News Articles

Stay updated with the latest developments and discoveries in the world of plants and horticulture with our News Articles category. Here, you’ll find timely updates on conservation efforts, botanical breakthroughs, gardening trends, and industry news. Whether it’s a new species discovery, tips for sustainable gardening, or global botanical initiatives, this section keeps you informed and connected to the ever-evolving plant world. Perfect for enthusiasts, researchers, and nature lovers looking to stay in the know.

A No Lawn Lawn? (Hear me out)

A No Lawn Lawn? (Hear me out)

Hello! I live in Charleston SC and my partner and I just bought land!! Woohoo! We are still planning our build and I am not only a first time home buyer but this is really only the second home I will have with any landscaping needs. The first being the townhouse we currently rent where most of the landscaping is done by a contracted company but I did need to reseed our lawn due to erosion. Obviously our current lawn is governed by our HOA and it’s tiny so I have very little experience with gardens and landscaping. Despite this gardening indoors and on my parents and friends property is a hobby of mine and I can’t wait to do it on my own land.

Please no hate I am trying my best to come up with a solution that can be good for my land and for functionality.

We have chosen a blueprint and are currently working with the land surveyor, town etc. to determine where the build will take place on the land and all of that. I am told that the soil is dense wet clay soil which will erode without grass, plants and trees stabilizing it. (We also live in a flood zone fyi but our property is slightly elevated so the ground will take on a lot of water without literally flooding usually. 🤞🏻

Right now I am considering what our landscaping will look like, the back of my house will have a 1,000 sq foot vegetable garden and a cottage garden which I hope to fill with native plant species. Among other things we will have a separate growing patch for sunflowers and grains as well as chickens.

Here’s the thing, I want to do right by the land but I am also told that the land has extremely wet clay soil (which is also what we have in our current townhome which erodes every year).

My understanding is that without something growing ie plants or grass the erosion and mud will take over. The other side of this is that I have three dogs that we want to finally have an area to safely run around and play in without it becoming a muddy mess. My thinking is that we have the front yard fenced in specifically for them to have their own play area that isn’t in the back with all of the gardens.

I have attached an article I found regarding native grass species which was written by the SC Native Plant Society. Regarding short and long grasses or alternative lawns.

The shorter grasses probably won’t grow in my full sun and heat or they are taller varieties which can be mowed down regularly but need to grow to a certain height in order to be healthy and reseed.

Anyway, in terms of permaculture how bad is it to go ahead and grow a traditional lawn like Bermuda Grass or Zoysia if I also plant native grasses and perennial plants in the lawn alongside it? I am thinking line the tree line with taller native grasses that prefer the shade and then do some borders along the fences with more native plants. The back will be mainly plants with borders and growing space so this would only be in the front yard.

Help. I want to do the right thing but I need the space to function properly.

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The Story Behind Greenheart Treewalk: A Conversation With Ian Green

The Story Behind Greenheart Treewalk: A Conversation With Ian Green

Get Tickets As we look forward to the Greenheart Treewalk reopening on April 1, we sat down with Ian Green, one of the founders of Greenheart, to discuss the story behind this unique tree walk and its significance. In our conversation, Ian shares the inspiration and design process that brought the Treewalk to life, as […]

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Looking for advice, wanting to put fruit trees on a hill

Looking for advice, wanting to put fruit trees on a hill

Hello everyone,

So I am a property manager and part owner of a warehouse complex, (Monroe NC) in the back there is a hill by the fence. (Other side of the fence is the neighbors property.) on this hill right now is just grass. I was thinking it would be really great if I could put some fruit trees there. I saw some apple trees and pear trees for sale. But I don’t know much about this. I would love to have some fruit trees on the hill, some flowers on the ground, (maybe some wild flowers on the slope). The ground is pretty tough and has clay in it. Anyways, I don’t know what kind of fruit trees to plant, which ones need a partner, and how far apart to plant them from each other. If anyone has any suggestions, I’m ready to pull the trigger and do this in the next few days. Thank you very much for your help and advice.

Ps. After looking at the photos, if you have different ideas on a cool way, I can use the space, please feel free. I would love to do something creative/ interesting with the space. (And I was hoping one day to be able to get some fruit as well.)

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Exploring Cherry Blossoms at UBC Botanical Garden and Nitobe Memorial Garden

Exploring Cherry Blossoms at UBC Botanical Garden and Nitobe Memorial Garden

Cherry Blossom Walk with Douglas Justice (Event) Spring has officially arrived in Vancouver, and with it comes the stunning sight of cherry blossoms in full bloom. If you’re looking to take in the beauty of the season, UBC Botanical Garden and Nitobe Memorial Garden are two of the best places to visit. Whether you’re a […]

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Windcliff, visiting during the Garden Fling

Windcliff, visiting during the Garden Fling

What better to do on a rainy spring day than edit down the 100+ photos I took at Dan Hinkley’s home, Windcliff, last summer? It’s pretty ideal to have a stash of photos to dip into whenever the mood hits. This visit to Windcliff was on Sunday, July 21st, the last official day of the 2024 Garden Fling, it was wonderful.

Our arrival was a little chaotic as we tried to decide if we were supposed to be walking around the garden, waiting for Dan, maybe touring the Brindley Garden garden next door first?

But then Dan came out to talk to the group and all was well.

The dogs were very entertaining.

What a handsome schefflera. love those deeply cut leaves.

Oh look at that…

I want to call it a fern table, but there are more “other plants” than there are ferns.

Some Marcia Donahue ceramic fungus does class the whole thing up.

The last time (the only other time) I’d been to Windcliff Dan wasn’t inviting people into his greenhouse or plant propagation area. However, since that area was open for us to wander through that’s where I headed first.

Just a sweet little dish full of moss and maybe an impatiens?

Sarracenia for days…

So many plants, what to look at!?

Curculigo sp., I was tempted, I had one in the garden for a few years that I’d purchased at Far Reaches Farm.

I loved this dark-leaved Saxifraga, but it wasn’t available for purchase (yet). In the end I selected a couple Pseudopanax crassifolius and a native ginger, Asarum hartwegii HSIS 20045 (photos in this post).

Then I was off to see the garden! Daphniphyllum…

And the variegated version…

Up against the house was a fern bench, with pyrrosia planters lounging underneath.

Turning towards the Sound (Puget Sound that is). Like many of us in the PNW Dan experienced extreme plant death after the storm of January 2024, he opted to kill off what remained and start new, hence the plastic sheeting down on the ground to the right side of this photo.

totem sculptures looked quite at home in the garden.

Melianthus major

Salvia argentea

A few shots of Flingers, the garden and the house.

And like a magnet the Sound draws all eyes back towards it…

Dierama pulcherrimum

It was a clear day, so we could see Seattle off in the distance.

Layers and layers of plants.

Trachycarpus (the palms) and Yucca rostrata.

Lots of sarracenia…

Oh how I’d love a rill running between my arctostaphylos and sarracenia.

Containers up on the patio area off the back of the house.

Agave and ferns in the same planting!

Working my way back around to the front of the house now.

But stopping to admire more of Marcia Donahue’s work.

What a garden! On Friday we’ll visit Heronswood, Dan’s “other” garden.
Those of you who live within driving distance of Nehalem, Oregon (on the coast) might want to attend a talk Dan Hinkley is giving at the Performing Arts Center on April 25th, more info here.

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