March/April 2001 - Volume 80, Number 2

The following is a table of contents of the articles that appear in the March/April 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

• Perfectly Di-vine* by Kathleen Fisher - Learn about ten native climbers-including Carolina jessamine, trumpet vine, and Dutchman's pipe-that will add style and stature to any garden.

• Going Wild in the Shade by Rekha Morris - Lessons from nature inspired this gardener's design of a tranquil woodland garden in the Piedmont region of South Carolina.

• High-Rise Herbs by Rand B. Lee - Statuesque herbs such as angelica, valerian, and fennel can be used to add texture and substance to the ornamental flower bed.

• Blooming Bogs by Brent and Becky Heath - Got a troublesome soggy corner in your garden? Bulb experts Brent and Becky Heath show how the right bulbs and bulbous plants can transform a wet problem area into a colorful garden.

Departments

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

• Members' Forum - Readers write to voice their opinions, make recommendations, or set the record straight. In this issue: Tips for creating compost using worms, a note on Lewis and Clark's French connection, and a call to readers for nominations for best little-known public gardens around the country.

• News from AHS* - Updates on American Horticultural Society programs and events. In this issue: Update on the Society's popular Seed Exchange Program; highlights of the upcoming 55th Williamsburg Symposium; and a look ahead at the Society's 9th National Children and Youth Garden Symposium.

• 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 heat tolerance.

• Gardener's Notebook* - Short, newsworthy articles on horticultural topics. This issue: A report on a study of the best goldenrods for gardens; the release of a guide to the Garden Conservancy's summer garden tour sites; the phase-out of diazinon, a chemical used in many popular pest-control products; how to vote for a national tree.

• Offshoots - Essays on gardening from a personal viewpoint. This issue: Lament for a garden left behind.

• Natural Connections - An examination of a natural phenomenon or symbiotic relationship that may be observed in nature or in the garden. This issue: Mushrooms in the lawn.

• Gardeners Information Service* - The plant specialists at the American Horticultural Society answer gardening questions. This month: Preventing grape black rot; revealing why cardinal flowers are short-lived; dividing hostas; identifying a mystery sunflower.

• Focus - An in-depth look at specific gardening topics. This issue: Fresh ideas for cutting gardens. Learn how to integrate beds of flowers for cutting into your garden's design. Includes lists of the best plants for cut flowers and tips from our readers on their favorite flowers for arrangements.

• Seasonal Garden Goods - A look at selected products on the market based on innovative design, horticultural utility, and environmental responsibility. This issue: new plants from Etera and Terra Nova; a notebook useful for landscape design; a puncture-resistant wheelbarrow tire.

• Book Reviews - Featured: Ken Druse's Making More Plants, Judith Sumner's The Natural History of Medicinal Plants, and Richard Merrill and Joe Ortiz's The Gardener's Table. Also, short reviews of other newly released gardening books and references.

• Regional Happenings - Listings of lectures, flower shows, and other gardening events across the country. Featured: AHS Spring Plant Sale and Garden Festival in Virginia; blooming fields of ranunculuses in California.

• 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 an easy guide to pronouncing their botanical names.

• Notes from River Farm - Thoughts and observations from the editor's desk. This issue: Attracting birds to the garden.
   

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.