Most people are familiar with Maidenhair ferns from seeing them in garden centers for indoor use. But did you know it’s a great plant for the shady, moist garden, too? Northern Maidenhair fern is native to our area. Unlike other ferns which can be easily divided and transplanted (note, only...
The bees are buzzing and loving Agastache ‘Blue Fortune’. This sun loving, water-wise plant is up to three feet tall, blooms July through September and has lovely Blue/Lavender blooms. I leave mine up long after the flowers have bloomed. I’m sure something will find a meal with its seeds and...
I can’t say enough great things about this sun worshiper. I planted several in a different garden, many years back, and they were left on their own to survive. And survive they did! This plant loves full sun and will lean a bit when it feels the cast of the...
Add a bit of the tropics to your garden with this large leaf wonder! Often called elephant ears, and it’s easy to see why, Colocasia is a dramatic, easy to grow plant that has a shape and structure unlike any other plant. Fair warning, you may want to add a...
A Family Tradition It’s certainly not an understatement to say that gardening runs in the family for two of Ault Park’s Adopt-a-Plot gardeners, Mike and Mary Koester. Mary’s father was known for his peonies and Mike’s father was a vegetable gardener. The homes they shared during their 50 plus years...
There’s a buzz word in the gardening community: pollinators. How to attract, feed, host and care for pollinators has been a constant topic of conversation these past years. Our own Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens has launched a Plant for Pollinators Program in which they have set a goal of...
It was perfecting timing that gave the Adopt-a-Plots the dedicated gardeners Deb and Geof Wyght. Mount Lookout residents, they often found themselves in the gardens on one of their walks. A long time admirer of the gardens, Deb often told herself that when she retired, she would want to have...
There are many reasons why and many ways in which volunteers find themselves tending a small plot of garden at Ault Park. For Laura Balside, the caretaker of Devon Acres, it was a friend who was gardening in Ault who got her interested. “When I heard my friend talk about...
As soon as spring arrives, those who toil in the gardens will get the inevitable question, What are the Adopt-a-Plots and who takes care of them? The Plots are a wonderful way in which members of the community care for a tiny section of the park. Many years ago the...
Many years ago, when I worked for the parks, I had the opportunity to do some gardening in the Viburnum Wall Garden. A few new plants were added, new bulbs, too and some pruning was accomplished. Fast forward a few years and I’m now working with Wimberg Landscaping, and once...