The Latest Breaking News from Norman Winter

On Gardening: Make Blue Fortune agastache the foundation of your pollinator garden

A feeling of euphoria came over The Garden Guy and I muttered to myself that my work on earth was done. OK, I am kidding to a point.

Tribune News Service · Jun 9, 2022

On Gardening: Ladybird primroses make their debut

New in garden centers this year are a couple of Ladybirds. When you see the name Ladybird associated with a plant, you can assume a few things: native DNA, great for the environment and most likely tough as nails.

Tribune News Service · Jun 2, 2022

On Gardening: New Hawaiian Ti varieties create a dazzling taste of the tropics

Our Taste for the Tropics just got a lot larger this year as Proven Winners has added five new Hawaiian Ti varieties under their Proven Selections label. This brings the Cordyline group to a total of eight selections. Most of us have never seen a named variety of Hawaiian Ti,…

Tribune News Service · May 26, 2022

On Gardening: Persian Shield is beautifully exotic

Recently I stumbled across a plant recipe called "This is the Life." Not only was it a collection of some of my favorite plants, it was a wake-up call to an old favorite: the Persian Shield. Known botanically as Strobilanthes dyerianus, it is native to Myanmar and has 8-inch-long iridescent…

Tribune News Service · Apr 14, 2022

On Gardening: Calibrachoa Superbells gave winter the one-two punch

As I write this on April 3, today was the day the ruby-throated hummingbirds returned to my house. Oddly, it was a feast of the Calibrachoas Superbells. This story, however, starts the first week of October, which is when I planted them.

Tribune News Service · Apr 7, 2022

On Gardening: The best supporting flower goes to…Blue My Mind and Blue My Mind XL

Blue My Mind and last year’s sibling Blue My Mind evolvulus are surefire winners of the 2022 Best Supporting Flower. This is for the flower that delivers an outstanding performance in a supporting role.

Tribune News Service · Mar 31, 2022

On Gardening: Diamond Snow euphorbia a garden game changer

Diamond Snow has dramatically changed how we look at euphorbias, that not-so-glamorous common name of spurge. We all fell madly in love with its sibling Diamond Frost and subsequently gave it hundreds of awards in university trials. Diamond Snow, however, is a game changer.

Tribune News Service · Mar 24, 2022