If you want healthy eggplant, wait for real warmth. The best time to plant eggplant outdoors is 2 to 3 weeks after your last spring frost, once nights stay above 55°F and the soil 4 inches down reads at least 60°F (65 to 70°F is even better). In most of the US, that lands somewhere … Read more >>
Lotus can get through a cold US winter just fine, as long as the tubers in the mud stay unfrozen and wet from fall until spring. In zones 3 to 7, I’d either sink the pot below the ice in a pond that never freezes solid or move it, still full of water, into a … Read more >>
My top pick for most bedrooms is the snake plant, because it handles low light, dry winter air, and weeks without water better than almost any other common houseplant. If your room is darker still, a ZZ plant is the next safest bet, and a spider plant or parlor palm is the better choice if … Read more >>
For most small ponds, I’d pick a dwarf lotus like ‘Momo Botan’, because it stays around 1 to 2 feet tall, blooms heavily with double pink flowers, and grows well in a 16 to 20 inch pot. If your space is a half-barrel, a compact type such as ‘Chawan Basu’ or ‘Baby Doll’ in a … Read more >>
A Boston fern is one of the easiest houseplants to keep in a home with pets. The ASPCA lists the Boston fern as non-toxic to both cats and dogs, so a nibbled frond won’t poison your pet. That’s good news if you’ve just found a shredded frond on the floor. Boston ferns are safe for … Read more >>
Most lotus plants grow happily in plain fresh water, as long as you keep it in a sensible range. The best water quality for lotus is warm, calm, fresh water with a pH between about 6.5 and 7.5, hardness well under 1,000 ppm, no lingering chlorine, and at least 2 inches of water covering the … Read more >>
The best lotus fertilizer for a home water garden is a slow-release aquatic fertilizer tablet pushed deep into the pot’s soil, starting once standing leaves rise above the water and repeating every three to four weeks until late August. I recommend tablets made for water lilies and lotus because they feed the roots directly and … Read more >>
Lemongrass smells great, and that citrusy scent does bother mosquitoes. A living lemongrass plant does very little to keep mosquitoes off you; crushed leaves and lemongrass oil repel them briefly, and an EPA-registered repellent with DEET, picaridin, or oil of lemon eucalyptus protects you for hours longer. So if you’re asking whether lemongrass repels mosquitoes, … Read more >>
Yes, lotus plants need full sun: at least 6 hours of direct sunlight a day, and 8 or more hours if you want the most flowers. I’d only give a lotus afternoon shade in hot desert areas like the Southwest, where the strong sun can scorch leaves and overheat a small container. A lotus in … Read more >>
Yes, you can plant cabbage next to asparagus, as long as “next to” means beside the bed and never inside it. Plant cabbage at least 18 to 24 inches outside the edge of your asparagus bed, so you can dig, feed, and harvest cabbage without touching the asparagus crowns. The two crops don’t harm each … Read more >>