Tuesday, April 1 is the pre-order deadline for the Great Plant Sale taking place at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. All pre-orders placed for the Great Plant Sale can be picked up at the sale Saturday and Sunday, May 17 and 18. Order online by clicking here, or call for an order form at (716) 827-1584, ext. 204. Plants will not be shipped and are only available for pick-up at the Great Plant…...
Category: Perennials
Indoor gardening: Create a container of succulents during WNY winter
by Connie Oswald Stofko I know most of you are dreaming of spring right now. You can’t wait to get outside and arrange perennials in a garden bed or mix annuals in a container. Don’t just pout and wait for spring. Here’s a gardening project you can do right now: Create a container garden of succulents that you can grow inside. A project like this allows you to use your creativity, but if you’re a beginning gardener (or a lazy…...
Is it too late to plant perennials in Western New York?
I got this question from a reader: I bought some perennials that I didn’t get a chance to plant: leopard’s bane, hardy aster, cone flowers and Munstead lavender. It has already frosted once I believe. Is it to late too plant outside? If so, can I store them indoors in the same containers that they came in? Thanks, Deborah In the two days since I received this question, Western New York has had snow as well as frost…....
Learn the story of hosta ‘Niagara Falls’ from world-renowned hosta hybridizer
by Connie Oswald Stofko How the hosta ‘Niagara Falls’ was created is the fascinating story of an artist with a love for family and her country. Olga Petryszyn, the world renowned hosta hybridizer who bred ‘Niagara Falls’, will speak at the meeting of the Western New York Hosta Society on Sunday, Nov. 10 at the Aurora Senior Citizens Center, 101 King St. near Oakwood, East Aurora. Doors open at 1:30 p.m. and the meeting starts at 2 p.m. The event…...
Want an indoor flowering plant that’s really different? Grow tea!
by Connie Oswald Stofko If you want a really different kind of plant to grow indoors this fall and winter, grow tea. Yes, tea. The stuff you steep in hot water and drink. You can buy Sochi tea, a tea plant from the Sochi area of Russia, at Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark St., Hamburg. Our climate is almost, but not quite, mild enough to grow tea outside all year long in our gardens, said Fred Safford, who is in charge…...
Question: How should a Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’ tree be pruned?
Here’s a question from a reader: I bought a Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’ tree in the fall of 2012. I pruned it a tiny bit as my goal is to have it grow taller. They say to prune it in late fall or late winter. This year I had a ton of big, heavy blooms, and many of the branches drooped over. I am wondering 2 things: 1) Should I prune back the thinner branches…and, if so, by how much? Will…...
Grow rose bush from wedding bouquet– or use any roses you get from the florist
by Connie Oswald Stofko A reader came across the story we did awhile back on starting plants from cuttings and left a question in the comments section. “How do I root roses from the florist?” asked Tina Strength. “How do I start them rooting and growing?” This question intrigued me. It never even occurred to me that you might be able to grow a plant from a rose you get in a bouquet from the florist. I turned to David…...
Add interest to your WNY garden with a roller coaster effect
by Connie Oswald Stofko Here’s a tip for designing a new perennial bed. You can use this tip now– Fall is a great time to plant perennials and start a new garden in Western New York. There’s still plenty of time for the plants to set roots. We all know one general design rule is to place taller plants in back and shorter plants in front. But Chet Okonczak of Cheektowaga, whose garden we saw in the spring, has interesting…...
Watch local cooking challenge & learn to cook with native plants
Sumac, a native plant, is pretty this time of year with its large red, cone-shaped flowers. You can see these small trees in parks or in the wild, and they make a great landscape plant. But did you know sumac is edible? There are quite a few native plants you might want to start growing for food– If you know how to cook with them. In this article we’ll tell you about two events where you can get ideas on…...
Learn how to get better blooms on hydrangeas at Lockwood’s fall fair
If you’ve had trouble getting your hydrangeas to bloom, you’re not alone. So many people had this problem that Tim Boebel wrote a book on the topic called Hydrangeas in the North. You can get tips directly from the author when he speaks at Lockwood’s Fall Garden Fair at 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 7 at Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark Street, Hamburg. This year the fair will be held for two days, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 7 and 8. Hours will…...

