Compost Smart: What's your composting setup? Bin, tumbler or open pile—or maybe even an ingenious set of three pits in the ground? And most important, how is it working? More effective composting tactics, along with other timely advice to prepare for spring, was the subject of my conversation with New York Botanical Garden instructor Daryl Beyers.
The popular course that Daryl Beyers teaches at NYBG in New York City is called Fundamentals of Gardening. And now Daryl, who has more than 25 years of professional landscaping experience besides his teaching role, has put all the fundamentals into a new book, “The New Gardener's Handbook.”
It was in its pages that I picked up some new-to-me tips on better composting and more—including the right way to water as you plant trees and shrubs; how to choose which limbs to prune off or keep when shaping and thinning; and how to rejuvenate overgrown shrubs (all at once, or in stages?).
Native plant conservation: When you're talking plants and not people, how do you figure out who lives where? You can't send census takers door...
Like everyone around this time of year, I get into a “looking back while looking ahead” combined mindset. Today I want to do just...
Okra: If you had told me I'd be reading an entire book about okra, and often laughing out loud delightedly in the process, I'd...