Search results for: 'hats'

For some perennials, it is especially difficult to move or divide them. You plant them, they thrive, then you decide to uproot them and they just don’t want to go there. Perennials that would just as soon be left alone include Baptisia, lupine, Oriental poppy, milkweed, Russian sage, goatsbeard, red hot poker, and peony. To learn ways to increase your success, our go-to horticulturist Ruth Clausen provides tips. When you move them and how you do it is critical. Learn when the optimal time to mo...

I've often heard that the showy, sun loving plants we call geraniums, are actually not geraniums but are pelargoniums. It's confusing, so I asked horticulturist Ruth Rogers Clausen for some clarity. Here's what she had to say. Geraniums and pelargoniums belong to the same botanical family: the Geraniaceae. However, the common name “geranium” is often used incorrectly in reference to members of the Pelargonium genus. There are multiple species in each genus, most of which are resistant to browsing dee...

Last year the ornamental cherry tree on my property had the most glorious blooms and this year it didn’t. The same with my lilacs. On the other hand, my crabapples bloomed beautifully this year but last year they were so-so, and I expect they will be so-so again next year. Many trees and shrubs need a “rest” year. Some of this is part of the mystery of nature, but often there are other explanations for why our trees and shrubs have good years and bad years, some which we can control and some which ...

When ecommerce spiked during the pandemic, consumers started worrying about the packaging that products were being shipped in. Were there eco-friendly choices? One company that designs for recyclability is EcoEnclose. Womanswork customers will recognize their green bird logo. Recently I interviewed Saloni Doshi, a business leader who has been on the frontline of this issue for seven years. As CEO and co-owner with her husband of the Colorado-based packaging company, she’s deep into sustainability re...

A pot et fleur arrangement starts with a living potted plant to which cut flower stems are added. The live plant provides an armature for the cut flowers. I chose some clivia miniata plants I have growing indoors. They won't send up shoots with flower buds until early next year, so they're perfect for providing greenery around the cut flowers.  I went into our local grocery store and bought some cut flowers. I did not need to buy as many as I would if I were making a full arrangement with all cut flowers. ...

Not all frosts are equal. You can find out more about expected frost and freeze dates at your local cooperative extension website or by searching 'frost dates' along with your town and state or zip code. You can match that information with the 10-day forecast on your phone's weather app. A light frost occurs when temperatures fall to between 29 and 32 degrees F. Some tender plants will die. A moderate freeze occurs when temperatures go from 25 to 28 degrees F. Temperatures that fall below 24 degree...

Traditionally it was considered good form to tidy up the garden before winter by cutting back just about everything to a few inches of the ground. Many horticulturists and naturalists now recommend that you leave some plants for winter interest and wildlife sustainability. But which ones? Here are Ruth Clausen’s tips for putting your garden to bed this fall. Be choosy about what needs to go. Observe which plants are diseased or pest-ridden and get rid of those. Put diseased plant material in a tra...

I am giving my neighbor, an ecologist and avid gardener, the Womanswork Houseplant Kit for Christmas.  I wanted to make her gift pop with a paper dahlia instead of a bow.  Here's how I made it. Supplies needed: Scissors Paper - Scrapbook, Cardstock, Construction Paper, etc. Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks Step-By-Step Instructions: Step One: Cut a circular base out of paper.  You can use the same paper as the petals or a complimentary color/style.   In the example I used...

Dominique Charles is a woman with a mission. A busy professional living in Washington, DC, she first began gardening in 2014, after her friend Lauren built her a starter garden as a gift. Despite having grown up in New Orleans, and spending summers helping her grandparents - Emmitt and Thelma Muse of Greensburg, Louisiana – with their farm, where her favorite activity was picking blackberries and snapping green beans, Dominique didn’t really believe that she had a green thumb. It wasn’t until sh...