This week: My Favorite Magnolia Is Not Pink
Hello! Here in Pittsburgh, the big bell-shaped pink flowers of the Saucer Magnolia put on a show every spring for a few days. Then there's a cold snap, and...
This week: Northern Maidenhair Fern for Deep Shade
Hello, I'm on a fern kick this month! Let's take a look at the Northern Maidenhair Fern (Adiantum pedatum). With its telltale dark stems, this fern is an...
This week: A Troubling Native Fern for Troublesome Spots
Hello! A problem in one context, a solution in another—that’s the life of the Eastern Hayscented Fern (Dennstaedtia punctilobula). If you’ve ever been...
This Week: Tree Design with Easy Scale Drawings
Hello! Native trees are a major win for the habitat. Consider the difference one tree makes. First, the sheer volume of a tree’s canopy provides significant...
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...