Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Plant bio’ Category

This amazingly prolific aster is everywhere in my yard, and that is not a bad thing as it was also one of the favorite feed plants of a resident woodchuck. The young plants were simply decimated down to the soil, while the taller plants are now mostly devoid of their big leaves. Many stems were […]

Read Full Post »

There are many cultivars and color variations of this particular species of aster. When you go to garden centers you will often find these plants under the name Michaelmas daisies. Mind you, these “daisies” don’t look anything like the plant of origin. And here’s another trivia (or trivial?) item: At one point in time, New […]

Read Full Post »

This aster does not need a lot of care and can be grown easily in average soil. Unlike some of the woodland asters, it prefers sunny conditions. The plant can get rather tall (up to 6 feet tall) and lanky, and when the flowers appear it may require staking. Another way to get bushier shorter […]

Read Full Post »

This aster has showy violet-blue flowers with golden centers. The plant is relatively easy to grow and control in many different soil and light conditions, but it does best in full sun and somewhat sandy soil. The foliage is very green and smooth (it is less hairy and rough than other species of aster)

Read Full Post »

This plant can reach 2 to 5 feet in height and displays a plateau (flat topped) of creamy white flowers when in bloom. The flowers are relatively long-lived from August through October. The florets of the flower heads turn a creamy white color after the bloom period. The plant has no basal leaves but there […]

Read Full Post »

Bigleaf aster is named after the large heart shaped leaves. These leaves are up 8 inches long and 6 inches wide, on long stems. They become progressively smaller up the main stem; leaves at the top of the plant have little or no leaf stem. All leaves are coarsely toothed; attachment is alternate. You should […]

Read Full Post »

The american globeflowers in my garden ceased blooming a week or two ago, but just now I’ve had a chance to put pen to paper. I find the distribution of this plant quite curious – there is a distinct western population, and a population in a few eastern states (New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, […]

Read Full Post »

Yellow fairybells is another interesting native neighbor (meaning it does not occur naturally in Massachusetts – it is found in Appalachia, Arkansas and the province of Ontario). This member of the Lily family displays strongly veined light green leaves – it is somewhat similar to Uvularia grandiflora from afar. The little yellow flowers are beautiful, […]

Read Full Post »

I have to admit, I am not quite sure whether this is now truly considered a distinct species, or a sub species from Athyrium filix-femina (lady fern). Whatever the case, I added the “forma rubellum” to my yard. This fern can be grown quite easily on rich woodland soils, although it does not like wet […]

Read Full Post »

While Phlox divaricata is not native to Cape Cod, or even Massachusetts, this “native neighbor” is just too beautiful a plant to leave out of our woodland garden. Wild blue phlox, or woodland phlox as it is often called, is found from Hudson Bay all the way down to Texas and Florida. For some reason […]

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »