In The Garden…

A bean is the seed of one of several genera of the flowering plant family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in several traditional dishes throughout the world.

A perennial favorite native to North America, bee balm (also called wild bergamot) is beloved in flower beds for its beautiful blooms of red, pink, purple or white—not to mention the fragrant foliage.

Bee balm is a great addition to a pollinator garden. The flowers attract hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees; and the seed heads will attract birds in the fall and winter. Learn more about plants that attract butterflies and hummingbirds.

Blackberries, like raspberries, are a very easy berry to grow. Once this native berry is ripe, get ready for an abundant harvest, picking every couple of days!

All blackberries are perennials; the roots survive year after year. However, the top of the plant above the soil is what we call biennial. This means that the canes grow vegetatively for a year, bear fruit the next year, and then die. However, every year the plant sends up new canes to replace those that died! For a great fruit harvest and to avoid a messy plant, pruning is important.

The butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii) is a beautiful, fast-growing, deciduous shrub with masses of blossoms—long, spiked trusses—that bloom from summer to autumn.

Its flowers come in many colors, though butterflies seem to prefer the lavender-pink (mauve) of the species to the white and dark purple cultivars.

Also called “summer lilacs,” butterfly bushes are hardy to Zone 5 and remain evergreen from Zone 8 south. The shrub is low-maintenance, only requiring dead-heading and annual pruning in later winter to encourage flowers and a compact shape. 

Symphytum officinale is a perennial flowering plant in the family Boraginaceae. Along with thirty four other species of Symphytum, it is known as comfrey. To differentiate it from other members of the genus Symphytum, this species is known as common comfrey or true comfrey.

Please note, comfrey in not recommended to be ingested, used topically, or in any other way, applied to one’s person, as it has been linked to possible liver damage, and may be a cancer causing agent.

Maize, also known as corn, is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The leafy stalk of the plant produces pollen inflorescences and separate ovuliferous inflorescences called ears that yield kernels or seeds, which are fruits.

Lagerstroemia, commonly known as crape myrtle, is a genus of around 50 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs .

Coneflowers, also known as Echinacea, are tough little native flowers that draw butterflies, bees, and birds to the garden! 

Bright upright plants, coneflowers are a North American perennial in the Daisy family (Asteraceae). Specifically, the plant is native to the eastern United States, from Iowa and Ohio south to Louisiana and Georgia. They grow 2 to 4 feet in height with dark green foliage. They are fast growers and self-sow their seed profusely. These midsummer bloomers can flower from midsummer through fall frost!

Sambucus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae. The various species are commonly called elder or elderberry. 

A fern (Polypodiopsida or  Polypodiophyta) is a member of a group of vascular plants that reproduce via sporesand have neither seeds nor flowers.

Kale is a cold-hardy vegetable that can be planted in early spring or autumn. Cool weather brings out the sweet, nutty flavor of this highly nutritious green.

Kale is a member of the cabbage family. Small plants can be set out very early in the spring (3 to 5 weeks before the last frost!). But kale’s glory is the autumn season in many regions as long as winter temperatures do not dip below the teens. Kale tastes better when the leaves mature in cold weather.

Kale is versatile in the garden, growing in traditional beds or raised beds and containers. It’s also versatile in the kitchen and a nutritious addition to salads, stir fries, omelettes, casseroles, and other dishes.

Stachys byzantina is a species of Stachys, commonly referred to as Lamb’s Ear is cultivated over much of the temperate world as an ornamental plant, and is naturalised in some locations as an escapee from gardens.

Lavender is a bushy, strong-scented perennial plant from the Mediterranean. In warmer regions, its gray to green foliage stays evergreen throughout the year. 

Prized for its fragrance, medicinal properties, and beautiful color, lavender is a valued plant across the world. It also attracts pollinators to the garden.

Verbascum, or mullein, is a genus of about 360 species of flowering plants in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae. 

Mullein with his large, soft leaves makes a wonderful flower tea. (As an aside, it’s fluffy, absorbent leaves have also been used for toilet paper in a pinch!) Mullein has been used as a home remedy for cough relief.

Rubus strigosus, the American red raspberry or American raspberry, is a species of Rubus native to much of North America. It has often been treated as a variety or subspecies of the closely related Eurasian Rubus idaeus (red raspberry or European raspberry), but currently is more commonly treated as a distinct species.

In a small space, raspberries yield a phenomenal quantity of ravishing berries—and they fruit year after year with proper care. Raspberries can be harvested all the way from midsummer through to the first frost.

Acer rubrum, the red maple, also known as swamp, water or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. 

Salvia rosmarinus, commonly known as rosemary, is a woody, perennial herb with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers, native to the Mediterranean region.

This herb can be grown outdoors as a perennial shrub in Zones 7 and warmer. In colder areas, it should be kept in a pot and brought indoors for the winter.

Rosemary is often used for seasoning poultry, lamb, stews, and soups.

Salvia officinalis, or Sage is a hardy perennial with pretty, grayish green leaves that like as good in a perennial border as they do in a vegetable garden. It grows spikes of spring flowers in different colors, including purple, blue, white, and pink.

Not all sage varieties are culinary; the most popular kitchen sage is called Salvia officinalis.