With the changing season, it’s time to close the garden down. Before the cold weather hits, drain and bring in outdoors hoses, clean and sharpen garden tools and start protecting plants for winter.

Wrap young trees with plastic or wire fencing to about 2 feet up the trunk and a few inches below the ground, to protect the young bark from rodents and rabbits.

Erect A-frame, snow barriers for shrubs planted near the house to avoid damage from falling snow and ice. And cover tender perennials, such as lavender, with wood chips in late November.

Unfortunately, it's also time for me to say goodbye. After a 10-year-run, this is my last Connecticut Garden Journal post. I've enjoyed being part of Connecticut Public and appreciate all the people that made this show happen. Thanks to John Dankosky and Catie Talarski for believing in me 10 years ago to start the show. And to Tim Rasmussen for having me host a series of gardening TV shows during Covid where we won a Regional Emmy. And, of course to all the people behind the scenes, such as Cat Pastor and Robyn Doyon-Aiken, who made the show happen each week.

And special thanks to you listeners. For all the emails, questions and comments and greetings I received in person at garden club meetings, flower shows and garden conferences. It's been great connecting with such avid gardeners over the years.

So for now, I'll hang up my garden tools, clean off my boots and close the garden shed. You may not be hearing me live anymore on the radio, but the past shows live on at Connecticut Public. Until we meet again, I'll be seeing you in the garden.

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It's hard to think about winter with such warm, fall weather, but spring flowering bulbs need to be planted soon. If you want to enjoy your spring flowering tulips, daffodils, crocus and other bulbs a little earlier in spring or if you don’t have a garden, consider forcing them in containers. 

You can plant two different ways. Either plant all one type of bulb in a pot for a big splash, or layer different bulbs in the container for a more extended flower show. First, select a container at least 10 inches in diameter. The bigger the pot, the more bulbs you can plant and the bigger the show. Fill it with potting soil. Then plant your bulbs 2 times their diameter deep.

For layering bulbs select bulb types or varieties that mature at different times. For example, plant large, late flowering varieties of daffodils on the bottom, mid season tulips in the middle and early season crocus on top. Plant the bulbs at the correct depth and fill in potting soil on top of them before adding the next layer.

Water your pots well and place in a dark, cool room, basement or garage that doesn't freeze for 14 weeks. This will allow your bulbs to grow roots and get the winter chill they need. Come late February you can start moving them into a sunny, warm room to grow. Take all the pots out at once or stagger them to extend the flower show. When finished flowering, grow them as houseplants until the leaves yellow, then plant them in the ground for next year.

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One of the trends I've noticed in our region is longer and warmer falls. This is an opportunity to garden more and now is the time to start planting quick maturing, cool weather loving veggies.

The easiest veggie to grow for a fall harvest is greens. Spinach, lettuce, arugula, escarole, kale and Swiss chard can all be sown now from seed or purchased as seedlings from local nurseries. These veggies have a few advantages. You can start eating them while they're small so you don't have to wait for them to mature. They love the cooler temperatures in September and October. And they can hold well in the garden when the shorter days slow the grow of all plants.

Look for fall or winter adapted varieties to grow, such as 'Winter Giant' spinach, 'Winter Density' lettuce, and 'Winter Bor' kale. They all can take a frost and keep on growing.

Prepare a raised bed in full sun by removing old plants that have finished producing such as squash, cucumbers and tomatoes. Amend the soil with fresh compost and sow seeds or transplants into the soil. You can also start seedlings in pots on a porch and transplant the seedlings in 2 to 3 weeks. Seedlings are more likely to survive than seeds. Cover the whole bed with micro-mesh or a floating row cover to keep pests away and keep the bed warm. Check under the cover regularly to make sure slugs and other critters haven't snuck inside. Harvest when leaves are large enough to eat. Pick the outer leaves so more new leaves will grow from the center.

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This Thanksgiving season is a good time to mend fences. I'm not talking just about relations with family and friends, but literally, fixing your garden fences. The weather is cool, the ground hasn't frozen yet and it's a good time to assess not only fences, but other garden tools and features to see if they need fixing, removing or replacing.

Let's start with the fence. We have a 7-foot-tall wire fence around the main part of our garden for deer control. It's worked well except for the occasional errant deer that tries to jump the fence every few years. That means it's been bent and broken in places. We've been cutting and mending that fence so the deer stay on “their side” of the garden. This is true for wooden and plastic mesh fences as well.

Hoses and nozzles always seem to leak for us after a few years. First of all, drain them of water well and store the hoses in a dry, protected spot in winter. This will reduce cracking and breaking of the hose and couplings. Check the nozzles and, if they leak at the point of contact with the hose, get a new O-ring rubber washer to fit in the nozzle. Clean the nozzle as well.

Take a good look at your cutting tools such as hand pruners, hedge trimmers and loopers. Clean and sharpen the blades now and oil the movable parts. Finally, do an assessment of what needs replacing such as grow lights, plant markers and plant stakes and do a little shopping now since you're already in the holiday spirit.

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When I was a boy growing up in Waterbury, each November my mom would send me “into the woods” of my grandfather's farm to gather branches of mountain laurel. Mom had a brick planter box as part of our front porch and she liked to decorate it for the holidays. Mountain laurel was perfect because this broadleaf evergreen shrub grows in abundance in Connecticut and lasts into winter. It got me thinking about decorating outdoor containers for winter.

Broadleaf evergreens are a good place to start. Kalmia, or mountain laurel, Pieris, evergreen holly and rhododendrons all make nice evergreens to fill an outdoor container. Try not to cut the flower buds of the rhodis, though, so you'll still get flowers in spring. Evergreen boughs, such as spruce, pine and cedar, are nice green backdrops as well.

To add splashes of color include some berry plants. Some shrubs and trees with nice berries are winterberry holly, red or yellow crabapples, beauty berry or callicarpa and cotoneaster. You can add color with branches, too. Red and yellow twigged dogwoods, paperbark maple and red barked Japanese maples all add brightness and texture to compliment the evergreens.

Once you gather the branches, take a large plastic container filled with potting soil and decorate the container. Recut and place tall branches in the center with smaller and cascading branches along the edge. Don't be surprised if the birds find your creation and help themselves to some berries over winter. Place the container out of the wind and within view of your windows so you can see the beauty you've created from inside the house.

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Fall is a great time to harvest root crops. But if you have lots of carrots, beets, parsnips, potatoes and other roots, consider storing them indoors so you can enjoy them into winter.

The first step is to know the storage needs of your roots. Root crops generally like a cold, damp place in winter. Ideally it would be a room that stays between freezing and 40 degrees and has moderate humidity. Root crops are prone to shriveling in dry homes. You can store most roots (except beets) for a few months in the refrigerator if you wrap them in a damp paper towel and store in a crisper. But for long term storage, a basement or unheated garage that stays above freezing, is best.

Once you find the best location, prep your roots. For carrots, beets and parsnips, clean and cut off the greens to one half inch of the top. Only store undamaged roots. Use a cardboard or wooden box and add a 4-inch thick layer of sawdust or slightly moistened peat moist to the bottom. Lay out the roots not touching and cover with 2- to 3-inches of material. Keep layering until you fill the box. If freezing is a concern add some insulating materials around the box to keep it warm. Your roots should last 3 to 5 months.

Potatoes and sweet potatoes are easier. Let them cure after harvest in a warm, well-ventilated room, for a week or so. Store them away from onions in a cool basement or garage and, depending on the variety, they will last for 5 plus months.

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With all the warm, fall weather we've been having, getting out in the garden is a pleasure. One of the fall tasks we can do is a soil test.

A soil test is an inexpensive way to get a snapshot of soil nutrients in your garden, the pH and organic matter content. While you can purchase simple home test kits, I like to use the pros to sample my soil. The University of Connecticut Soil Lab in Storrs will test home garden soils for $15/per sample. Their analysis will test levels of phosphorous, potassium, calcium, magnesium and other nutrients as well as pH. Based on the results they will give you recommendations for ways to remedy anything that's out of whack.

