Innehållsförteckning för Fall 2025 från Horticulture

Our neighbors across the street welcomed their first child this past July, but a long stretch of very hot, humid weather kept them inside the house for most of those early days. It wasn’t until late August that I got a much-desired peek at their sweet little girl, then seven weeks old, as her mother and grandmother were pushing her carriage around the block. They said how good it felt to be out for a stroll, and I shared how much I enjoyed the same when my kids were tiny, especially in the fall. The fact is that as much as I love summer, in recent years I’ve found its weather just as limiting as that of winter here in New England. Summers here are hotter, drier and more humid…

MARIANNE WILLBURN is an author and speaker who encourages fellow garden lovers through media both classic and new. The recipient of three Gold Media Awards from Garden Communicators International, she writes regularly for GardenRant (gardenrant.com) and co-hosts The Garden Mixer, a podcast offering practical advice, personal opinions and plenty of humor. When she’s not at her desk, Marianne is working on her garden in the woodlands of northern Virginia or guiding fellow garden lovers on international tours. Catch up with her at mariannewillburn.com. SCOTT BEUERLEIN: You have broad experience across all forms of garden communication. Give us the quick rundown. MARIANNE WILLBURN: I hear this question and think, “He’s got me confused with someone else,” but I suppose you’re right. I started as a columnist for small newspapers in 2009,…

Why do we feel so much better with our hands in the soil? Gardening is both a mindful act—like spotting an outward-facing leaf node when pruning a rose—and a deeply immersive, sensory experience. The scent of just-turned soil, the brush of leaves, the rhythm of tending—gardeners have long understood the power of working with nature. If you’re an avid gardener, chances are you’ve felt these effects. You’ve noticed how your shoulders drop after pulling a few weeds, or how a morning among the beans and bees resets your whole day. Now, the science is catching up to what your hands and heart already know. Nature’s Benefits Access to nature supports mental and physical health from infancy onward, says Seattle-based social scientist Dr. Kathleen Wolf. She consults on urban greening projects…

THE ASTERACEAE is a plant family that includes many garden favorites known for spring or summer bloom, like calendula, coneflowers (Echinacea), zinnia, sunflowers (Helianthus), yarrow (Achillea) and more. However, the family is named for a fall favorite: the asters. The plants we call asters all once belonged to the genus Aster, named for the Latin word for star. However, in the 1990s many species were moved into other genera: Symphyotrichum, Eurybia and Doellingeria. These are North American native species that botanists determined to be genetically different from those native to Europe and Asia. Whatever their classification, aster family members share several things in common for gardeners to recognize. Their best known feature is their composite flowers. (In fact the Asteraceae was originally named Compositae!) A composite flower looks like a…

Herbs have the reputation of being low-maintenance, easy-to-grow plants, but this is not always the case. Over the years, I’ve discovered that many of my favorites do not thrive in the clay-based, alkaline soil native to our backyard. I could have tried them in a standard raised bed—always an option to correct less-than-ideal growing conditions—but I fell in love with a less conventional construction: the herb spiral. Be it in a pinecone at your feet or the swirling galaxies that lie beyond our sight, the spiral is a pattern that shows up in nature. And the herb spiral is a nearly perfect garden that combines aesthetics with functionality, adding up to an eye-catching and productive kitchen-garden centerpiece. rooted in permaculture I was first smitten with the concept of the herb…

THE NEW BEAUTIFUL by Gardens Illustratedcontributors Rizzoli, 2025 The New Beautiful brings together 52 gardens first featured in Gardens Illustrated magazine, each one chosen to reflect the growing emphasis on ecology and sustainability in contemporary garden design. While aesthetics remain important, these gardens demonstrate how beauty can emerge from decisions based on climate resilience, wildlife support and responsible use of resources. The featured gardens, mostly in the UK, span a range of settings—from compact urban courtyards and rooftop plots to windswept coastal landscapes and expansive country estates. Each garden profile is concise yet insightful, overlaying the writer’s interpretation with comments from the designer and others involved in the creation or ongoing care of the site. Large photographs capture wide views and the context of surrounding landscapes, buildings and landforms. The…

An important step in growing a successful fall food garden is selecting crops that thrive as temperatures drop and the daylight hours shrink. This is where root vegetables like carrots, beets, turnips and radishes come in. Not only do they tolerate cold temperatures, but most grow quickly, store well and supply a fantastic assortment of colors, shapes, sizes and flavors. Plus, many root vegetables—including turnips, radishes and beets—provide a dual harvest: delicious roots as well as edible tops, helping you get the most out of your garden. In this article you’ll find my best tips and strategies for growing seven types of root crops this fall. Give them a little protection and you can even enjoy them into winter. Let’s dig in. choosing varieties When selecting root vegetables for your…

achillea millefolium ack-ill-EE-uh: For Achilles of Greek mythology mill-eh-FOE-lee-um: From Latin mille, thousand, and folium, leaf ajuga reptans uh-JOO-guh: From Greek a, without, and zugon, yoke REP-tans: From Latin reptare, to creep amsonia tabernaemontana am-SO-nee-uh: For John Amson, colonial physician and botanist tab-er-NYE-mon-tan-uh: For German botanist Jacobus Theodor von Bergzabern, aka Tabernaemontanus anemone × hybrida ah-NEM-uh-nee: From Greek anemos, wind HIGH-brid-uh: Latin for interspecific hybrid asclepias as-KLEE-pee-as: For Asklepios, Greek god of medicine aster alpinus AST-er: Latin for star al-PIE-nus: From Latin for the Alps a. tataricus tuh-tare-IH-cuss: From Tatary, historical region of Asia asteraceae ast-er-RAY-see-ee: From Aster, the type genus, and Latin aceus, in the nature of berberis aquifolium BUR-bur-iss: Latinized form of Arabian fruit name ah-qwih-FOE-lee-um: For Ilex aquifolium, true holly, for resemblance of leaves camellia sasanqua cah-MEAL-ya:…