This week: 3 Trees with Bark Appeal
Hello! Winter is when trees truly shine—with their leaves gone, you can appreciate their structure and the textures of their bark. And regarding bark, one...
This week: Is a native lawn possible?
Happy New Year! This week, we're reaching into the mailbag and answering a reader question. She writes: Are there any native plants that can be used as a...
This week: The Gift of Pin Oaks 🎁
Hello! It’s the holiday season—Christmas Day, to be exact, and I’d like to thank you for subscribing, sending notes with questions and topic suggestions, and...
This week: Tulip Poplar, a Popular Magnolia
Hello, Good news! Another week, another tree featured in this newsletter. Liriodendron tulipifera, commonly known as Tulip Poplar, Tuliptree, or Yellow...
This week: Shagbark Hickory, a Standout Winter Tree
Hello! I’m not sure why, but this fall it seemed like Shagbark Hickory nuts were everywhere. Perhaps it was a mast year, but more likely, I was just in the...
This week: A Great Grass for Mass Planting
Hello! Even though it’s suddenly December, I’m still hanging on to fall. One perennial grass whose best season is fall and continues to stand tall all winter...
This week: It’s not dead, it’s bald!
Hello! One of my favorite native trees, the Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) has a funny habit of looking like it’s dying this time of year. Through the...
This week: Winter King Hawthorn’s showiest season is just beginning
Hello! If you’re a bird lover who wants to feed their flock all winter long, Crataegus viridis ‘Winter King’ is the tree for you. This native Green Hawthorn...
This week: Replace Burning Bush with Better Native Shrubs
Hello, Earlier this year Burning Bush (Euonymus alatus) was placed on Pennsylvania’s noxious weed list. It will no longer be sold in the Commonwealth after...
This week: Threadleaf Bluestar Shines in the Fall
Hello! A confession: I have favorite plants. If you’ve ever been a Blooms to Bees client, you can probably guess what one of them is: Amsonia, and especially...
This week: Inkberry Holly, a Boxwood Replacement
Hello! This week, let’s open the mailbag and answer a reader question: What’s an evergreen native shrub that can be used instead of non-native Boxwood? The...
This week: Northern Bayberry, an underused gem
Hello! If you’re looking for an informal hedge or a replacement for non-native boxwood and invasive privet, Northern Bayberry (Morella pensylvanica) could be...
This week: Leave fall cleanup to nature
Hello! Are you tempted to rake the leaves into bags and put them on the curb? Is cutting back spent perennials on your to-do list? Don’t! Skipping fall...
This week: River Oats, a fall favorite
Hello, Fall is here! Walnuts and acorns are dropping, seed heads are exploding (literally for witch hazel), and squirrels and birds are scurrying around...
This Week: Swamp Sunflower, a Late Bloomer
When Swamp Sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius) blooms it is always a little bittersweet because it’s the latest flowering plant in my garden. It only starts...
This week: Three Seasons of Spicebush
Happy Autumn! Let’s appreciate a woodland understory shrub—Northern Spicebush (Lindera benzoin). This native gets a lot of attention in the early spring when...
This week: Is White Snakeroot a wildflower or weed?
Hello! This week let’s take a look at a “free” native plant that is in bloom everywhere right now—White Snakeroot, or Ageratina altissima. Perhaps you’ve...
This week: Ironweed in Bloom
Hello! September is here, and that means Ironweed is in full bloom. Ironweed’s deep purple flower clusters begin to emerge in August and last well into...
This week: Edging for a finishing touch
Hello, Let's talk about something often overlooked - edging, the border that surrounds your garden beds. Edging provides an opportunity for you to express...
This week: Shade-loving Sensitive Fern
Hello! Spot this easy-to-identify plant on your next walk in the woods and you’ll look like a fern expert! Sensitive Fern (Onoclea sensibilis) is a native...
This week: Jewelweed explodes
Let’s talk about a type of flower I rarely cover: a native annual. Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is an annual flower that grows like a weed and, to some, is...
This week: Cardinal Flower Blooms
A favorite summer-blooming native of mine is Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) because it brings bold color and a shot of drama to the garden. The best...
This week: Eastern Tiger Swallowtails Flutter By
Hello! It’s the height of summer blooms here in Pittsburgh, and with that, I’ve been noticing quite a few Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterflies (Papilio...
This week: Native Trumpet Vine—pest or problem-solver?
Hello! I confess that I am not a fan of vines. Every time I consider intentionally planting one, I think of all the time I spend pulling invasive English...
This week: Swamp Milkweed (Yes, another milkweed!)
Hello! So far this summer we looked at both Butterfly Weed and Common Milkweed, and now a third beneficial milkweed beauty is blooming—Asclepius incarnata,...