While doing a soil test can happen anytime the ground isn't frozen, fall is best because you'll get a more accurate reading and you'll have plenty of time to add sulfur, limestone or nutrients. These will slowly breakdown over winter and be ready for your plants next spring.

Download the forms and instructions online. Take a different soil sample for different types of landscape areas. For example, take separate samples for a blueberry patch, vegetable garden, lawn area or tree section. In the vegetable or flower garden wait one month after spreading compost or manure to take a sample so not to skew the results. Follow instructions as to how deep to dig for each sample and randomly take 10 samples in the same garden. Mix the samples together and take 1 cup to send it to the lab. You can mail or drop off the samples.

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So, you bought more pumpkins and winter squash for carving and decorating than you have willing hands to help. Now you're wondering what to do with those extra pumpkins and gourds Why not make planters out of them?

This is a simple way to add to your Halloween decorations and have a planter for the holidays! You can make planters out of large or small pumpkins and gourds. Simply cut off the top, hollow out the center (saving the pumpkin seeds for roasting) and fill the squash with potting soil.

Now the fun begins. Check out local garden centers and farm stores for left over annual flowers, herbs or veggie transplants to plant or dig some from your own garden. You can also use succulents and small houseplants, too. Decide on your hair style. We use scallion transplants I found at a local garden center to create mohawk look. We also found some calibrochoa trailing plants for a floppy hair style. Finally, we bought some small flowering cabbages for a crew cut, flat top look. You can combine these plants with some scary face painting as well. Once the fall freeze causes the pumpkins to soften, move the whole creation into the compost pile.

For a more elegant look, use smaller gourds and mini pumpkins and place one small succulent or houseplant, such as sedum, echeveria and aloe, in each. Keep them in a cool, sunny room indoors in November and use them to decorate the Thanksgiving table. Once the gourds and mini-pumpkins start to soften, transfer the houseplants into plastic pots for your indoor winter garden.

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With the leaves dropping and the weather still warm, it's a perfect time to start fall garden cleanup. This time honored process has undergone some recommended changes over the last few years. Let me explain.

First, if the flowers are still blooming and veggies and herbs producing, leave them. Enjoy every last moment of this year's garden before frost takes it all away. In annual flower and vegetable gardens, cut to the ground and remove any diseased or insect damaged plants. If the plants were mostly healthy this summer, consider trying the No-Dig Gardening method of chopping the foliage and dropping it right on the soil. This will protect the garden soil from erosion, keep the soil microbes healthy and be less work.

In the perennial flower garden, the current recommendation is to leave the plants until spring. Cleaning up the dead plants now removes beneficial insects and pollinators that overwinter in the leaf and stem material. In spring, after a week of 50 degree days, you can clean it all up.

Add arborist's wood chips to the perennial flower beds that have open areas and around shrubs and trees. A 3- to 4-inch thick layer of arborists' wood chips keeps weeds away, breaks down to feed the soil and is better than shredded mulch because it doesn't block air and water transfer. Check with your local arborists to get a load of chips.

Top dress lawns with a 1/4-inch thick layer of compost and reseed bare spots to create a thicker, lusher lawn with fewer weeds and help the lawns stay green during a drought.

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Now is the time to plant tulips, daffodils, crocus, hyacinths and all types of bulbs for a spring flower display. While many gardeners like planting similar bulbs together in groups, if you only have a small yard or area for planting, there's another technique you can use.

Layering is planting different bulbs together in a large hole. If done properly, you can have many types of bulbs blooming in succession in spring. The key is bulb selection.

Bulb packaging in garden centers often lists the bloom times of the various bulbs. Select a number of different bulbs and mix and match early, mid and late spring flowering times so something new is blooming every week or so. Start with the large sized bulbs such as hyacinths and daffodils. Those will be planted deepest in your hole. Then look for medium-sized bulbs such as tulips and alliums. Those will be on top of the large bulbs. Finally, select small bulbs such as crocus, scilla and chionodoxa. These are planted on top.

To plant, dig a good sized hole about 8 inches deep and wide enough to fit your bulbs. Plant so the bulbs are almost touching in well-drained soil. Lay the largest bulbs 6 inches deep and cover with soil. Layer the medium-sized bulbs 4 inches deep and again cover those with soil. Finally, layer the small bulbs on top of the medium bulbs only 1- to 2-inches deep. Cover it all with soil and water well.

In spring, depending on your selections you'll have waves of crocus, daffodils, alliums and tulips blooming giving you weeks of bulb joy.

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I recently visited a garden center in Massachusetts and was amazed at the variety of pumpkins. No longer are there just large, medium or small pumpkins. Now there are pumpkins with different skin colors, shapes and interesting abnormalities. Let's look at some options.

Pumpkins for carving haven't changed much over the years with orange, yellow and white skinned versions. But for Halloween displays, the options are much broader.

Mini-pumpkins are only 2 pounds and fit in the palm of your hand. They've become popular for small displays and accents. While there's orange, white and yellow skinned versions, I like the 'Lil Pump-Ke-Mon' pumpkins with orange, white and green stripes on the skin.

Flat pumpkins look like a flat tire version of regular pumpkin. 'Flat Stacker' is a white variety that weighs 15 pounds. 'Rouge Vif D'Etampes' is a French heirloom with red-orange skin. It makes an excellent eating pumpkin once you're done with the decorating. 'Long Island Cheese' is a 10 pound, tan skinned beauty with a tasty, deep orange flesh. And 'Jarrahdale' is a blue skinned flat pumpkin that's also great for eating.

For something really spooky try some of the warty pumpkins. 'Knucklehead' is a 12 pound, orange pumpkin loaded with warts. 'Warty Goblin' is a smaller orange pumpkin with lighter colored warts that give it a sinister appearance. 'Marina Di Chioggia' is an Italian heirloom that's flat, warty and blue skinned. The flesh also makes a great ravioli filling.

Once you have your spooky pumpkins, remember to protect them from a hard frost. Many can be stored and eaten like winter squashes for the holidays.

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Fall is upon us and before we get ready to give up on the herb garden, consider overwintering some herb plants.

Now is the time to start moving some of those herbs indoors. Not only will you save the plants, but also you'll have some fresh herbs in winter. Some herbs are better adapted to the move than others. I find chives, mint, parsley, oregano, thyme and rosemary all can be moved indoors successfully. While basil, cilantro and dill are better left for planting anew next spring.

The key is to start preparing these herbs now for the move. Pot small plants into containers if they aren't growing there already. Cut back plants and move the pots to a part shade location such as a porch. This will help simulate the lower light levels indoors. After a week or so, move the plants indoors, but quarantine them. Watch for any hitchhiking insects, such as aphids and mealybugs. Spray those plants outdoors with Neem oil and insecticidal soap. Once cleaned up, bring them back in.

Grow your herbs in a sunny window away from cold drafts. Mediterranean herbs, such as rosemary, thyme and oregano, love a well-drained soil that dries out between waterings and lots of sun and air movement.

Parsley, mint and chives are okay with a little less sun and need a more consistently moist soil. But don't overwater, especially in the depths of winter.

As new growth emerges in fall and again in late winter, snip it for cooking. Parsley may end up naturally dying by spring, but your other herbs should survive to move back outdoors with warmer weather.

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Fall is a great time of year to build better soil in your garden. Soil is the soul of your garden. It's loaded with billions of microbes that help your plants take up water and nutrients and keep them healthy. By amending the soil with local, organic materials, you'll be feeding the microbes for a healthier garden.

But not all microbes are alike. In annual garden soils, bacteria dominates and it likes easy to break down organic materials such as untreated grass clippings, chopped leaves, compost, hay and straw. Make sure your beds are covered with these materials going into winter. Not only do these materials slowly break down to feed the microbes in fall and spring, but they protect your soil from wind and rain erosion. Don't work the organic materials into the soil. That will only destroy the microbial networks that have been created. In spring, simply move aside whatever materials are left, add a thin layer of compost and plant.

