The common name, "Oriental poppies" can be confusing. Since opium poppies also hail from the Orient (as in Asia), some folks may get suspicious when they hear you talking about "Oriental poppies." But their respective botanical names clear up any confusion immediately: Opium poppies are designated Papaver somniferum; the somniferum means "sleep-inducing" in Latin, a reference to the plants' narcotic properties. Meanwhile, it's easy to see where Oriental poppies derive their common name, since their botanical name is Papaver orientale.

Oriental poppies are one of the delights of late spring, thanks to their large, brightly-colored flowers, whose texture invites comparisons with crepe paper. The flower petals usually sport a dark blotch at their base that only adds to their beauty. Learn more about these exquisite perennials -- including their growing requirements -- in this introductory article on Oriental poppies.

Read article: Oriental Poppies

Oriental Poppies originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012 at 07:01:03.

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With Memorial Day (U.S.) approaching, some readers may be curious as to the meaning behind this holiday. Specifically, how does Memorial Day differ from Veterans Day? Or perhaps you'll be using Memorial Day Decorations for the first time this year and need some pointers.

For instance, how is decorating cemetery monuments for Memorial Day different from doing so for Veterans Day? The former comes on the threshold of summer (the last Monday in May), so there are better options for Memorial Day decorations than for the holiday that falls on November 11. Click the link below to read my article on Memorial Day decorations and learn about some popular flower choices.

Read article: Memorial Day Decorations

Memorial Day Decorations originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Thursday, May 17th, 2012 at 07:12:34.

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As a baseball fan, I sometimes have mixed feelings about a game that my team is winning by a lopsided margin. One side of me revels in the joys of the moment, but the other side of me wishes that we could somehow "save some of those runs" for the next game, when every run might well turn out to be precious.

I have similar feelings about May in the landscape. May is a "blowout" month for floral display in my yard. And while I'm enjoying every moment of it, I can't help but wish that I could somehow save up a bit of this floral abundance, turning it loose at some future time of my own choosing.

In fact, I have so many May "stars of the yard" to report on that I'm going to hold back on telling you about a few of them: they'll still be blooming in June, so I'll include them in my report for that month, instead.

But without further ado, here are my stars for May:

Gibraltar azalea Hawthorn Sweet woodruff Candytuft Kwanzan cherry Columbine Kiwi vine Lilacs Flowering dogwood Stewartstonian azalea Daphne Oriental poppy Golden Oriole azalea

How about you? Vote in my poll and let us know what plants are shining most brightly in your own yard right now. Or to mention a specific plant I didn't include in the poll, vote "Other" and tell us about it in my forum.

Let Us Know What Plants Are Currently Delighting You!

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Stars of the Yard For May, 2012 originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Sunday, May 13th, 2012 at 07:21:08.

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Some plants are so gorgeous and so unusual-looking that it's hard to describe them adequately in just a few words. It's really best to see them for yourself (at least in pictures); only then will you understand what all the hoopla surrounding them is about. Schubert's flowering onion is one such plant, so I won't even attempt to describe it here in a blog post. Instead, I hope you'll click through to my article on Schubert's flowering onion, where I discuss it in detail and provide a photo.

For a quick peek to see what I mean, you can also view my full-sized picture of an ornamental onion (Allium schubertii).

But the subject of this blog post is a warning regarding the growing of alliums. Many of you own pets, and some of you are already aware of how many compromises you have to make between landscaping and the keeping of those pets. I treat this issue (from the perspective, specifically, of keeping dogs outside) in my story on landscaping with dogs.

My warning to you is that alliums are toxic to dogs and cats. As I relate in my article on Schubert's flowering onion, our cat became quite sick from nibbling on the dried seeds. So should a pet owner grow Schubert's flowering onion? Well, it depends. If you own a pet that stays indoors, you can compromise easily enough: just don't bring the dried seed head indoors. The seed head is highly decorative, and our mistake (since we have an indoor cat) was in yielding to the temptation to bring it inside to display it.

Read article: Schubert's Flowering Onion

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Letting the Cat Out of the Bag About Allium originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Friday, May 11th, 2012 at 07:46:47.

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I make no bones about it: I'm not crazy about mowing lawns. My attitude comes from a lifetime of wearing this green albatross around my neck. You see, whether as a child or as an adult, and no matter where I've lived, I've been expected to mow the lawn.

While the landscaper in me appreciates the reason for mowing lawns, I'm not speaking specifically as a landscaper in today's blog post: Instead, I'm speaking as just a regular human being (hard to believe, I know). As such, it's so easy to find mowing lawns an exercise in futility. It brings none of the satisfaction derived from tasks where you can say, "OK, let's do it and have done with it!" After all, the grass will just grow back to the same height again soon after, necessitating another mowing. In that sense, mowing lawns is like shaving; but since the grass doesn't grow out of my face, it's much easier to slip into an out-of-sight-out-of-mind frame of mind regarding mowing.

Anyone else in need of some motivation to get going on your mowing? If so, this piece on grass pollen allergy may give you a bit of incentive.

Read article: Grass Pollen Allergy

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Grass Pollen Allergy: A Reason for Mowing Lawns? originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Wednesday, May 9th, 2012 at 07:07:37.

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There are certain plants that only a gardener could love -- and only a subset of gardeners, at that. You know the kind I mean: mousy plants that elite gardeners fuss over, but which do not excite the general public.

