Garden Experiments
For the love of gardening and wildlife habitat
Deer are found in most suburban and rural areas. They are a part of our yards and gardens and they like specific plants. Choosing deer-resistant plants for your garden can help reduce the damage. Find plants that are deer-resistant and tips on preventing garden damage by deer.
Coleus are known for their colorful leaves and are a great addition to shaded or part-sun areas of your garden. Some cultivars are more tolerant of sun, so be sure to read the labels on your selected varieties. Here is a list of some of the sun-loving varieties. Cultivars can have wavy, smooth-edged, or serrated leaves and come in many colors, …
Continue Reading about Coleus: Colorful Shade Plants Easily Grown From Seed or Cuttings
Every spring, a patch of butterweed, a common Mississippi wildflower, shows up in my lawn. They come up in the same spot every year, and I mow around them until they are done blooming. Combined with Philadelphia fleabane, which also blooms at this time, they make a pretty landscape. Plant Description Butterweed is in the Aster family, so the …
The Dianthus in my garden are one of the first flowers to bloom in early spring, just after the daffodils are done. These are the low-growing variety with pink, red, or white flowers. The plants are covered in blooms and come back every year. Many Dianthus are perennial and range in height from a low ground cover (4-5 inches) to tall …
Continue Reading about Dianthus: Pinks, Carnations, and Sweet Williams
Forsythia (Forsythia x intermedia) is a non-native, deciduous, woody ornamental shrub. It provides only a little wildlife benefit, but it is suitable for soil retention and a privacy barrier and is a fast grower. It is an early spring bloomer and provides bright yellow to the landscape when there isn’t much other color. Flowers are profuse and …
Continue Reading about Forsythia: A Shrub for Early Spring Color
Purple passionflower, also known as maypop, is a relatively quick-growing, perennial, herbaceous vine in the Passifloraceae family. You can find this native vine growing throughout the Southeast from Texas to Kansas up to Pennsylvania and down to Florida. In Mississippi, I’ve often seen it in pastures or open fields. It’s a great addition to an …
Continue Reading about Purple Passionflower: Passiflora incarnata
If you want to add some color to your winter garden and provide food and shelter for songbirds and other wildlife simultaneously, American Holly (Ilex opaca) is a good choice. The berries form in October and persist throughout the winter when many other food sources are gone. Its leaves are evergreen and form a dense canopy. The bright red …
Continue Reading about Plant American Holly for Winter Color and Wildlife Food