For perennial flowers, trees and shrubs, these soils are more fungi dominated and, like the forest, they like slow to break down organic materials such as bark and wood chips. Add a 3- to 4-inch thick layer of arborist's wood chips around these plants. Ask your local arborist to deliver some chips from a nearby job site or check out getchipdrop.com to sign up for a delivery. Often it's free. The chips let air and water easily flow through it.

Based on a soil test, you can also add lime and any nutrients your soil seems deficient in now. This will give the nutrients time to break down before spring.

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The hot, wet summer has been particularly good for growing melons. Cantaloups, honeydews and watermelons all seem to be enjoying the heat and humidity, more than I am.

Once the melon fruits form and start to grow big, the question always comes up about when to harvest the fruits. So, let's talk about harvesting melons.

The easiest melons to know when to harvest are the muskmelons or cantaloups. These are the netted melons. When the skin netting turns brown and the fruit easily slips off the vine when gently lifted, you can harvest. They also will have a sweet smell. Cantaloups are unique in that you can harvest a little earlier than when fully ripe and they will continue to ripen indoors.

Honeydew melons tend to have a smooth skin. There are many types of honeydews, but most do not continue to ripen after harvest. So, you need to wait until the fruits are fully mature to pick. Signs of a mature honeydew melon include a sweet smell and a change in skin color.

Watermelons are another melon that doesn't continue to ripen after harvest and it can be hard to know when they're fully ripe. The old folklore method is to thump the fruit with your thumb and listen for a hollow sound. That technique takes practice. A more reliable method is to look at the tendril or curlycue closest to the watermelon fruit. When it has dried up, check the watermelon belly. If it's turning a yellowish color, it's time to pick.

After harvest, store melons in the crisper drawer in your refrigerator if you won't be eating them soon.

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September is a great time of year to plant perennial flowers. Most gardeners shy away from fall planting because they worry the plants won't survive winter. But if you plant in September, your perennials will have plenty of time to put down their roots before the cold.

Another advantage to fall planting is nurseries and garden centers are offering sales to move their stock. You can even find public gardens holding plant sales to raise money and offer some rare and unique plants. One such plant sale is happening at the Hollister House Public Garden in Washington on the September 11th. Check it out. You can get inspired by their display gardens while picking up some unusual plants.

Once you get your plants home, don't delay in planting. The sooner they're in the ground, the faster they'll get established. Find the right location with proper sun or shade and well-drained soil for your new babies. Remember a garden that's shaded in September, may be in full sun in June, so plant based on the other perennials in that bed.

Plant in groups of 3, 5 or 7 for the best display. It's okay to cut off blooms or yellowing leaves. The plant is probably going dormant this time of year anyway. Take a photo, mark or draw on a map where you planted the newbies because in spring, you may forget. For perennials that might be a little tender for our climate, mulch with a 3- to 4-inch thick layer of wood chips in November to protect the roots and prevent frost heaves from unearthing the new plant. Don't be surprised if your new plants are a little slow to emerge next spring, but just for the first year.

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People often wonder why we grow potatoes. After all, they're plentiful year round in grocery stores. But there's something very elemental about potatoes. They grow easily from little seedling potatoes that yield an abundance of new potatoes. They are a treat to harvest, especially with kids. And I think they taste better.

One question I often get is when do I harvest my potatoes. You can start harvesting when they flower. Yes, some varieties of potatoes flower in midsummer with attractive purple colored, star-shaped blooms. You'll mostly harvest small sized, new potatoes. Of course, if you harvest too many you'll have fewer potatoes in fall.

In late summer, the potato plant starts dying back, and that's you can harvest them completely. If you see mice and vole activity you might want to harvest sooner than later.

On a dry day, gently dig around the base of the row or potato plant with a shovel or iron fork to unearth your spuds. Try not to damage the potatoes when harvesting or they won't last long in storage. Bring the potatoes into a warm, airy room, garage or barn with no direct sunlight. Place them on racks or a dry surface and let them dry for a few weeks. This toughens the skin so they last longer in storage. Brush off the soil and protect them from light with a covering or they might turn green. Green tinged potatoes are still okay to eat, they just won't taste as good. Store in a dark, basement or room where the temperatures stay around 40°F. They should last into winter.

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My mom always loved flowers but in her later years she really couldn't garden much anymore. So, when she was still living at home, my brother planted a Rose of Sharon shrub in the front lawn just outside her kitchen window. Mom spent a lot of time in the kitchen and even though it wasn't the best spot for the Rose of Sharon, she loved seeing the late summer blooms.

Rose of Sharon is in the hibiscus family as you would guess from the brightly colored, trumpet-shaped flowers. It's a hardy shrub in our landscape. Most varieties grow 8- to 12-feet tall, so watch where you plant it. The Chiffon series is a newer type that offers semi-double flowers in colors such as blue, pink, white, rose and lavender. There are dwarf varieties such as 'Lil Kim' with white flowers and a red eye. And 'Sugar Tips' that has variegated leaves and double pink blooms.

Rose of Sharon is not a fussy plant. It grows in full sun or part shade on average soils. It tolerates heat and humidity and once established it's drought tolerant. It will flower into September. 

Rose of Sharon has a graceful vase shape and looks great planted with other deciduous shrubs in a border or hedge, at the back of a perennial flower garden or as a specimen plant in the yard. It doesn't require regular pruning, but it can grow 2 feet a year. If you need to reduce its size, prune in late winter or early spring. Deadhead spent flowers to keep your Rose of Sharon from setting seeds and spreading.

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As students are getting ready to head back to school, it has me thinking of gardening with kids. Many schools have integrated gardens into their classroom curriculums with great success. Research has shown that kids who garden at school learn to appreciate nature more, eat more fresh vegetables at school and at home, score higher in science achievement tests, learn to work better with other kids and generally enjoy being in school more.

While the benefits of school gardens are many, there is often a hesitation from teachers and administrators to start a program. This is understandable, especially if the teachers aren't gardeners themselves. But there are lots of resources available to help with the basics of gardening, lessons planning and finding volunteers. The Connecticut School Gardens Resource Center offers classes and information, Connecticut Master Gardeners can be a volunteer resource, and kidsgardening.org offers lesson plans.

There are some tips for starting out with a school garden program. First, get the administration, other teachers, parents, and facilities and maintenance staff on board. Including them from the beginning will help alleviate some future problems. Start small with a raised bed or some containers. Find a safe and convenient location, such as a courtyard, in full sun with a water source nearby. Work with the kids, volunteers and parents on what to grow. This fall, if you're ready, plant garlic, shallots and spring flowering bulbs in October.

Finally, be patient and realistic with your time. Take it step by step. Once you have a plan and program, you'll see the kids, and plants, will thrive in the garden.

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Whether it's a cantaloupe, honeydew or watermelon, there's something about the sun warmed, sweet, juicy taste of a melon.

All of these melons grow well in our Connecticut gardens, but we do need to know when to harvest. Some melons are easy to spot when ripe and others take practice.

Probably the easiest melon to grow and know when it's ripe are musk melons or cantaloupes. Watch the netting on the cantaloupe skin. When it turns light brown give the fruit a gentle tug. If it slips off the vine, it's ripe. Also, check for the sweet, melon fragrance by sniffing the end of the fruit.

Honeydew melons are little more complicated. They don't slip off the vine and usually don't have a strong aroma. Harvest honeydews when the skin color changes to a yellow color and the blossom end has a little give to it when pressed.

Watermelons are probably the most confusing to know when to harvest. Like honeydews, they don't slip off the vine or have an aroma. The best clue is when the small, curly-cue vine that's closest to the fruit turns brown. You can also check the bottom of the melon to see if it's turned yellow. Some gardeners thump their watermelons and listen for the right sound when its ripe.

Melons ripen best with sunny, hot, dry weather, Cut back on watering as melons get large for best flavor. Protect ripening fruits from birds and mice with metal cages.

Visit ctpublic.org/ConnecticutGardenJournal for more gardening tips. 

