Gardening

Watermelon isn't a small snack -- it can weigh up to l00 pounds. With warm soil and ample water, gardeners can grow this source of lycopene, which can prevent cancer. Learn how to grow watermelon.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Brussels sprouts can take three months to grow, but it's not a hard process -- and it can be a worthy one, given its cancer-fighting abilities and nutritional value. Learn how to grow Brussels sprouts.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Swiss chard is a leafy vegetable that thrives in cooler temperatures. With a growth cycle of roughly two months, Swiss chard needs to be trimmed to retain its flavor. Learn about Swiss chard.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Peppers come in several sweet and hot varieties -- both types make a tasty and attractive addition to any vegetable garden. Learn about growing, harvesting, and serving sweet and hot peppers.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Dandelion is more than just a weed. This very hardy plant is a versatile one, boasting nutrient-rich leaves and roots. Check out this article for tips on growing and harvesting the dandelion plant.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The uniquely sweet beet is a hearty, satisfying vegetable that's also good for you. This article features tips for growing, selecting and preparing beets, and information about the many health benefits of this versatile vegetable.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Broccoli packs more nutrients than any other vegetable. And, it is delicious and low in calories to boot. Learn how to grow, select and prepare broccoli, and about broccoli's numerous health benefits.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Okra, a very tender vegetable plant, requires warm weather to thrive, but its short harvest time makes it a versatile garden addition. Learn how to grow, harvest, and plant okra.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Alstroemerias, or lilies of Peru, are lilylike perennials with trumpet-shaped flowers. Flowers come in pink, rose, purple, yellow, cream, orange, and white and are great in garden containers and flowerbeds. Learn about these showy flowers.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Primrose is a perennial flower. Gardeners enjoy its beautiful shades of colors, including red flowers, yellow flowers, purple flowers and orange flowers. Grow primrose in the outdoor garden bed or as a house plant. Learn about primrose.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Beautiful perennials for the garden, the astilbes, or garden spireas, available today are usually the result of hybridization. Color may be white, pink, lavender, or cranberry. Learn how to grow this versatile flower.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Aster, or michaelmas daisy, is a North American flower that grows in wayside places with no care at all. You'll find garden asters in many sizes and colors. Find out about these perennial flowers.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Bergamot are hardy perennials considered garden favorites for decades. Sturdy stems are topped by crowns studded with lipped flowers. Find out more about these flowers, beloved by butterflies and hummingbirds.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Bleeding heart, a poetically named perennial flower, has heart-shaped pendant pink or white flowers with spurs at the base and attractive fernlike foliage. Find out about this garden favorite member of Dicentra.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Several coreopsis species are popular in the garden, all of them sporting bright daisylike flowers. These perennials bloom pink, orange, and yellow flowers. Learn to grow this great drought-resistant flower.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Ferns are perennials grown for their ability to thrive where less-hardy plants can't. Some are evergreen, while others die down in fall and return in spring. Learn more about versatile ferns.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Low-growing foliage of great distinction and spring flowers make epimediums, also known as bishop's hat or barrenwort, a good choice. Flowers in soft colors sometimes bloom before plants leaf out. Learn about this shade-loving perennial.

By Betty Barr Mackey

There are nearly 300 types of iris flowers that draw fascination from gardeners around the world. Learn how to welcome this rainbow of color into your garden!

By Betty Barr Mackey

Ligularia is a bold perennial for garden use. The plants bear sprays or spires of yellow or orange flowers in summer, on strong stems. Find out more about the ligularia.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Amaranthus, or summer poinsettia, is an annual plant capped with a swirling crown of hot-colored yellow and red leaves. The upper third of the plant eventually takes on red and yellow leaves. Learn about amaranthus.

By Betty Barr Mackey

The bachelor's button is an annual that grows one to three feet tall with innumerable fluffy but trim round flowers held above the rather sparse, long and narrow gray-green leaves. Learn about this flower.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Wax begonia and fibrous begonia are annuals equally at home in full sun or full but bright shade. They have white, pink, rose, or red blossoms. Find out about these flowers.

By Betty Barr Mackey

Cleome, or spider flower, is an annual flower known for its exceedingly long seedpods. They develop below the flowers to give the plants a spidery look. Find out more about Cleome.

By Betty Barr Mackey

The geranium, zonal, is a South African annual flower with a horseshoe-shaped band of dark leaf color. You can grow it in the garden or as a house plant. Find out about the zonal geranium.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Lantana is an annual flower abundantly covered through the summer with brightly colored blossoms. This woody shrub comes in white, yellow, gold, orange, and red flowers an is a great container plant. Learn about lantana.

By Betty Barr Mackey