Outdoor Lighting, Responsibly
March 17, 2016 in Gardening Basics, Landscape Design
by Jennifer Nichols I was recently asked if GreenWeaver installs outdoor lighting. Any good business person would immediately jump on this opportunity to sell additional services to a client, but I always respond to this question with reservation. As an environmentally responsible landscape company, how do we justify adding services that require electricity, have the…