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It's August and in many perennial flower gardens, the color show has waned. Maybe the rudbeckias and echinaceas are still going strong, but many flower gardens can benefit from a pop of color from some late summer and fall bloomers.

While the traditional asters and sedums will provide some color, if you're looking for a big splash, nothing beats the hardy hibiscus. Unlike the tropical hibiscus, this perennial dies back to the ground each winter and is hardy in Connecticut. It produces dinner-plate sized, white, pink, bi-colored or burgundy colored blossoms from late summer into September. Most plants grow about 3- to 5-feet tall and wide and they make a statement in your garden.

Monk's hood or Aconitum is an impressive, tall, upright perennial that thrives in part shade. The hood-like flowers come in white, pink, or purple colors and the plant loves the cool, moist weather of fall. Just make sure animals or kids don't eat the leaves or flowers because they are poisonous.

Another tall, late-blooming perennial is Rudbeckia Hortensis 'Golden Glow' or the privy plant. Originally grown to hide the outhouse on farms, this rudbeckia grows 6- to 7-feet tall and can spread. The bright yellow, double petaled flowers bloom right into fall and make a nice cut flower.

For something a little lower growing, try the Montauk daisy. Originally from Japan, this perennial daisy has naturalized on Montauk, Long Island, hence the name. It only grows 1- to 2-feet tall with bright white, daisy flowers that bloom from fall to frost. It adds a splash of brightness, contrasting well with fall mums.

Visit ctpublic.org/ConnecticutGardenJournal for more gardening tips. 

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It's berry season. Whether you're growing your own or harvesting berries at a pick your own farm, knowing when to harvest the berries is key to getting the tastiest, sweetest fruits. So, let's talk about harvesting some popular and unusual berries.

First of all, become familiar with the type of berry and variety. Some berries mature to different colors making it important to know what to look for in the berry patch. For example, raspberry fruits can be red, yellow, purple or black, depending on the type.

Strawberries are mostly finished producing, so let's start with raspberries. When picking, wait until the color is solid across the whole berry and the fruits come off the plant with just a gentle tug.

Blueberries are producing right now as well. You'd think it's easy to know when to pick a blueberry, but many people harvest too soon. Wait until the berry is blue all around to harvest. However, I've found that even if you pick a little early, it's okay. We leave blueberries at room temperatures for a day after harvest and I swear they get sweeter.

Blackberries are a bit easier to tell when ripe. They should be black, of course, but they should also come off the plant with a gentle tug. If they resist, check again tomorrow.

Wait until elderberries are plump and black, and then harvest the whole umbel with scissors for making juice, jelly and wine. Currants can be red, white, pink or black. I cup my hand under a group of berries and gently tickle them with my fingers. Ripe berries drop off easily.

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As the nights become cooler in late July and August, powdery mildew disease starts making its appearance on many vegetables flowers, trees and shrubs.

This fungal disease thrives when humidity goes up and temperatures cool in late summer. There are a number of different fungi that cause the disease. It can attack plants such as lilacs, crabapples, bee balm, phlox, tomatoes, squash, zinnias, and many other plants. Beside the white, powdery growth on the leaves, powdery mildew can also cause leaf rolling or deforming and yellowing or greying of the leaves.

While powdery mildew disease usually doesn't kill plants, it can reduce production of vegetables and be unsightly in a garden. Luckily, there are many ways to reduce the infection. First, you can move to a drier climate (just kidding). But better would be to space plants further apart to increase air flow and cause the leaves to dry out, clean up infected plants well and grow resistant varieties. Some good powdery mildew resistant varieties include 'Marshall's Delight' bee balm, 'Volcano' and 'Candy Store' phlox, 'Butterbaby' butternut squash, 'Purple Dome' aster and 'Indian Summer' crabapple.

Start looking for diseased leaves now as it gets started. Pick, remove and destroy the leaves. If you need to spray to control powdery mildew, select organic pesticides and spray now before the diseases starts spreading quickly. Bio Neem oil, Bacillus subtilis (Serenade) and sulphur sprays all will reduce the spread, but not kill established disease. Even a baking soda mixture can help. I've sprayed a 1 tablespoon of baking soda, ½ teaspoon of liquid soap and 1 gallon of water mixture to prevent the disease.

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Each year the Perennial Plant Association chooses a perennial plant of the year to highlight and encourage gardeners to grow. This year they chose a beauty. Little bluestem grass is a hardy, clumping grass native to the prairies that has visual interest from summer through winter. Unlike other ornamental grasses where the show really starts in fall, little bluestem has attractive blue gray, spiky leaves all summer that turn an orange-red color in autumn. It produces white, dainty flowers and seed heads for winter interest and is a good source of food for birds as well. The leaves also can host native butterfly larvae. Depending on the selection, little bluestem can grow 2- to 4-feet tall. Varieties best adapted to Connecticut include ''Standing Ovation' and 'The Blues'.

Little bluestem grows well when paired with a variety of perennial flowers. Grow it next to asters, cat mint, lamb's ears and butterfly weed. You can also grow little bluestem in large groups. Plant them where you can enjoy the plants and seed heads in winter from indoors.

Little bluestem grows best in full sun. Once established, it can resist drought and grow in less than perfect soils. It also tolerates heat and humidity well. It does like well-drained soils. Too much moisture and fertilizer and a lack of sunlight can cause the flower stalks to flop over.

This ornamental grass needs little maintenance to keep looking good. Let the seed heads and leaves persist over winter for the beneficial insects and for an added visual appeal. Cut back the plant in spring after a series of 50 degree days.

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There's nothing like the taste of home grown cantaloupes and other melons from your garden. The warm summer weather is perfect for melon growing, but now also is a time when problems can arise. So, let's do a little melon troubleshooting.

Melons like heat, well-drained soil, water and fertility. Ideally, grow on raised beds amended with compost. Once they start vining, add a small handful of an organic granular fertilizer, such as 5-5-5, around the plants to keep growing strong all summer. Run a soaker hose in the melon patch to insure the soil stays consistently moist, especially during our summer droughts. Use a timer so you don't have to remember to turn the water on and off.

Like all cucurbits, melon plants have male and female flowers and need bees to pollinate the flowers to form fruit. If you notice fruits rotting and falling off when they're small, it may be due to poor pollination. You can help by pollinating the flowers yourself. In the morning, go into the melon patch with a cotton swab. Swish the swab in an opened male flower, one with a straight stem behind the flower. Then swish it in an opened female flower, one with a small fruit behind the flower. Voila, you've pollinated the melon flower.

Cucumber beetles can cause damage to young plants and spread disease. Control beetles by placing yellow sticky cards around the melon patch. Squash bugs love to feed on the leaves. Squish the copper colored, squash bug eggs that are laid in groups on the undersides of the leaves. Check the leaves every few days.

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Late summer is often a time with little color from shrubs in our yard. That's why I love Rose of Sharon.

Rose of Sharon's name is misleading. It's neither from Sharon, Israel or a rose. It's in the mallow family haling from Asia and is the National Flower of Korea. It came to Europe in the 1600's and North America during the colonial era. Thomas Jefferson particularly loved this shrub. This deciduous, hibiscus-family shrub has beautiful, white, pink, red, lavender, blue or bi-colored flowers that bloom now until fall. The flowers are edible and used in making foods and tea.

These shrubs grow 7- to 12- feet tall and make a statement with tons of colorful blooms. The 'Chiffon' series features white, pink, blue, lavender, or red flowers. The ' Pillar' series grows 10 feet tall, but only 4 feet wide, making it a good choice for narrow, side yards. There are dwarf varieties, such as 'Lil Kim' , which grow only 3- to 4- feet tall, and 'Sugar Tip', which is also short with variegated foliage.

Rose of Sharon flowers best in full sun, but can take some afternoon shade. Grow plants in well-drained, fertile soil. Prune in late winter to keep the shrub short and remove errant branches. Rose of Sharon flowers off the new branches formed in spring. Some selections are grafted with a different variety as the rootstock. If your Rose of Sharon magically turns a different color one year, it may be the rootstock is growing and flowering. Rose of Sharon is drought tolerant and deer proof, but remove self sown seedlings in spring.

