City Planter Garden News

The oldest plant on Earth is undergoing a renaissance. While the stately orchid is still the prize of the seasoned plant collector, it is the lowly moss that is receiving a new wave of love and admiration from the newest generation of hip gardeners.  And why not? Moss is beautiful, texturally interesting, and fairly easy to grow.

Moss belongs to a class of plants that do not produce seeds or flowers. Instead, mosses produce spores, like ferns. Unlike ferns, though, they have no vascular structures – they rely on the surrounding environment to move water through the plant. That is why mosses are always so small: they are non-woody plants that have no system to support larger growth.

Of all the fabulous plants you can have in your home, Tillandsias (sometimes called air plants or tillies) are by far the trendiest. Here at City Planter, they have gone from an unknown to one of our hottest items… and for good reason!

Tillandsias are easy to care for, interesting to look at, and can be collected and displayed in many different ways.

Can you believe it is already August 1st? This Summer has flown by in a hot muggy fashion. As gardeners we are already looking ahead to the fall (the new colors! the new plants! the cooler days!) but that doesn't mean we are excited for Summer to end. There is still an entire month of Summer fun to be had.

The number one question urban gardeners ask us is "where do you start?" So many people come in to our store not knowing how to begin gardening on a small balcony or terrace. Especially if you're a beginning gardener, all the questions in your head can feel very daunting.  Is my balcony big enough?  Do I have enough sun? How am I going to water it? What plants are going to live? If you ask yourself all the questions at once, you may talk yourself right out of it!  But you can do it! Here are some tips to help you on your way, and if you get stuck on any of them, come see us at City Planter, and we can walk you through it.