There are hundreds of myths about plants and gardens, but at this time of year it’s appropriate to address a few misunderstandings about planting. 1. “Is it too late to plant?” aka “Don’t plants have to be installed by the end of May?”  No matter what you’re putting into your yard and garden, there is…

Although the “word on the street” is that winter moth larvae damage isn’t going to be as bad this year, I have seen them on every property I’ve visited in the past ten days. They are still very small, so the damage they are doing is only noticeable when you look at a plant closely.…

Remember the fall of 2017 when it was warm, warm, warm, even through November? Remember how some PJM Rhododendrons came into bloom and the buds on the Hydrangeas were starting to swell as if it was spring? And perhaps you recall that in early December the temperatures suddenly plunged down into the low 20’s. Well…

As the garden center fills with beautiful plants for the summer season, our customers are asking if they can plant what they see outdoors. “Can I put my tomatoes in?” one man asked today, and yesterday a woman called wanting to know if she could plant the basil outdoors. Today is May 1st and we…

The containers we use on our porches, decks and patios are one way that we give our yards and gardens “a sense of place.” Our pots, urns and boxes can celebrate the natural world near the sea, but do so in a subtle way that doesn’t distract from the plants or the house. Large collections…

Over the past two weeks I’ve had many customers come to me asking about the moss in their landscape. “Where did all the moss come from?” or “What can I do about the moss in my lawn?” If you’ve been concerned about the amount of moss in your lawn and garden, this blog post is…

Now that it’s finally warming up, many on the Cape are taking a close look at what is going on in their lawn and gardens, and they are seeing weeds. Areas that were fine last fall are suddenly filled with small plants, many of them with tiny leaves. “What are these weeds and how can…

When I heard that on April 14th and 15th the Bonide company was going to donate their profits from the sale of their products in our store to Habit for Humanity Cape Cod, they had my attention. I routinely use many of their products through the course of the summer, so here was a change…

Mid-March is the time to start tomato plants from seed if you’re growing them inside under lights. Some of our customers do this,while others want to jump-start their tomatoes by buying seedlings later in April and then growing them on indoors until it’s time to plant them outside in late-May. Here are some tips for…

As you prepare to plant in your yard and garden this spring, consider using one of the colorful ninebark shrubs. There are many varieties of Physocarpus opulifolius, our native ninebark, that have purple, copper or lime-green leaves. When you plant a Physocarpus, you get two for one: flowers and foliage color. This shrub is also…

The wonderful thing about a digital library of photos is that you have a very quick and accurate time machine. I took a trip back through the years today prompted by a conversation I had with a customer. “This March is so different!” she mused. “I don’t remember a year when it was this bad.…

One of the most striking images from the recent “Winter Storm Riley” on Cape Cod was the photo of a house in Sandwich that was struck by seven fallen trees. A homeowner’s nightmare, right? All of these trees were one of our native pines, Pinus rigida. Frequently called “scrub pine” or “pitch pine,” these trees…