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Gardeners are very interested in creating pollinator gardens to support all the insects and creatures that help pollinate our food plants and flowers. But the first order of business is to know who's a pollinator.

The poster child for pollinators is the honey bee. This European, native insect lives in groups in hives and is used commercially to pollinate a variety of plants from almonds to apples. Bumble bees are also popular, hive forming pollinators mostly because they're easy to identify. But there are many native bees, such as squash bees, digger bees, and leaf cutter bees, that are solitary insects and can be very efficient pollinators. Mason bees lay eggs in holes in logs, wood and even masonry. You can even encourage mason bees in your yard by hanging mason bee houses for them to nest. They're very efficient pollinators. It only takes two mason bees to pollinate a whole apple tree. The only downside of mason bees is, unlike honey bees who can forage for pollen for miles, mason bees tend to stay only 100 yards from their nest.

Small flies may seem like a nuisance at summer picnics and outdoor activities, but many are pollinators. Tachinid and syrphid flies look similar to wasps and bees, but are non stinging. They can pollinate a range of flowers and vegetables and some control pest insects, such as aphids and scale, as well.

Beetles are not usually thought of as pollinators, but some, such as scarab and soldier beetles, will pollinate magnolia, sweet shrub, and spirea. Even hummingbirds, with their long tongues, are good pollinators of tube shaped flowers.

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Potatoes and eggplants are fun vegetables to grow in Connecticut gardens, but as they start putting on growth you may notice someone else is interested in your plants. Adult potato beetles are large black and tan striped beetles that are active now, laying yellowish-orange eggs on the undersides of leaves. Potatoes and eggplants are their favorite plants to attack, but you'll see the beetles on other night shades such as tomatoes, peppers and petunias, too.

The eggs hatch into small, reddish, soft bodied larvae that start feeding. It's this stage that does most of the damage. While potatoes can lose up to 1/3 of their foliage and still produce a good crop, eggplants and other night shades can be seriously damaged by these beetles.

Luckily, there are a number of things you can do. The simplest control is to check the leaf bottoms every few days for the eggs and crush them. This will stop the potato beetles in their tracks. You can also hand crush the larvae, but wear gloves. It will get messy. Adult beetles are hard to kill with sprays, but the larvae are susceptible to an organic Bacillus thuriengensis or Bt spray, specially formulated for potato beetles. Spray in the evening on just the infected plants, when the larvae are still small, to be most effective.

There are some fun home remedies you can try like using a shop vac to suck the larvae off the plants and planting tansy or catmint around potatoes as companion plants to mask the scent of the potato from the adult beetles. Rotating crops every year helps as well.

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When the peonies and Siberian irises are blooming you may notice another perennial flower making a statement. Baptisia, or false indigo, is a hardy native perennial that features colorful, pea-like flowers on a large, flowing plant.

The traditional species of Baptisia australis features a blue colored flower. But there are newer varieties and other species that have purple, yellow, red and pink colored blooms. Baptisia alba features white flowers. Check out the 'Decadence' series of baptisias for some of these unusual colored varieties.

Baptisia is what I like to call a “shrub-like” perennial. It grows quickly in spring into a 3- to 4-foot tall perennial in a classic vase-shape. It may need support to keep it from flopping over as it gets larger. The pea-like leaves and flowers give away its legume background. Baptisia fixes nitrogen from the atmosphere for food and helps other plants grow, too. It has a taproot, so once established, it's a tough plant to move.

Plant baptisia near other spring bloomers, but remember its size. It will eventually spread over time into a large clump. After the flowers finish in early summer, you can deadhead baptisia and enjoy the dark green foliage. It makes a perfect backdrop for lower growing summer annuals and perennials such as profusion zinnias, salvias, and coreopsis. You can also leave the seedpods to dry on the plant. They form a rattle shape with seeds inside. In fact, historically they were used as a child's toy. Baptisias are generally free of damage from animals, insects and diseases. Come fall, baptisia will die back to the ground.

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There's nothing like fresh sweet corn for a summer dinner. Sweet corn is a great home garden vegetable to grow, if you have room. But even if you don't, varieties such as 'On Deck', can fit in containers. With new and unusual varieties available, it may be time to grow a sweet corn patch this summer.

We're all familiar with white, bi-color and yellow sweet corns and with the newer supersweet varieties such as 'Ambrosia' and 'Peaches and Cream'. Now there are sweet corn varieties in different colors. 'Ruby Queen' is a red kerneled corn that can be eaten when it's bluish-red as a sweet corn, or allowed to mature to a dried corn. It grows 7 feet tall, does best with another supersweet variety close by, and has decorative red tassels. 'Hopi Blue' grows 5 feet tall, can be harvested when young as a blue sweet corn, or allowed to dry to make blue tortillas.

Don't plant sweet corn too early. Wait until the soil has warmed and plant in blocks of 4 short rows per each variety, spaced 2 feet apart. Separate the blocks of varieties with 4 foot wide rows to reduce the chances of cross pollination.

Corn is in the grass family and grows fast. Plant in full sun on fertile soil. Add compost at planting time and an organic fertilizer, such as 5-5-5, when the plants are knee high. Hill the rows when plants are small to keep the stalks from flopping over during a storm. Mulch to keep the soil moist and use electric fencing to keep raccoons out.

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On one of my Garden Tours to England, I became entranced by their cottage gardens. Cottage gardens are known for their abundance of flowers, shrubs, trees, vines and edibles all grown together in what I call “organized chaos”. But there's a plan to this chaos.

Here's a few design ideas when planting a traditional English cottage garden. First, start with the structure of the garden. Cottage gardens often have “rooms” separated by hedges or fences where different colored flowers and themes can be created. Winding pathways also are used to give even a small garden a larger sense of size. Structures and sitting areas are incorporated so you can have places to work, rest and enjoy.

Traditional English Cottage gardens feature pastel colored flowers such as salvias, delphiniums, dianthus and foxgloves. Plant your flowers in groups of 3, 5, or 7 for splashes of color. Mix annuals, biennials and perennials for color from spring to fall. Add fragrance plants such as lavenders, lilies and roses. In shady cottage garden, focus more on leaf texture and color to create a dramatic effect. Add shrubs and small trees for structure in your garden, emphasizing natives such as viburnums, dogwoods and elderberry.

Most importantly allow plants to grow into each other as they overlap flowering times. Prune and thin in spring so plants aren't overwhelmed. The summer effect should be a riot of color and texture mimicking a wild garden.

To learn more about cottage gardening join me at the Stonington Garden Tour on June 10th and 11th. I'll be giving a talk on cottage gardens on that Saturday at 1pm.

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Many gardeners are either downsizing from their large vegetable gardens or have limited space to grow food. A good way to maximize your space is to grow vertically.

There are a number of climbing vegetables beyond the traditional pole beans and peas, that thrive during our hot summers and offer some interesting and unusual fruits.

Many gardeners love pole beans, but this Asian variety is really unique. The 'Red Noodle' yard-long bean climbs on a teepee or trellis producing beans that can grow a yard long, but are best picked when they're about 1-foot long. The beans are thin, burgundy colored and featured in many Asian recipes. It only takes a small handful of beans to make a meal.

I love spinach, but once the weather turns hot, our spinach bolts. There is an alternative. 'Malabar' spinach is a heat loving, climbing spinach that has red veins and stems. It looks fabulous on a trellis. The leaves have a spinach-like texture and may not taste exactly like spinach. They are best used cooked in recipes that require greens.

We all know cucumbers love the summer heat, but here's an unusual vining cucumber family plant that is fun to look at and eat. Cucamelons grow like regular cucumbers up a trellis or support. The plant has small leaves and small fruits. The cucamelon fruits are about the size of a large grape and are striped like a watermelon. Their flavor and texture is tangy and crisp. It's a fun plant to grow for kids and grandkids. Eat cucamelons fresh in salads, pickled or even dropped into your favorite cocktail.

