Fine Gardening Magazine

Written for passionate gardeners, Fine Gardening provides inspired ideas backed by detailed instructions for creating healthy gardens, outdoor rooms, and beautiful landscapes suited to the region. Horticulturists, nurserymen, and designers share their expertise on plants, care, soil, eco-friendly pest control, propagation, design, and landscaping.

A fool and his garden

Fine Gardening Magazine

Keep the indoor plant content coming

READERS’ TIPS • FROM ONE GARDENER TO ANOTHER

SUPER COOL PLANTS • Find out what the experts are growing

GOTTA HAVE IT!

COVER CROPS: The only plants you’ll be happy to kill

Types of cover crops • Typical cover crops are annuals, biennials, or short-lived perennials (three to five years). Each has its pros and cons. Here are a few of my favorite plants to use as cover crops.

The perfect antidote to the winter blues

Plant with a plan for their demise • Selecting a cover crop should be a thoughtful process that takes into account the end (how you’ll get rid of it) before you even plant the seeds. Yes, you want to select a certain type of cover crop to address your specific soil problem. But the last thing gardeners need is to plant a crop that becomes a weed they can’t get rid of. Here are a few of the options for ensuring a proper end.

Bringing your houseplants back in

Timing is a matter of degrees • In most regions of the country, freezing temperatures are an imminent issue right about now. Try not to procrastinate until the weatherman predicts frost approaching in a few hours.

THE BEST NATIVE PERENNIALS • Experts from across the country pick their favorite high-impact stars

California • Red-flowered buckwheat may be small, but it has focal-point power

Northeast • Northern maidenhair fern is a textural wonder for the shade

Southern Plains • Standing cypress is a reblooming hummingbird magnet

Midwest • Sundrops is a ray of light in summer and an essential pollinator plant

Mountain West • Sulphur flower is an adaptable evergreen that shines in every season

Mid-Atlantic • Wild bee balm is a long-blooming, tough-as-nails stunner

Northwest • Twinflower is an attractive, low-care ground cover

MANY PLANTS, ONE GARDEN • Is it possible to be a crazy plant collector and still have a beautiful garden? You bet your agave it is.

Who needs flowers when you’ve got texture?

CONTAINERS THAT CELEBRATE THE SEASON • These durable, decorative plantings will carry you from mid-fall into the new year

Tips for working with winter bloomers

FRESH LOOKS FOR FALL • Steadfast performers get a boost from companions with late-season appeal

Stars with staying power • Everyone needs plants that they can count on. Here are a few low-maintenance favorites from our gardens that look great all season without a lot of fuss.

Not too big, NOT TOO SMALL • These grasses have manageable habits that bring form and texture to the places you need it most

Cool-and warm-season grasses • Not all ornamental grasses are built the same. Grasses respond and begin to grow based upon air and soil temperature. Some grasses start to emerge early in spring—sometimes as soon as the snow melts—when temperatures are still cool. Others wait until the soil is warm and air temperatures are more stable, leading some gardeners to mistakenly assume they died over the winter. The following is a list of characteristics and care requirements of cool- and warm-season grasses.

NORTHWEST

CALIFORNIA

SOUTHERN PLAINS

NORTHERN PLAINS

MIDWEST

SOUTH

NORTHEAST

PRONUNCIATION GUIDE • Here is a handy guide to help you pronounce the botanical names in this...