Plants

Pineapples are usually associated with juicy yellow or golden flesh, but a much rarer type has attracted attention for its unusual rosy-pink interior. The best-known example is Pinkglow® pineapple, a specialty pineapple developed by Fresh Del Monte. Its pink color comes from lycopene, a naturally occurring pigment also found in foods such as tomatoes and … Read more

Wild roses are the original members of the Rosa genus from which many familiar garden roses ultimately descended. Unlike highly bred modern roses, wild species generally have simpler flowers, often with five petals, prominent stamens, and a natural, informal appearance. They occur across much of the Northern Hemisphere, with species adapted to forests, grasslands, mountains, … Read more

Grandiflora roses are among the most impressive modern roses for gardeners who want large, elegant flowers on tall, vigorous plants. They combine characteristics of hybrid tea and floribunda roses, producing relatively large, shapely blooms while retaining the ability to flower in clusters or trusses. This combination gives Grandifloras a distinctive role in the landscape, particularly … Read more

Hybrid tea roses are among the most recognizable roses in the world. They are famous for their large, elegant blooms, long stems, classic flower shape, and wide range of colors. Whether grown in a dedicated rose garden, mixed border, cottage garden, or cutting garden, hybrid tea roses can provide a particularly refined display. Many varieties … Read more

Birds that look like penguins are far more common than most people realize, and the resemblance runs deeper than simple coincidence, since the word penguin itself was originally used for a completely different bird more than 400 years before it was ever applied to the tuxedo-clad seabirds of the Southern Hemisphere. European sailors first used … Read more

Roses rank among the most widely grown ornamental plants on earth, and understanding the different types of roses makes it far easier to choose the right variety for a garden, a cutting bed, or a container on a balcony. The genus Rosa contains more than 300 species and tens of thousands of cultivated hybrids, a … Read more

Flowers are among the most diverse and recognizable plants on Earth. They can be found growing in gardens, forests, grasslands, wetlands, deserts, mountains, and even along roadsides. Some flowers are cultivated for their beauty, while others are grown for fragrance, cut flowers, pollinators, food, medicine, or their ability to thrive in particular climates. With so … Read more

Tomatoes are among the most widely grown garden crops in the world, but the familiar red supermarket tomato represents only a small part of the enormous diversity available to gardeners. Tomatoes come in many shapes, sizes, colors, flavors, and growing habits. Depending on the variety, a tomato may be tiny enough to fit on a … Read more

Buying for a gardener comes with a strange built-in challenge: the person on your list already owns a shed full of tools, has strong opinions about trowel handle angles, and can spot a cheap pair of pruners from across the yard. More than half of American households do some form of gardening each year, and … Read more

Oak trees belong to the genus Quercus, which contains somewhere between 450 and 600 recognized species worldwide, making it one of the largest and most ecologically significant tree genera found across the Northern Hemisphere. Few trees rival the oak’s importance to wildlife, since research from entomologist Doug Tallamy has shown that native oaks in North … Read more