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Whether it be from kids, pets or wildlife, many times our gardens need protection. There's nothing worse than to plant a garden only to have soccer balls knock down plants, dogs dig up the bed or wild animals eat your plants. The key to protecting your plants is often a good fence.

Depending on the perpetrator, the fence can be short or tall, sturdy or delicate. For young kids and small dogs, a 2- to 3-foot tall fence should be enough to keep them from bounding into the garden. A fence made from chicken wire, wood or netting can all work. For larger dogs that are interested in digging, a stronger, wire or wooden fence would work better. For animals, such as woodchucks or rabbits, a 4-foot tall wire fence is best as long as you curve the bottom foot to an “L” shape lying it flat on the ground covered in mulch. This will discourage tunneling under the fence. For woodchucks that climb, don't attach the top of the fence to posts and the woodchuck's weight will bend the fence, dropping them back down to the ground outside your garden.

Fencing may not work for cats that like to climb. Consider placing branches with thorns, such as roses and brambles, on newly planted gardens to discourage cats from using your bed as a litter box.

Good climbers, such as squirrels, won't be thwarted by a fence. Cover prized plants with a floating row cover before they discover them or use smell-based repellent sprays. Just be sure to repeat the sprays as the plant grows.

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“Then we have the irises, rising beautiful and cool on their tall stalks, like blown glass, like pastel water momentarily frozen in a splash. . .” This Margaret Atwood quote depicts the beauty of this spring flower. Irises come in many types. Bearded iris are most common with large, colorful blooms. The clump-forming, Siberian iris has smaller, blue, pink, yellow or white flowers. Japanese iris flowers resemble colorful butterflies floating on the breeze.

Whatever iris you choose to grow, it's important to find the right spot. Select a full sun location on well-drained soil, although Japanese iris grow well in wetter soils. Siberian iris are a little more forgiving of shade, but they will flower better in sun. Well drained soil is key. If you have clay soil either amend it heavily with compost or create a raised bed for good soil water drainage.

Plant bearded iris so the tops of the rhizomes are at the soil line. Don't bury them. Plant Siberian and Japanese iris as you would any perennial. Over time the iris plant will get overcrowded and stop flowering. Divide clumps in summer, removing any diseased or damaged rhizomes, replanting the rest in fresh soil. The clump forming irises, such as the Siberian iris, form a dead area in the center of the clump when overcrowded. Divide in summer removing the dead area and splitting up and replanting the live growth.

Enjoy your iris flowers in gardens matched with other spring beauties such as peonies, salvia and geraniums. Cut flowers for arranging indoors as the first flowers on the stalk begin to open.

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With the rising price of flowers, you might need a different plan for a Mother's Day gift this year. Certainly, you should never skimp on your mom, but even she will appreciate a thoughtful, practical and a little less expensive gift.

When my mom was alive we would make an annual trek to a local greenhouse in Watertown so she could buy her geraniums for her flower boxes and containers. Whether it be a geranium, impatiens, petunia or coleus, a way to save a little money would be to grow your own for mom. By purchasing one plant, you can make many by taking cuttings. Here's how.

Select a branch and cut just below a set of leaves about 6 inches for the tip. Remove all but the top leaves. Dip the cutting in rooting hormone powder and stick it in a container filled with moisten potting soil. Place the pot out of direct sun, but in a bright place, keep watered and in a few weeks it will root and start growing.

Another money saver is making your own flower bouquets. Feature spring flowering daffodils and tulips from your yard mixed with native ferns, wildflowers, a sprig from a flowering apple tree or any other plants that strike your fancy. Mom will appreciate the creativity.

Finally, help mom plant a small, raised bed vegetable garden. A simple 4- by 8-raised bed is plenty of room to grow a bevy of veggies. Fill the bed with soil and compost and work with her to plant her favorite greens, herbs and salad veggies. She'll think of you daily while enjoying those free veggies!

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We've all seen the high price of veggies in grocery stores. That might make you think twice about purchasing a specialty vegetable like asparagus.

So, why not grow your own and have it every year regardless of inflation and shortages. Select varieties adapted to our region. 'Millenium' is a Canadian variety that features all-male plants, good production and the ability to grow in a wide range of soils. 'Purple Passion' is a fun, purple colored heirloom variety. Purchase crowns locally or through catalogs. Find a full sun location on well-drained soil. Dig a trench 1 foot deep and plant the spider-like crowns 1 foot apart in the trench. Ten crowns is probably plenty for a small family. Backfill with native soil to just cover the top of the crowns. As the ferns grow, continue backfilling until you fill the trench.

For the first two years you'll just be weeding and watering. By year three you can harvest for 4 to 6 weeks, cutting just the spears that are pencil width or larger. After that, the production can go on for years, as long as you add compost and organic fertilizer each spring and keep the bed weeded.

For fun, grow white asparagus. This is a gourmet treat in many restaurants and although it looks like a different variety, it's just blanched asparagus. Cover part of your asparagus bed with black plastic and let the spears grow up into it. The plastic blocks the light and turns the spears white, tender and milder tasting.

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There are few animal pests as clever as the raccoon. With their dextrose hands and feet, they can get into garbage cans, sealed compost bins and gardens with relative ease.

I avoided growing sweet corn for years because of raccoons. Then I thought I'd try popcorn. I figured popcorn doesn't have sweet kernels so the raccoons would leave it alone. That worked for a few years, then they found my patch. As usual, the night before I was ready to harvest they struck, munching only bits out of multiple ears and pulling down the stalks. I've seen similar raids on melons, beans and tree fruits!

So, what to do about raccoons. First of all, don't leave any standing water in your yard such as birdbaths and kiddie swimming pools. Raccoons love to clean their food before eating it.

Most fencing is not going to stop a nimble raccoon. They can scale even a tall wire fence. They can even use their hands to open up chicken wire fences cobbled together around a garden. The best fencing is wire cages with tops that completely cover the planting. Stake the cage down well. Of course, that won't work for my 6 foot tall corn stalks.

So, this year I bought a portable, solar, electric fence kit. By setting it up early around the corn patch, I hope to train the raccoons to stay out. It has a solar panel that charges the wires during the day and a battery to keep it charged at night. I just have to keep weeds and grass from touching the fence. Wish me luck!

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Sometimes the simplest vegetables are the best. Snap beans are one of the easiest vegetables to grow and most rewarding. Many of us first grew beans in biology class in elementary school in cups sitting in the class window. The seeds are large, the plants reliable and the fruits tasty.

While snap beans are easy to grow and delicious to eat, there is one group that's even more satisfying.

I love growing French filet beans. These varieties have been bred to grow slender, long beans that don't get stringy and tough, even when mature. Of course, the key is to keep picking them when young (about 4 inches long) when they have the best flavor. These are fresh eating beans and don't can or freeze well. Steamed, sautéed in butter and topped with lemon and parmesan cheese or simply eaten raw, French filet beans melt in your mouth. Some varieties I've grown include 'Nickel', 'Maxibel' and 'Tavera'. 'Velour' is a purple colored French filet variety and 'French Gold' is a pole bean version featuring yellow beans.

Grow beans on raised beds in well-drained soil. Go light on adding compost and fertilizer. Beans are legumes and can fix atmospheric nitrogen into a form of fertilizer they can use. Grow lettuce and other greens around the beans to take advantage of this fertilizer production. Wait until the soil has warmed to plant, to about the time you'd plant tomatoes. Bush beans mature quickly and also fade quickly. So plant in short rows in succession every 2 weeks into early August. This way, you'll have a constant supply of fresh beans to eat.

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Easter is here and for those celebrating, flowers are often part of the festivities. The Easter lily is probably the best known Easter flower. I remember going to church as a boy in Waterbury and having the whole building perfumed with the dozens of Easter lilies on the alter.

The Easter lily is a type of summer blooming trumpet lily that's native to Japan. They're forced into bloom early in greenhouses for the spring holiday. After World War II the West Coast from Vancouver to Long Beach, California took over being the center of Easter lily bulb production. Today a small group of growers are left on the Oregon/California border and that region is known as the Easter Lily Capital of the World.

