How to Plant and Grow Strawberries
Planting your own patch is easy. Here’s what you need to know to grow the juiciest, sweetest fruit. Biting into sun-ripened strawberries, still warm from the garden, is a summer treat. A few rows of these perennial plants will fill your fruit bowl and freezer. By growing several varieties in your patch or containers, you can enjoy a bounty of sweet fruits from spring until the first frost in the fall. Grow strawberries as perennials in Zones 5-8 or as annuals in Zones 9-10. BRIE WILLIAMS Where to Plant Strawberries No matter what type of strawberry you grow, select a spot in full sun (that gets at least 6 hours of direct sunlight every day). How and When to Plant Strawberries The three main types of strawberries are June-bearing, everbearing, and day-neutral. June-bearing strawberries, such as ‘Shuksan’, grow well in Zones 6-10, but some varieties are better for your local conditions than others. Remember that…
How to Plant and Grow Stock
Brighten your garden (and your bouquets) with the wonderfully spicy scent of stock flowers. Stock flowers offer a wonderfully spicy, distinctive scent that is reminiscent of cloves. They are especially wonderful in window boxes and planters at nose level, where their sometimes-subtle effect can best be appreciated. Stock plants are slightly spirelike and their blooms come in a wide range of colors. They also make great cut flowers and are favored by florists for their long-lasting flowers and their intoxicating perfume. Plant stock in spring several weeks before your region’s last frost date as these hardy annuals thrive in cool temperatures and stop blooming once hot weather arrives. Stock Overview GENUS NAME Matthiola COMMON NAME Stock PLANT TYPE Annual LIGHT Part Sun, Sun HEIGHT 1 to 3 feet WIDTH 1 to 2 feet FLOWER COLOR Blue, Pink, Red, White FOLIAGE COLOR Chartreuse/Gold SEASON FEATURES Spring Bloom SPECIAL FEATURES Cut Flowers,…
Stevia
Stevia develops sweet-tasting foliage that’s an excellent alternative to sugar or artificial sweeteners. Given enough moisture, this tropical plant thrives in containers or in the landscape. Just be sure to plant it where the soil drains well; stevia will not thrive in constantly wet soil and resents heavy clay. Avoid using high nitrogen fertilizers. In northern climates, move stevia indoors before frost hits and treat it like a houseplant. Stevia Overview GENUS NAME Stevia rebaudiana COMMON NAME Stevia PLANT TYPE Herb LIGHT Sun HEIGHT 1 to 3 feet WIDTH 18 to 18 inches FLOWER COLOR White SEASON FEATURES Fall Bloom, Summer Bloom SPECIAL FEATURES Good for Containers, Low Maintenance ZONES 10, 11 PROPAGATION Seed, Stem Cuttings Pruning and Harvesting Stevia foliage can be harvested at any time, but it is the most flavorful in the late summer and early fall. The foliage can be used fresh or dried to flavor…
How to Plant and Grow Star Jasmine
PHOTO: DENNY SCHROCK Blooming in spring and early summer, star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) will perfume an entire garden. Take a walk through a yard that hosts this easy-to-grow vine and you’ll likely catch the scent of the bright white flowers before you see them. The clusters of star-shaped blooms are petite and complemented by small, shiny evergreen leaves. Star jasmine is a fast-growing woody vine that can scramble up a trellis or fence, making it a great choice for creating a living screen. Its twining stems anchor themselves to structures and move upward rapidly. Plant it at the base of a pergola or arbor to create a fragrant roof on the structure. Encourage the vines to climb up the support posts by twirling the young stems around the base of the posts. Star jasmine does not climb masonry. Star Jasmine Overview GENUS NAME Trachelospermum COMMON NAME Star Jasmine ADDITIONAL COMMON NAMES Confederate Jasmine PLANT TYPE Vine…
Spruce
Spruce Tree Overview DESCRIPTION Both graceful and boldly upright, spruce takes on many different shapes in the landscape. Choose an upright cultivar, such as a ‘Columnar’ Norway spruce, and plant as a living screen near a property line. Go with a cultivar with curved branches, such as a ‘Wells’ Weeper’ spruce as a statement plant in a landscape. The evergreen character of these small-to-large trees makes them year-round contributors to the landscape. Garden in a small space? Select a dwarf cultivar or a shrub cultivar. GENUS NAME Picea COMMON NAME Spruce Tree PLANT TYPE Shrub, Tree LIGHT Sun HEIGHT 20 to 20 feet WIDTH 20 to 30 feet FOLIAGE COLOR Blue/Green SEASON FEATURES Winter Interest SPECIAL FEATURES Attracts Birds, Fragrance, Good for Containers ZONES 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 PROPAGATION Grafting, Seed, Stem Cuttings PROBLEM SOLVERS Deer Resistant, Good For Privacy, Slope/Erosion Control Garden Plans For Spruce Where…
