Bachelor’s Button – Â A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Bachelor’s Buttons, also known as Cornflowers, are the bluest of all the flowers in the garden and blue is the rarest of the colors offered in nature. The plants are native to Europe and Asia. Tutankhamen, the Egyptian boy king, was buried with a wreath around his head of cornflowers,…
Baby’s Breath (Gypsophila)
Baby’s Breath –Â A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Gypsophila which is known in the US as Baby’s Breath and in Great Britain as Soapwort is a vigorous perennial which was originally native to Europe, Asia and Northern Africa. The plant was introduced into the United States in 1828 when many plants admired by the Victorian gardeners of Great Britain…
Aster
Aster –Â A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Asters are native to many parts of the world especially the New World. They have been a cottage garden favorite for centuries because of their incredible colors and late summer and fall blooms. Thomas Jefferson loved the China aster varieties and cultivated many of them at Monticello. Breck noted in his 1851…
Armenian Basketflower
Armenian Basketflower –Â A Little History and Some Growing Instructions The Armenian Basketflower is a robust perennial which is probably native to Europe, Asia and the Mediterranean. It is also known as Giant Knapweed and its Latin name is Centaurea macrocephala which tells us that it is related to Bachelor Buttons and Cornflowers. The large yellow flowers and the base which…
Amaranthus
Amaranthus 
- A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Amaranthus comprises a family of about 60 species of annuals or short-lived perennials that were originally native to parts of South America, Africa and India. The plant was introduced into the United States during the 1700’s. In his 1851 book, The Flower Garden, Joseph Breck was already describing Amaranthus as “an…
Alyssum

Alyssum
 – A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Alyssum also known as Sweet Alyssum is a perennial that is native to Southern and central Europe, Northern Africa and Southwestern and Central Asia and was included in gardens as far back as the 1500’s. The plants are prized for their low hummock-forming habit and incredible fragrance. Flowers are either yellow,…
Ageratum

Ageratum
 – A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Ageratum also known as Floss Flower or Whiteweed is an annual that is native to Southeastern North America and Central America with four species native to the United States. Depending on the cultivar, the plants can be erect, spreading or mounding. Flowers can be blue, white or pink and are known…
African Daisy
African Daisy – A Little History and Some Growing Instructions The African Daisy also known as the Cape Marigold, the Star-of-the-Veldt and Osteospermum is a hardy annual that is native to the dry, stony soils of South Africa. The plants were discovered in the 19th century and brought to Europe and the United States where they quickly gained some popularity.…
Achillea

Achillea
 – A Little History and Some Growing Instructions Achillea also known as Yarrow or Sneezewort to 19th century Americans is a vigorous and hardy perennial native to Europe, Asia and the Americas. There are white, yellow, red and pink varieties. According to Breck, in his 1851 book, The Flower Garden, the pink species was native to the United States.…