When purchasing Easter lilies, look for ones with green leaves all the way to the bottom of the plant and 5 or more flower buds. Once home, remove the cellophane wrapper, water when dry and place it in a cool room with bright light. In spring, plant it outdoors and it will bloom next year in summer.

For something different, consider gifting other plants this holiday. Asiatic lilies have brightly colored flowers and are great garden plants. They just don't have the same heady fragrance as Easter lilies. Calla lilies are often found in garden centers this time of year. Many have attractive speckled leaves. Their colorful flowers are actually bracts, similar to poinsettias, that last a long time so this plant will be beautiful indoors for weeks. Plant this annual flower outdoors in early summer in a part-sun location and it should keep flowering until fall.

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Most gardeners think of Asian greens as Chinese cabbage or bok choy (or pak choi). But these traditional veggies have gotten a face lift with new colorful and different sized varieties for salads and cooking.

Asian greens are fast maturing, have beautiful leaves, are easy to grow and are tasty in many foods beyond traditional Asian recipes. Asian greens are often in those baby greens salad mixes we buy.

Some new varieties include 'Rosie' bok choy. It has strawberry colored leaves that can be harvested in 20 days as a baby green or allowed to mature into a full sized, bok choy in 45 days. Tat Soi has dark green colored, spoon shaped leaves. 'Red Cloud' is a burgundy leaf selection that adds color and a little peppery flavor to salads. 'Tokyo Bekana' is a non-heading Chinese cabbage with blonde colored leaves that are ready to eat in 18 days as baby greens. These are fast maturing greens.

Asian greens like cool soil and air temperatures. Sow seeds now indoors to transplant as seedlings into the garden at the end of this month. Once the soil warms and dries, sow seeds of Asian greens in the garden. The combination will give you a longer season of greens as the transplants will yield sooner than the seeded plants. Harvest individual leaves for salads and leave some plants to mature. To ward off flea beetles, plant radishes close by a week or two before planting the Asian greens. The flea beetles will flock to the radish greens where you can spray them with diatomaceous earth.

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Ahhh, I know it's spring when pussy willows start showing up. The stems with gray, fuzzy, catkins are fun to cut and collect for arrangements in the home. Pussy willows are native to our Northern climate and are actually important for pollinators as well. Their early blooming, fuzzy, catkins give way to flowers which are loaded pollen and nectar for emerging bees and insects. By the way, the word catkin comes from the Dutch word for kitten, because they look similar to the tail of a cat.

Like many willows, pussy willows root easily. In fact, we often put some water in a vase of cut pussy willow stems and watch as the roots emerge and the plant grows in the vase. Once the roots are at least a few inches long, you can pot up the pussy willow stems. Keep them in sun and keep the soil moist. By May, plant them in their permanent spot. Pussy willows like full sun and wet soils that have some drainage. They grow into large shrubs and benefit from severe pruning every few years to promote more new growth, which leads to better pussy willows and catkins that are easier to reach.

While gray is the color of our native pussy willow catkins, there are other colored types, such as black and pink. The Asian black pussy willow produces black catkins on plants that are a little more tender than our native. The pink pussy willows are from Asia or Europe and provide a cool color contrast to the black and gray ones. All of these are good for pollinators and grow under similar conditions as our native into large shrubs in the yard.

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As spring is officially here, lots of gardeners are thinking about planting. If you're interested in adding native plants to your landscape, bolster plantings along stream banks, create a pollinator garden or add some edibles to your yard. Consider the Connecticut Conservation District's annual spring plant sales.

The conservation districts help educate the public on the ways to preserve and revive our local ecosystems. They hold workshops for the public and offer support to municipalities, farmers and residents along coastal waterways, helping revitalize these areas. One of the ways of preserving and reviving ecosystems is to plant more native plants. Native plants attract pollinators, provide food for birds, are an integral part of the forest, riparian and meadow ecosystems, and can be attractive additions to your garden. To encourage residents to plant more natives, the conservation districts have an annual spring plant sale where you can purchase many of these native plants at a discount. It's a good way to add natives to your yard for any project, without breaking the bank.

You'll need to order your plants on-line before the end of March. You can pick them up the end of April, depending on the district. Go to conservect.org to find your conservation district. They will have links to plant sales with online order forms and details.

So, plant more native plants for a healthier yard, community and state. It's a small way to make a difference in our yard by repairing damaged ecosystems overrun with exotic invasives and support bees, butterflies, birds and many other creatures on our land.

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With the warmer weather many of us want to plant something and often garden peas come to mind. Peas are a good choice because they germinate in cool soils and need cool air temperatures to produce their best. However, mid-March is a little premature. It's best to wait until early April in warmer parts of the state or late April everywhere else.

That doesn't mean you can't get started. There are basically three types of peas; shelling peas, snap peas, and snow peas. With shelling or English peas, just eat the peas. Eat the pod and all with snap peas, and harvest snow peas while they're still flat. You can also eat them pod and all.

I've grown many varieties over the years beyond the common ones. 'Golden Sweet' is a yellow podded snow pea with beautiful pink flowers. 'Royal Snow' is a purple podded version. There are peas that stay only one foot tall ('Sugar Ann'), ones that grow 8 feet tall ('Tall Telephone') and a variety that has mostly tendrils. These tendril peas are good for growing indoors as microgreens where you eat the leaves and tendrils while they're still young.

Plant peas on raised beds with fertile soil but don't add much compost or fertilizer. Soak seeds in a bowl the night before planting to hasten germination. Place a trellis in the middle of the bed and sow peas in rows on either side. Cover the seeds with row covers if cold, wet weather comes so they don't rot. Keep well watered and weeded and you'll be eating peas in a few months.

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With St. Patrick's Day coming up soon, many people will be touting green clothes, green hats and drinking green beer. Those traditions are fun but, as a horticulturist, the one tradition I don't enjoy are the green carnations. I generally love all flowers, but a white carnation dyed in green just doesn't cut it for me. If you want to give a flower for St. Patty's Day, I have some better options.

The shamrock is the symbolic flower of St Patrick's Day. The original Irish shamrock is thought to have been a clover. It's not the best gift plant. Luckily, florist shops and garden centers are filled with oxalis this time of year. Oxalis grows from a small bulb and has stems with three leaflet leaves and a dainty little flower. There are green varieties, purple varieties and even one called 'Iron Cross' with a red center edged in green. Oxalis can be grown as a houseplant now, and used later in your outdoor container or garden. If oxalis gets leggy or insect-infested simply cutback all the foliage to the soil and it will regrow.

Mini roses are a great gift, especially ones with yellow or white flowers. They contrast beautifully with all the green around. Select varieties that stay only 1- to 2-feet tall and grow them as houseplants now and outdoor plants for years.

Perhaps a true Irish gardener would love some seeds of Bells of Ireland. This annual flower grows stalks with green blooms in summer. Bells of Ireland likes cool weather, self sows, is a great cut flower and would be appreciated all summer long.

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As I cook the last of my frozen sweet peppers from last summer, I'm thinking about this year's crop. I love growing peppers. I've experimented over the years with different varieties and have found a few that grow really well for me.

For sweet peppers I lean towards the bull's horn type. These Italian frying peppers grow easily and produce abundantly. And they turn their mature color, such as red, yellow, orange, faster than bell peppers. This is a treat because even though I like any pepper, I love mature sweet peppers. My two favorite varieties are the red 'Carmen' and the yellow 'Escamillo'. They produce reliably each year. I don't always find transplants in local greenhouses, so I start my own seedlings indoors each April.