Then there are plants that stand up to be counted, exercising a fascination over gardeners and non-gardeners alike. Some turn heads due to their colorful flowers; others garner attention through their striking forms.

Sky Pencil holly (Ilex crenata 'Sky Pencil') resides in the latter camp. It is one of those rare shrubs with an exaggeratedly columnar form. This evergreen makes an architectural statement just by showing up. More importantly, there are tons of landscape design uses for a columnar evergreen shrub that is relatively compact and that retains its shape with a minimal amount of maintenance from you. 'Sky Pencil' holly is a winner in my book.

Read article: 'Sky Pencil' Holly

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Put 'Sky Pencil' in the Winners' Column! originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Monday, May 7th, 2012 at 08:17:44.

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One's perspective sure can change when growing plants becomes an obsession. Take the desire to see wildlife in the yard, for example. If my plants weren't so important to me, I'd enjoy seeing rabbits in the yard. As for deer, I think I'd do everything possible to attract them, gorgeous and graceful beasts that they are.

But alas, I'm a gardener. And guess what? Beautiful animals that eat my precious plants become...far less beautiful. I'll enjoy them when I come across them in the woods, but I do not wish to see them in my garden. I'm many things, but a masochist isn't one of them!

Many other plant-lovers feel the same way. This fact helps account for the popularity of deer-resistant plants. While growing such plants doesn't preclude all possibility of suffering plant damage at the hooves of Bambi, it's a logical step to take in areas plagued by deer.

Ornamental grasses are stars in the deer-resistant lineup. Surprisingly, Bambi disdains most of them. If you desire a cold-hardy, tall ornamental grass, then zebra grass is one of your more attractive options.

Read article: Zebra Grass

More: Deer-Resistant Ornamental Grasses

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Photo ©2011 David Beaulieu (licensed to About, Inc.)

Deer Stay Away From Zebra -- Grass, That Is originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Saturday, May 5th, 2012 at 07:54:28.

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You may think the question I posed in the title of this blog post rather odd. After all, what business is it of mine if your mother or wife is named after a flower, right? But please bear with me. If you're a regular reader of my Landscaping blog, you know there's a method to my madness.

In fact, if you can answer the question in the affirmative, then you'll thank me for having asked it. Why? Because I'm about to give you a good idea for a Mother's Day present. And if you've been giving Mother's Day presents for as long as I have, you could probably profit from exposure to a fresh idea, right? Something to shake things up a bit?

But even if you don't need an idea for a Mother's Day gift, you'll want to look over this article. There's a reason certain flower names double as female names: the flowers in question are lovely! And there's something here for every landscaping need: trees, shrubs, vines and perennials.

Read article: Women's Names That Are Also Flower Names

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Photo ©2007 David Beaulieu (licensed to About, Inc.)

Is Your Mother or Wife Named After a Flower? originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Friday, May 4th, 2012 at 08:52:50.

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Lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis) is a common floral element at weddings, due to its sweet fragrance and the purity suggested by the snow-white color of its flowers. I suppose the bell shape of its blooms doesn't hurt in this regard, either (as in "wedding bells"). So the question is, what about lily of the valley does not say "romance"?

Well, there are many people for whom romance is the furthest thing from their minds when they hear mention of lily of the valley. Why? Because many gardeners have had to battle it as an invasive plant. In such cases, lily of the valley will be viewed more or less as a weed, an arch nemesis against which one's perennial bed must be vigorously defended. Blogger Scott Harris has dubbed it a "vile weed," invoking a derogatory epithet for broccoli used by Newman on the TV show, Seinfeld.

Are you torn between classifying lily of the valley as "romantic" or "invasive"? If you're conflicted on the issue, I suggest some alternatives in this article that will allow you to grow lily of the valley without leaving yourself wide open to an unwanted invasion.

My own experience in fighting Japanese knotweed has made me sensitive to how troublesome invasive plants can be in the landscape. Before finally eradicating it, I fought it on my landscape for much of my life, as my father did before me. When in doubt, it's certainly acceptable to err on the side of caution and abstain from planting a questionable species. No ribbons for valor are given out on this battlefield!

Of course, the decision would be easy with Japanese knotweed, since it holds little in the way of redeeming features (we inherited Japanese knotweed in our yard, probably a stow-away in a delivery of fill decades ago). Lily of the valley, on the other hand, does little, on the surface, to make your decision easier, being quite an attractive plant.

Read article: Lily of the Valley Flowers

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Lily of the Valley: Romantic or Invasive? originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Thursday, May 3rd, 2012 at 07:50:05.

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Most floral colors do have some sort of fan base. There are gardeners, for example, who love yellows, reds and oranges for their ability to light up an otherwise drab area of the landscape with vibrant color. For others, looking for more subdued colors, soft pink or lavender flowers may be favorites.

But purple flowers (along with blue flowers) seem to be in a league of their own when it comes to eliciting oohs and ahs from people, whether they be casual gardeners or die-hard plant fanatics. Remember, purple was traditionally the color of royalty! Purple is also considered one of the cool colors that help relax us -- and who couldn't use a little more relaxation in today's world?

My pictures of purple flowers will help you choose from among the number of plants that bear blooms of this regal, soothing color. Click on any of the links within my photo gallery to access additional information about the plants discussed, including preferred growing conditions.

View photo gallery: Pictures of Purple Flowers

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Pictures of Purple Flowers originally appeared on About.com Landscaping on Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012 at 08:25:14.

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