AMERICAN GARDENER

Asparagus is one of the most distinctive-looking plants in the vegetable garden, producing its characteristic spears in spring before developing into tall, feathery, fern-like foliage that gives the mature plant an airy, delicate appearance quite unlike most other commonly grown vegetables. This distinctive growth form — emerging pointed spears followed by finely divided, needle-like foliage … Read more

Lilies are among the most celebrated flowering bulbs in the world, with a cultivation history stretching back more than 4,000 years to the earliest known depictions of the Madonna Lily in ancient Mediterranean art. True lilies belong to the genus Lilium, distinguished by six petals and six anthers, and there are roughly 90 to 100 … Read more

Lilac is one of the most beloved flowering shrubs in temperate gardens, prized for its dense, cone-shaped flower clusters and an intensely sweet fragrance that has made it a fixture of springtime gardens for centuries. The genus contains only about 12 to 25 recognized species depending on classification, yet breeders have produced hundreds, if not … Read more

Angelonia, commonly known as summer snapdragon, is a heat-loving bedding plant valued for its tall spikes of orchid-like blooms that keep flowering through the hottest, most humid stretches of summer when many other annuals begin to fade. The genus contains roughly 30 species native to a range stretching from Mexico down through Argentina, though only … Read more

Allium vegetables form one of the most widely used groups of culinary plants in the world, valued for their pungent, savory flavor and the distinctive sulfur compounds that give onions, garlic, and their relatives their characteristic bite. The genus these vegetables belong to is enormous, containing well over 1,000 recognized species, though only about a … Read more

Allium, commonly known as ornamental onion, is a genus of perennial bulbous plants prized for their striking globe-shaped flower heads and strong vertical presence in the garden. The genus is enormous, containing more than 700 recognized species, ranging from towering ornamental types to the culinary alliums grown in kitchen gardens worldwide, including garlic, chives, shallots, … Read more

Bird of paradise is one of the most dramatic flowering plants grown in tropical and subtropical gardens, named for blooms that closely resemble the head and crest of an exotic bird in flight. The name is actually shared by two entirely unrelated plant groups, one a small genus of just 5 species native to South … Read more

Canna lily is one of the boldest, most tropical-looking flowering plants grown in temperate gardens, prized as much for its broad, paddle-shaped foliage as for its vivid, showy blooms. Despite the common name, canna lilies are not true lilies at all, belonging instead to their own distinct plant family more closely related to bananas, heliconias, … Read more

Gladiolus, often affectionately shortened to “glads,” is a genus of perennial flowering plants prized for its tall, sword-like foliage and dramatic, densely packed flower spikes. The genus includes roughly 300 recognized species, the vast majority native to southern and central Africa, along with hundreds of additional cultivated hybrid varieties developed over more than a century … Read more