Crawford’s Corner

If you have further questions, please write to Bruce at Crawford@njaes.rutgers.edu

• January 2025 Plant of the Month – Iberis sempervirens – Candytuft
  Candytuft – A Smart Evergreen for Generations to Come The qualities of what makes a plant garden worthy are always changing and my personal sentiments are certainly no different! As a beginning gardener, I was drawn to the ‘latest and greatest’ and discounted the more ‘seasoned plants’ at my grandparent’s home as no longer garden worthy. ...
• Gardening Notes for January 2025
  January always begins with the festivities surrounding the Holiday Season, but reality soon returns as gardeners face short and often cloudy days, cold temperatures and a sleeping garden. Looking on the positive side, we now have the leisure of working in the Garden when our time or the weather suits our schedule, since the garden ...
• Gardening Notes for December 2024
  The hustle and bustle of the Holiday Season is finally upon us but fortunately, there is always a little time to squeeze in a few gardening chores! Without doubt, this has been a very dry fall and recently installed plants will still need extra attention. Early December is the time to finish the last of ...
• December 2024 Plant of the Month – x Gordlinia grandiflora
  Very Curious Shrubs! December is not a month known for colorful foliage among deciduous and semi-deciduous plants. Typically, plants are now nearly bare, although with the advent of the Holidays and family get-togethers, the lack of garden interest is probably little noticed. Yet, for those looking for seasonally appropriate garden color, there are a few semi-deciduous ...
• Gardening Notes for November 2024
  November is here! The cool nights of October have allowed many of our trees to erupt into spectacular fall colors of yellows speckled with reds. The soil is dry and newly planted additions will require extra watering to safely get them into the start of winter. The light frosts of October have also started to ...
• November 2024 Plant of the Month – Amsonia tabernaemontana
  Worthy Plants for Remembering Worthy Friends How often have you looked at a plant and the memory of a friend suddenly comes to mind? Most likely, it is the person who gifted you the plant, first told you about its virtues or perhaps even disliked the plant! In a similar vein, many plants have botanical or ...
• Gardening Notes for October 2024
  October marks the true start of autumn and many busy weeks for the gardener! It is now a race against time to complete our chores before that first heavy frost. Fortunately, September was a fairly moist and cool month, providing welcome relief by reducing the watering chores! Always remember to take a moment and make ...
• October 2024 Plant of the Month – Begonia Grandis
  An Unrecognized Hardy Begonia Regardless of whether I am talking to an experienced gardener or nongardener alike, some plants are simply recognized by everyone. For example, Pansies are well-known for colorful spring color, petunias for their summer blooms and Chrysanthemums for frosty autumn displays. Begonias are another well-recognized plant, typically known as a houseplant or summer ...
• Gardening Notes for September 2024
  September marks the start of getting the garden – and the gardener – ready for a long winters rest. I know it seems much too early to think of winter, but it is time to start planning for winter and the year to follow. To this end, consider how best to overwinter and to make ...
• September 2024 Plant of the Month – Ipomea lobata
  A Vine with an Explosion of Color One dimension we often neglect when working with annuals is the vertical dimension or the use of annual vines. Vines are great for softening architecture or clambering up vertical structures in a garden, allowing their flowers to play off of the surrounding melody of plants. Unfortunately, most woody vines ...