Native Gardens of Blue Hill

The Revolutionary Genius of Plants: A new understanding of plant intelligence and behavior  

By Stephano Mancuso, 2018.

This fascinating tour of some the latest research on plants is paired with discussion of some of their most remarkable evolutionary traits and how we c...

Fall is a time of year when I get excited about grasses.  I love looking at expanses of meadows as I drive around the Peninsula — see the textures and tones of the meadow grasses swaying in the breeze. My favorite meadows are the ones that are most subtle.  Grasses ten...

Summer is a great time to prune.  Pruning spring blooming trees and shrubs soon after they bloom means you can prune without cutting off new flower buds that are about to form for next year. On many trees, such as birch, the sap has stopped running and you will not ris...

Nature's Own Snow Seeding:  

Birch seeds undergo cold stratification after being blown into a track left in the snow.

Now while my gardens are caked in ice and snow, the possibility of doing some actual gardening seems so far off. My remedy is to listen to podcasts while...

At the time of year when we reflect on the bounty of summer, we would like to thank all who have generously donated to our progress. 

This public garden is possible through the support of hardworking volunteers giving their time and talents, and the gener...

The first signs of spring have arrived and the show of wildflower blossoms has begun. On a recent warm day after the first week of May I thought I would capture some of the natives in bloom. I was surprised by how many blossoms I found in my own yard.

Two of my favorite...

Winter is a time when gardeners  take a break from outdoor activities as dictated by the weather. It may appear frozen for months on end in the garden, but it doesn't mean that everything has come to a halt.

Herbaceous plants along with deciduous trees an...

 Eight of us gathered on this unseasonably warm fall day in the Teaching Garden – the area between South Street and the ranch house at the Bagaduce Music Lending Library site. Our mission was to build raised beds that will be ready in the spring to accommodate small se...

 Early November is the end of the season at Mainescape, and we were given the opportunity to glean from the remaining unsold native plants that could be added to the NGBH partnership garden site. This garden is primarily shady with a variety of soil conditions, and we...

There may be occasions when Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) still seems somewhat attractive: perhaps as a single vine with a small flourish of orange and yellow fruit. But modest stature and limited fruit production are what we never see as bittersweet tri...