How to Plant and Grow Spirea
These flowering shrubs are landscape favorites because they don’t require much maintenance to look attractive. This diverse group of flowering shrubs comes in many sizes, colors, and forms. Plus, they’re easy-to-grow plants that are hardy in most regions of the country, especially Zones 4-10. Spireas are very fast-growing. Some of the old-fashioned varieties of spirea have been landscape favorites for decades, but these older varieties can take up a lot of space and look best when not pruned. Newer types work well in suburban yards where colors and size are important. Spirea japonica is probably the most common member of this group of shrubs. It has a much more manageable size of 2 to 10 feet wide at full growth and comes in an assortment of colored foliage, and even has a variety of bloom colors. The shape of this spirea is much more dense and short. Spirea Overview GENUS NAME Spiraea COMMON…
Spinach
This leafy vegetable is easy to grow and even easier to enjoy in a range of dishes. Spinach Overview DESCRIPTION Spinach is a rewarding plant in the spring vegetable garden because it’s easy to grow and incredibly nutritious. Dubbed a superfood because of the vitamins and minerals found within its leaves, spinach deserves a space in every yard. It’s perhaps best used fresh in salads, either by itself or mixed with other greens like lettuce or arugula. You can also add a few leaves to a smoothie, or if you prefer your spinach cooked, just steam or sauté it for a few minutes. GENUS NAME Spinacia oleracea COMMON NAME Spinach PLANT TYPE Vegetable LIGHT Part Sun, Sun HEIGHT 6 to 12 inches WIDTH 6 to 12 inches FLOWER COLOR Yellow FOLIAGE COLOR Blue/Green SEASON FEATURES Summer Bloom SPECIAL FEATURES Good for Containers ZONES 10, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,…
How to Plant and Grow Spike Moss
This fernlike plant grows best in a terrarium with lots of humidity. PHOTO: IMAGENAVI / GETTY IMAGES Spike moss is a beautiful and delicate-looking, fern-like plant that deserves to be more widely grown. Most types only grow a couple of inches tall, slowly spreading to form a cushion of lacy green leaves and stems. These plants are best suited for more humid indoor locations like bathrooms and growing in terrariums. Besides needing relatively high humidity, spike moss will thrive with very little maintenance. Spike Moss Overview GENUS NAME Selaginella kraussiana COMMON NAME Spike Moss PLANT TYPE Perennial LIGHT Part Sun HEIGHT 0 to 2 Feet FOLIAGE COLOR Blue/Green, Chartreuse/Gold ZONES 10, 8, 9 PROPAGATION Stem Cuttings Where to Grow Spike Moss Outside of warm, humid climates, spike moss is best kept as an indoor terrarium plant. Give these plants plenty of bright, indirect light near an east-facing window or just out of direct…
How to Plant and Grow Spiderwort
These easy-to-grow perennials produce small but numerous flowers over several weeks in summer. With their simple foliage and small flowers, perennial spiderworts, hardy in Zones 4-11, are great companions to many other plants. Spiderwort flowers are comprised of three petals, borne at the tips of foliage stems and often in clusters. Usually, a few blooms in each cluster are open simultaneously, and all blooms are open for a single day. These plants may not have the showiest blooms, but they certainly make up for it with quantity. There are many buds per stalk, and the bloom time can last up to three months. There are tropical and perennial options, so many different spiderworts are available. Spiderwort Overview GENUS NAME Tradescantia COMMON NAME Spiderwort PLANT TYPE Perennial LIGHT Part Sun, Shade, Sun HEIGHT 6 to 36 inches WIDTH 8 to 36 inches FLOWER COLOR Blue, Pink, Purple, White FOLIAGE COLOR Blue/Green,…
How to Plant and Grow Spider Plant
With several long, narrow leaves that curve outward from a central growing point, it’s easy to see where this popular houseplant gets its name. PHOTO: BHG / JULI LOPEZ-CASTILLO Spider plants have long, arching leaves that can be green or striped green and white. Small flowers form at the end of the leaves of mature plants, which can then form plantlets to start new potted plants. Spider plants are easy to grow, tolerate all light levels, and don’t mind if you miss a weekly watering. Spider plant, also called airplane plant, grows well in containers or hanging baskets. This clump-forming perennial is hardy only in Zones 9-11 outdoors, one of the reasons it’s so popular as an indoor plant. Spider Plant Overview GENUS NAME Chlorophytum comosum COMMON NAME Spider Plant PLANT TYPE Houseplant LIGHT Part Sun HEIGHT 6 to 12 inches WIDTH 6 to 24 inches FLOWER COLOR White FOLIAGE…