This week: Fritillary Butterflies
Hello! Brace yourself for mediocre butterfly photography! This week I spotted some Greater Fritillary Butterflies (genus Speyeria) frolicking in a native...
This week: Sweetshrubs, native and hybrid
Hello! This week at the park, I spotted a gorgeous Sweetshrub (sometimes called Carolina Allspice) in bloom. At a glance, it was easy to tell that it wasn’t...
This week: More Milkweed!
Hello! Last week we dug into Asclepias syriaca (Common Milkweed). As tall as a 12 year old child and an aggressive spreader, it is not right for every...
This week: Everyone’s favorite native, milkweed
Hello! Pollinators rejoice—Asclepias syriaca (Common Milkweed) is in flower! According to the USDA, more than 450 insects feed on the plant, from milkweed...
This week: Native Possumhaw Viburnum
Hello! This week I spotted a native cultivar of Possumhaw Viburnum about to burst into bloom—Viburnum nudum ‘Winterthur.’ Cultivars of Possumhaw Viburnum are...
This week: Penstemon digitalis blooms
Hello! Just as the flowers on Baptisia and Golden Alexanders fade, in comes Penstemon digitalis! Commonly called foxglove beardtongue, this eastern North...
This week: Native Blue Flag Iris
Hello! You’re probably familiar with Bearded Irises or even Siberian Irises, but did you know there’s an Iris that is native to the northeastern U.S.? Clumps...
This week: Golden Alexanders grow practically anywhere
Hello! Whether you’re walking through the shady woods or basking in the sun, whether it’s been a dry spring or a really soggy one, one native flower will...
This week: Eastern Bee Balm, an early bloomer
Hello! This week my seed starting patience finally paid off. Back in January 2022, I sowed a packet of Monarda bradburiana (Eastern Bee Balm) as part of my...
This week: Ohio Buckeye Throws Shade
Hello! First, a quick note: I recently updated the list of native perennials, shrubs, and trees available at Home Depot and Lowes—the Lowes in my area is...
This week: Keep Quaker Ladies in Your Lawn
Hello! In the past, I’ve mentioned a few favorite native lawn “weeds” that are worth preserving like wild violets and spring beauties. Let’s add another...
This week: Trillium for Woodland Gardens
Hello! This weekend I visited Raccoon Creek State Park and native Trillium was putting on a show. These spring ephemerals are easy to identify: each flower...
This week: Early spring bloomers + big box native plants
Hello! First, an announcement: This summer I am keeping a list of native plants that I find at my local Lowes and Home Depot big box stores. The first...
This week: Spring Beauty
Hello! This week I happened across a field full of Spring Beauty—the ephemeral spring wildflower, not a general description of the landscape. Virginia Spring...
This week: How to start native plant seeds indoors
Last week we sourced native seeds to plant in spring. This week, we'll begin with cold stratification and starting seeds indoors. How to Cold Stratify Seeds...
This week: Native seeds for a spring start
Hello! Last week we dug into bare root plants. This week, we’ll talk sourcing native flower seeds in the spring. If you’re reading this in the northeast,...
This week: Accessible, affordable bare-root native perennials
Hello! Spring is the perfect time to capitalize on affordable, easily accessible native perennials. How? Local garden centers and big box stores often stock...
This week: Hemp dogbane—weed or wildflower?
Hello! This weekend I explored Churchill Valley Greenway, a former golf course located outside of Pittsburgh. It was abandoned over a decade ago and was...
This week: Signs of spring
Hello! At ground level, daffodils, snowdrops, and crocus are blooming here in Pittsburgh. But if you look up, you’ll notice thousands of native flowers...
This week: Eastern Hemlock, a native evergreen in trouble
Hello, I hope you spotted all the hairy bittercress in your garden beds and yanked them out last week! This week, we return to native evergreen options....
This week: A ballistic weed emerges
Hello! This week I spotted one of the earliest emerging spring weeds: hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta). Unlike common violets and certain volunteer...
This week: Ubiquitous Arborvitae
Hello! Walk through any neighborhood and you’re bound to see Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis). This ubiquitous evergreen is native to North America,...
This week: Spruce it up
Hello! Did you know that in the eastern U.S., most of the large spruce trees you see in residential landscapes are probably not native to the area? I’m going...
This week: Native White Pines
Hello! Most of the year, evergreens play a supporting role to showy blooms and fall colors. In the winter, though, evergreens stand out. One of my favorites...
This week: Woolly Bear Caterpillars
Hello! This week I encountered a very famous caterpillar—the Woolly Bear. This caterpillar has at least two festivals celebrating it, and the size of its...