I've also grown a variety of hot peppers. These varieties are great because unless you're a hot pepper fanatic, just a plant or two will produce enough to keep your meals spicy all summer and fall. 'Padrone' hot pepper is a variety I first tasted at a restaurant in Barcelona on one of my garden tours. It was grilled with a bit of olive oil and salt. With a pitcher of sangria, those peppers didn't last long. Another keeper is 'Thai Hot'. I grow this attractive, pepper plant mostly to process the mature red fruits for winter. Some peppers get tossed in freezer bags whole and others are dried slowly in the oven and used as crushed hot pepper flakes in my pastas and soups. The stored peppers last frozen or dried about 6 to 8 months indoors. There's nothing like the taste of your own veggies in winter in your meals.

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They're baaack. At least some of them. I recently returned from speaking at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show in Seattle. It was a blast speaking in front of a live audience again, and with masking and vaccination requirements, it felt pretty safe. Next up, I'll be speaking at the Connecticut Flower & Garden Show at the convention center in Hartford on Saturday. I'll be talking about creating a pollinator garden and selling my books. Stop by if you can.

Indoor flower shows are truly a North American phenomenon and I missed them last year due to Covid. They're a blast of spring during our long, cold, snowy and icy winters. Indoor flower shows have display gardens with hundreds of bulbs, shrubs and flowers forced into bloom in greenhouses in winter and transported to the venue in time for the show. These landscapes feature pergolas, waterfalls, ponds and walls, greenhouses and other structures meant to inspire your imagination. The recreated gardens fill the air with the scents, sounds and sights of spring. But there's more. Many shows bring in top notch gardeners from around the region speaking on topics including vegetable gardening, container gardening, native plants and landscape design. Plus, there are vendors selling gardening products, seeds, plants and crafts.

Not all of our regional flower shows are back, though. The Boston Flower & Garden Show is still on hiatus because they can't find a new venue. The Philadelphia Flower Show will be conducted outdoors in June at FDR Park. But the Connecticut Flower & Garden Show is happening right now and the Rhode Island Flower Show runs April 7th to 10th. Check them out.

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It's getting to be indoor seed starting seed time. It's nice starting your own vegetables and flowers indoors from seed. You can grow many more plants for less cost and get to choose from a wider range of varieties. Even if you're not an indoor seed starter, at some point you're probably going to be buying potting soil. That's where soil mixes can become confusing.

There are seed starting or germinating mixes, transplant mixes, potting mixes, mixes with fertilizer, organic mixes, mixes for specialty plants.... it can be mind boggling. Let me try to help.

When starting seedlings indoors, get a seed starting mix. This is the usual peat-based mix, but it’s been more finely milled so the small seeds can germinate better. When transplanting seedlings into larger pots indoors, use an organic transplanting mix. This has more bulk in the mix and some compost, which helps keep the plant growing strong. For container plants in summer, a good potting mix should be fine.

If the plants are perennial, buy a product with compost, or even some bark, in the mix. That will help reduce potting soil compaction over time.

Peat moss is often the key ingredient in many mixes. There is concern about peat moss because the peat is mined, destroying the bogs. While bogs can be restored, it can take years to bring them back. An alternative is coir. Coir is a bi-product of the coconut industry. It's made from milled, coconut husks and is often found in many soil mixes. It absorbs and drains water better than peat moss and is a recycled product.

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One type of perennial flower that I really love is shrub-like perennials. These are plants that quickly grow large in one season and even when they aren't flowering, put on quite a show. The one that's blooming right now is hardy hibiscus.

Hardy hibiscus grows in zones 4 to 9 and is different from the woody, tropical, shrub hibiscus. The hardy hibiscus is a perennial, but dies back to the ground each winter. That doesn't stop it from being a showpiece! The 8-inch diameter, colorful flowers appear on shrubs that can grow 3- to 6- feet tall. The colors range from pure white to deep red in the 'Luna' series. This series only grows 2- to 3- feet tall. There are varieties with burgundy colored leaves as well such as 'Midnight Marvel' and 'Evening Rose'. There are bi-colored varieties, such as the pink and red 'Perfect Storm', and even a light yellow colored variety called 'French Vanilla'.

For best flowering, plant in full sun on well-drained, moist soil. Add compost in spring once the plants emerge and keep plants well weeded. The plants die back to the ground in fall, but leave the stems into winter as beneficial insects sometimes overwinter in them. Cut back the stems in spring and be patient. The new shoots are often slow to emerge from the ground.

Hardy hibiscus has few pests, but the hibiscus sawfly can defoliate leaves in late spring. Check for these small caterpillars on the underside of the leaves and handpick them or spray with an organic product such as Spinosad, in the evening when bees aren't active.

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Valentine's Day is almost upon us and the flower of this special day is roses. It's estimated 250 million roses are grown for Valentine's Day. While it's great to receive cut flower roses, perhaps getting the whole plant might be a better gift.

There may not be full-sized rose plants in garden centers yet, but there are miniature roses. Mini roses are regular rose plants, just bred to be smaller. They're easier to grow than hybrid roses and hardier because they're grown on their own rootstock.

Miniature roses grow best in full sun on well-drained, compost amended soil. Some don't actually stay very mini. Climbing varieties can reach 7-feet tall, but still have the small flowers. There are trailers that can ramble and then there are bush mini roses that stay around 1- to 2-feet tall.

When purchasing a mini rose at a florist or garden center, read the description to know what type of mini rose you're getting. 'Lemon Drop' is a nice, bush yellow variety. 'Sugar Plum' reaches 18- inches tall with lavender colored flower and a sweet fragrance. 'Hot N Sassy' has dazzling red flowers with a yellow center, growing up to 3- feet tall.

Once you have purchased your miniature rose plant for your sweetie, keep it in full sun indoors until spring. Don't overwater. Come spring, find a full sun location to plant the rose in your garden or in a container. Remember the ultimate size is small, so plant it with other low growing flowers.

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Winter is a good time of year to plan some new gardens. One area that always puzzles gardeners is shade. Finding the right perennial flowers to grow in the shade can be challenging. That's mostly because all shade isn't created equal.

The first step is to determine the type of shade you have. Part shade means that at some point there is sun on that area during the day. It could be a few hours in the morning or afternoon. Dappled shade usually refers to light filtered through tree leaves so the light is dappled on the flowers beneath. Deep shade is where no direct light reaches. This is often under an evergreen tree or on the north side of a house. Of course, there are varying degrees to all these designations. We had a house where the north side didn't receive any direct light. But there was enough indirect light and open space around it that we still grew ferns and hostas.

Another factor is moisture. If the area has sandy or rocky soil, you should select plants good for dry shade. These include euphorbia, brunnera, lamium, hardy geranium and epimedium. These will thrive under the dry conditions. If your area has wet soils, choose plants that are adapted such as Soloman's seal, ferns, astilbe, cardinal flower and great blue lobelia.

Don't grow perennial flowers under a low hanging, evergreen tree such as spruce. For limbed up, large deciduous trees, such as oaks, plant away from the trunk so the flowers have fewer large roots to compete with and more light to grow.

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When I talk about begonias, most gardeners think of the wax begonias, ubiquitous in garden centers in spring. These are great bedding plants for shady spots in our yard. They're good in the ground and in containers.

But there are many other begonias and can be great houseplants. These also flower, but some of the best houseplant types have attractive and interesting leaves.

Angel wings begonias get their common name from the shape of their leaves. This is a cane stemmed begonia, meaning that it can grow large outdoors in a warm, humid area. As a houseplant, the stems are easily pruned and the plant kept in bounds. The leaves can often have silver markings and the plant produces beautifully contrasting, colorful red, pink or white flowers.

Another indoor begonia that I love are the Rex begonias. These plants are grown mostly for the unique foliage. Some have red or pink variegated leaves with serrated edges. Others have green leaves that swirl on top of themselves giving the impression of a spiral of foliage. The plant stays a manageable 1 foot tall, can be pruned, but doesn't have impressive flowers.

Grow these indoor begonias in a room with bright, indirect light. Keep the soil moist, but well drained. Too much water can cause the stems to rot. They like 70°F temperatures during the day with cooler nights. In winter it's important they have humidity. Place a humidifier in the room or place the plants on a pebble tray filled to the top of the pebbles with water. Don't mist the leaves or they may rot.

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