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By HENRY HOMEYER

Despite my best efforts to support monarch butterflies, this year was discouraging: I only saw two monarchs visit my gardens. I have a small bed just for milkweeds, both the common one and swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata). But no monarchs laid...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Once again it is time to find the perfect gifts for your loved ones. Gardeners are easy to shop for because there are so many good things to shop for, and they will probably be pleased with whatever you choose. As a shopper, I always try to support...

By HENRY HOMEYER

On Nov. 11, 1998, my first gardening column appeared in my hometown paper, The Valley News of West Lebanon, N.H. Since then I have written over 1,200 weekly columns and answered countless questions from readers. I am 77 years old, and plan to slow...

By HENRY HOMEYER

For many of us, November is a drab and dreary month: days are short, gray skies the norm. Flowers are largely gone, the soil is soggy and a drizzle or a downpour is common. Soon snow will not be unusual – we’ve already seen a wintry mix. But there are...

By HENRY HOMEYER

I asked an experienced arborist the other day what he thought about pruning apple trees in the fall. His answer was the same as mine: “Prune when you have time and the pruners in your hand.” Yes, March is a good time to prune, but I suspect that...

By HENRY HOMEYER

I’ve been planting bulbs around my property for at least 40 years, and some of them are still flowering each spring. I even have daffodils I brought up from my childhood home in Connecticut that might be 70 years old or more. Others run out of energy...

By HENRY HOMEYER

To me, this felt like the summer that never was. It was rarely hot and sunny. The rainy gray days felt more like those in Portland, Ore., than in New England. Even so, our summer is largely over; it’s time to clean up and prepare for winter. Let’s...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Fall is a good time to prune deciduous trees and shrubs. Once the leaves have dropped you can see the form – and the clutter – and decide what to take out. But before you begin, think about sharpening up your pruning tools, replacing blades, or buying...

By HENRY HOMEYER

I’m lucky. Unlike many houses built in the 1800s or early 1900s, mine had no invasive plants when I bought it in 1970, probably because it was built as a Creamery, or butter factory. Decorative plants were not needed. Most older houses are plagued...

By HENRY HOMEYER

As a Certified Senior Citizen, I sometimes wonder if I am too ambitious in my garden. I have about an acre of gardens with 200 or more kinds of flowers and a good-size vegetable garden. These gardens please me greatly, and I visit them daily all year,...

By HENRY HOMEYER

I love to cook, and I love to eat. I got started gardening in the vegetable garden more than 70 years ago, in part, because everyone I knew loved to eat homegrown vegetables – raw in the garden, fresh in the kitchen, or cooked for dinner. I’d pull a...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Unlike the games of chance at our local fair, you always win when you buy a hydrangea. They generally bloom their fool heads off every year, even if you have poor soil and a poor track record in the garden. When I was a boy I noticed that every...

By HENRY HOMEYER

You may not have the time and energy to weed and maintain lovely perennial flower beds – or even to grow a few tomatoes, carrots and beans. But if you love flowers, you can have a window box or a big pot of flowers on your deck. They can add a punch...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Editor’s note: Paul and Nancy Franklin own Riverview Farm in Plainfield, where they grow apples, blueberries and pumpkins. The farm’s name was incorrect and the list of crops grown included a crop they do not grow in Henry Homeyer’s column in...

By HENRY HOMEYER

I’ve been keeping track this year of what blooms for me, and when. So far I’ve recorded over 100 species of flowers (plus many more named varieties of the same genus) and 40 species of flowering trees and shrubs. Blooming starts with snowdrops in...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Do you remember your Grammy’s favorite rose? If you do, you probably remember how fragrant it was. For me, one of my grandmother’s favorite plants was the peony named ‘Festiva Maxima’. It is a double white with a drop of red in the middle. It’s in...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Once, a long time ago, I was sitting on a porch overlooking a landscape with an acquaintance. I commented that if she removed or thinned a line of tall pine trees, she would have a lovely long view. “Great idea! I’ll have them moved,” she said. Even...

By HENRY HOMEYER

One of the best ways to learn how to create a lovely garden is to see others. Visit good gardens of neighbors, great gardens near and far. I recently visited three great gardens and, as always when viewing other gardens, they gave me much to consider....

By HENRY HOMEYER

For me, tomatoes are the best tasting, most important vegetable I grow. I eat them raw in salads and sandwiches or cooked in soups and stews. I dehydrate some, I freeze many whole, and I make some sauce for quick dinners in winter. But they are not...

By HENRY HOMEYER

I’m a sucker for a good looking flower. Back when I was first developing my flower beds I would go to a plant nursery and grab everything and anything that was in bloom and looking great. And I believe in buying multiples: not one plant, but three or...

By HENRY HOMEYER

Although there are many old sayings like, “Plant your potatoes when the oak leaves are the size of a mouse’s ear.” I would rather depend on soil temperature and calendar dates. Besides, who really knows the size of a mouse’s ear?Mid-May is good for...