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A close-up shot of several gardening tools near a pathway alongside various foliage, showcasing what plant hardiness zones don't tell you

Gardening Tips

What Plant Hardiness Zones Don’t Tell You

Plant hardiness zones help determine how long your growing season is and which plants you can grow. Put simply, it’s an average of the lowest temperatures during the year. Though it’s a helpful metric, there’s a lot that a hardiness zone doesn’t tell you!

A faded, diseased petunia with rich red trumpet-shaped flowers among fading grey-green stems covered with drooping, wilted, oval leaves, in a white pot.

Flowers

5 Petunia Diseases: ID, Prevention, and Treatment

Petunias are favorite bedding and container annuals for their long, bloom-filled stems. While usually problem-free, they aren’t immune to the woes of common diseases, some recoverable and some serious. Join gardening expert Katherine Rowe in a look at common diseases for petunias, as well as how to treat and prevent them.

Cut back irises on the garden bed show short, trimmed green stubs emerging from the soil.

Flowers

When and How to Cut Back Iris Leaves After Blooming

By cutting back iris leaves and flower stalks after they finish blooming, you set up next spring’s flowers for even more vigor. Follow along as master naturalist and experienced gardener Sarah Jay walks through the steps for how to cut back irises after blooming.

A close-up shot of a small cluster of red colored, tubular flowers of the vermillionaire cuphea

Ornamental Gardens

How to Plant, Grow, and Care For ‘Vermillionaire®’ Cuphea

For a nonstop summer bloom supply in an easy-going package, look to Cuphea ‘Vermillionaire.’ The award-winner brings continual firecracker blooms and sweet nectar through frost to the delight of pollinators. Gardening expert Katherine Rowe explores the long-blooming hybrid that requires little gardener intervention to perform all season.

An overhead and close-up shot of developing crops on pots, showcasing how to grow cuttings in potatoes

Propagation

Growing Plant Cuttings in Potatoes: Does it Really Work?

Social media is packed with viral videos showing plant cuttings sprouting from potatoes, supposedly an easy propagation method anyone can try. Garden expert Madison Moulton examines whether this unusual technique actually works to separate viral gardening myths from propagation reality.

A female gardener in a white apron pours out grain for chickens in the backyard, demonstrating how to raise chickens.

Edible

The Ultimate Beginner Guide to Raising Backyard Chickens

Getting started with any hobby can be a daunting task, but when it involves live animals, it's important to get off on the right foot. Chicken owner Melissa Strauss can guide you through the process of setting up, acquiring birds, and caring for them in the future.

Freshly harvested lavender bunches with upright purple flower spikes rest among blooming bushes in a sunny field, picked to preserve maximum fragrance.

Herbs

The Perfect Time to Harvest Lavender for Maximum Fragrance

It’s lavender harvest season! Whether we enjoy the budded stems and calming fragrance on a garden stroll or in the vase, dried bundles, oils, or in sweet and savory cuisine, the timing matters. Harvesting for peak fragrance is best at a certain point in the season, bud development, and time of day. Garden expert Katherine Rowe outlines the best time to harvest lavender for maximum fragrance, and when to pick for that cool glass of lavender lemonade.

Woman in sunny garden holding green bucket with planted fresh rose cuttings and blue pruning shears near blooming pink rose bush showing reasons why rose cuttings die.

Propagation

7 Reasons Your Rose Cuttings Are Dying

If you have a favorite rose, cuttings allow you to propagate the variety for more free plants. Though the rooting process is relatively straightforward, you may hit some snags along the way. Join seasoned grower Jerad Bryant to see why your rose cuttings are dying and learn how to save them.

Disneyland roses display clusters of ruffled blooms in shades of apricot, pink, and orange on glossy green leaves and thorny stems.

Shrubs

How to Plant, Grow, and Care For Disneyland Roses

If you haven't experienced the magic of Disneyland roses, you're in for a special treat. This gorgeous cultivar befits a true princess. Gardening expert Melissa Strauss discusses how to care for this beautiful rose in this article.

A close-up shot of a small composition of lilac and white colored flowers of the superbena

Flowers

How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Superbena®

Superbena® are trailing, mounding, and cascading hybrid plants. Their versatility and variety make them excellent candidates for large containers, borders, and tree wells. Give them the care they need, and they’ll fill your garden with endless blooms from spring through fall.