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Visit a nursery developing new blight resistant boxwood cultivars. Meet a garden author committed to sustainable food production and learn how to improve your harvest.
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VPM/VPMGet a close-up view of the microbial life inside of plants and soil at a Cooperative Extension laboratory. Visit a colonial style garden to learn about flowers and herbs grown to make colorful dyes for fabric. -
If you mention plants for the shade garden, one of the first plants that comes to my mind is hosta. This wonderful plant is one of the first plants that got me to become the “plant nerd” I am today. So even as I balance my garden with more native plantings, hosta will be part of my 30%. These plants come in an array of sizes, colors, variegation, leaf shapes and textures. There are even dwarf cultivars, yes, dwarf! Tiny versions of hosta are growing in popularity and as their larger cousins, they have a special place in my heart.
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Once a year the Virginia Home Grown Team is at the RVA Big Market in Richmond’s Bryan Park. We have a wonderful time interacting with everyone who stops by. I particularly enjoy answering gardening questions, and this year a common question was about rain gardens.
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VPM/VPMDiscover popular houseplant varieties and learn about their care. Visit a garden featuring unique herbs and discuss their uses beyond the kitchen.
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I am looking forward to consistently warmer weather so we can plant our heat-loving crops such as tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, cucumbers and melons. However, what I am not excited about are the increased number of pests and diseases that come along with the warm weather.
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We all know the heat is coming; it’s only a few weeks away. Rather than react, I act now by taking a few simple steps to keep the landscape green, growing and resilient.
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Tim Wright/VPMExplore state and national champion trees at Richmond’s historic Maymont park. Tour Dragon Run on the Middle Peninsula to learn about bald cypress and the old growth forest network.
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PhotoJuthamat - stock.adobe.com/376424661Is your soil ready for your plants? This is a great question and most of us might just look at the soil to say yes — it looks loamy and has that black, rich color, or no — it looks like red Virginia clay to me! There is so much more to soil than meets the eye, and I want to introduce the best way to know more about what is in your dirt: the soil test.
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I garden with deer, where more than a dozen think my gardens are their personal restaurant to browse through. I have gardened with deer for many years, and through research backed by expensive trial and error on my part, I now only buy plants with specific traits.
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As gardeners, during the winter months we start missing our time in the garden. We spend so much time in our gardens during the warm season, that when we are forced to slow down due to frozen ground or uncomfortable cold, we can start feeling depressed and eager to get back to playing in the soil.
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Meet organizations growing greener communities. Explore a farm in Petersburg empowering youth to become stewards of their local food systems. Visit ReLeaf Cville and learn how planting trees to provide shade creates healthier neighborhoods.
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Recently, I visited my sister — and while there I joined in on her daily walks. During one, she told me about a plant she received from a friend and called it Bishop’s weed. I am not the best at common names, particularly when in a different part of the country, so I wondered which plant she was referring to. This experience always leaves me wondering about gardeners who rely solely on common names.
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Mulching is a time-honored technique in the garden. Using plant-based materials like wood chips, bark, leaves, grass clippings and compost are all ways to add “organic” amendments to your soil.
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Visit a private garden using sustainable practices to promote soil health. Learn about biochar, a nutrient-rich additive that improves soil fertility and structure while sequestering carbon underground.
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Four recent Virginia Home Grown features were honored at the 45th Annual Telly Awards, receiving one silver and three bronze recognitions across a variety of categories.
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Many gardeners are afraid of the thought of container gardening, when in fact gardening in containers not only can add interest to your gardening spaces, but are also very functional.
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The first flush of summer blooming flowers lights up the garden creating a magnificent sight and then, unfortunately, they fade. Keeping plants robust and repeatedly flowering means the gardener must not only maintain plant health but remove the spent blossoms, too.
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Investigate climate change in the Commonwealth and learn about work to adapt our landscapes to the new normal. Discover how marshes buffer against sea level rise. Explore challenges and opportunities facing public gardens due to warmer growing zones.
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With spring flowers faded away and the summer garden getting into gear, there are a few tasks you can do during these early days of summer.
