C. L. Fornari's Blog
Why Covering Hydrangea Stems Doesn’t Help
It was 8° F this morning when I got up, and the high is supposed to be 16°. This is what I call "Hydrangea dan-jah" weather. Plants such as the...
Planning for the Vibrant Harvest ~ Plus a Postcard From Seeds
As the Northeast awaits a possible large snowstorm, on The Garden Lady we're focused on the summer vegetable garden! As the snow falls, order your...
A Look at Weeds
This week on The Garden Lady it's my great pleasure to have as my guest, Peter Del Tredici, horticulturalist, botanist, and author of my favorite...
Hydrangea Happiness is Coming This Spring!
I'm excited! My new book, Hydrangea Happiness, will be available at the end of April. I look forward to a spring, summer and fall filled with all...
Another Postcard From Peonies
See the first postcard from Paeonia here. On The Garden Lady on January 10th I interviewed Don Smith, a breeder of Itoh peonies. See the amazing...
The Garden Lady’s Trends for 2026
Several of the green industry trade publications publish trends for the coming growing season, so I've decided to add my own thoughts to such lists....
A Postcard From Bonsai
A Postcard From White FLowers
A Postcard on the Winter Solstice
A hint about improving your mood at the time of year when the nights are long: go outside at sunrise and sunset if you can. Admire the sky. Walk....
A Postcard About Winter
No matter where you live, there is the opportunity to celebrate the seasons and appreciate how plants change from month to month.
A Postcard From Evergreens
For evergreen plants, it's all about water retention, protection from sun-scald, and fluctuating temperatures. Some plants have shiny foliage, while...
A Postcard To Pantone
A Postcard From Cyclamen
Most information you find about the holiday Cyclamen plants tells you not to water from above because you might get "crown rot." Personally, I have...
A Postcard From Poinsettia
If you're interested in doing a deep dive into the history of poinsettias as a holiday plant, read this article published by Purdue University. ...
A Postcard from Insects and Diseases
On The Garden Lady today I'll be starting the program off with a visit from Tawny Simiski, Entomologist at the UMass Cooperative Extension. We'll...
A Postcard From Ginkgo ~ Deciduous Plants
Deciduous plants have evolved to be all about surviving the winter. We humans often describe ourselves as "hunkering down for the winter," and...
A Postcard About Winter Sowing
Winter sowing is all about giving some seeds their chilling period. This is called stratification. Note that not all seeds need to be in cold all...
A Postcard From Orb Spiders
I had a “Duh!” moment when I realized that spiderwebs and spiders are popular Halloween decorations not just because many people thing they are...