January/February 2001 - Volume 80, Number 1

The following is a table of contents of the articles that appear in the January/February 2001 issue of The American Gardener.  Links have been established to each article.  However, many articles are only accessible to American Horticultural Society (AHS) members . When you click on these links, a challenge will appear for a username (ahs) and password that AHS members can use to view these articles. Non-members are encouraged to join AHS to be able to enjoy each of these articles and the many other benefits of AHS membership.

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Features

• New Wave Daisies  by Rand B. Lee - A rising tide of brightly colored annual and tender perennial daisies from Africa-including arctotises, gerberas, gazanias, osteospermums, and dimorphothecas-is bringing a new look to American gardens.

• Success with African Violets by Morgan Simmons - America's favorite   houseplant will reward you with blooms year round if you follow a few simple    rules. Includes illustrated, step-by-step instructions for propagating African     violets from leaves.

• Inspired Plantings for Walls and Fences by Rita Pelczar - These often under-used architectural elements in your garden make great backdrops for   colorful and innovative plantings. Garden designers across the country offer    tips for the best combinations of plants and architecture.

• The Holden Arboretum by Cathy Thomas - A majestic natural setting,       notable plant collections, and cutting-edge research programs make this     Cleveland public garden a required stop for plant enthusiasts. 

• The Transplanted Gardener by Roger Johnson - A New Jersey gardener settling into a second home in Florida learns valuable lessons about adaptation. 

Departments

• An Inside Look - An overview of what's in each issue and engaging insights from American Horticultural Society President Emeritus H. Marc Cathey.

• Member's Forum - Readers write to voice their opinions, make recommendations, or set the record straight. In this issue: Extending the hardiness zone of Linum lewisii, a correction to the stated height of Pinus strobus, and an update on the fate of a National Co-Champion smoke tree at risk in Indiana.

• News From AHS *  - Updates on American Horticultural Society programs and events. In this issue: Felder Rushing to represent AHS at Southern Spring Show in Charlotte, North Carolina; Southern Living Garden School announces its 2001 sites; and winners of the Society's 2001 Great American Gardener Awards.

• SmartGarden™ - A series of articles highlighting different aspects of AHS's new SmartGarden™ program, which promotes a holistic approach to gardening using scientifically sound and environmentally responsible practices. This issue: Understanding cold hardiness.

• Gardener's Notebook * - Short, newsworthy articles on horticultural topics. This issue: A new, disease-resistant redbud cultivar, protecting crops using a clay film; Holly Shimizu is new director of U.S. Botanic Garden; University of Georgia horticulture professor Michael Dirr prepares to retire; the demise of Garden.com; and the Missouri Botanical Garden's Peter Raven wins the National Medal of Science.

• Offshoots - Essays on gardening from a personal viewpoint. This issue: Surviving winters in Montana.

• Gardener's Information Service * - The plant specialists at the American Horticultural Society answer gardening questions. This month: How to grow bat plant from seed; in search of hardy hollies; caring for a century plant; and a short profile of star anise.

• Habitat Gardening - Profiles of gardens designed to replicate regionally native plant communities or wild habitats. This month: Community involvement in Zionsville, Indiana, earns an entire community recognition from National Wildlife Federation Backyard Wildlife Habitat program.

• Focus * - An in-depth look at specific gardening topics. This issue: Top Regional Performers: battle-tested flowers and vegetables for your garden, as recommended by field judges across North America. Also, All-America Selections winners for 2001.

• Gardening Online - Updates on the changing world of cyber-gardening. Here are the top Web sites to start with when looking for gardening information.

• Book Reviews - Pamela Harper's Time-Tested Plants: Thirty Years in a Four-Season Garden; Martin Rickard's The Plantfinder's Guide to Garden Ferns; and Maureen Gilmer's Gaining Ground.

• Regional Happenings - Listings of lectures, flower shows, and other gardening events across the country. Featured: Cloister Garden Series in Georgia.

• Seasonal Garden Goods - A look at selected products on the market based on innovative design, horticultural utility, and environmental responsibility. This issue: Italian seeds, heat mat, plant labels, fish-based fertilizers.

• Hardiness and Heat Zones and Pronunciations - A guide to USDA Plant Hardiness and AHS Plant Heat zones for most of the cultivated plants listed in each issue-and how to pronounce their botanical names.

• Notes From River Farm - Thoughts and observations from the editor's desk. This issue: Preparing for spring in winter.

You can gain access to the online version of this issue of The American Gardener AND get a printed copy of each bimonthly issue mailed to your home by becoming an American Horticultural Society (AHS) member today. Click here to learn about the many other benefits of AHS membership--the annual Free Seed Exchange, toll-free gardener's hotline, free and discounted admission to flower shows and botanical gardens, and much more--and for a membership application. To purchase a single copy of the magazine, click here. The American Gardener is also available through select vendors; ask your local newsstand for our publication.

Items marked with an asterisk (*) can be viewed by non-members without a username and password.

Letters to the editor should be emailed to: editor@ahs.org or mailed to:
Editor, AHS,
7931 East Boulevard Drive,
Alexandria VA 22308.