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November/December 2008 - Volume 87, Number 6

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Non-members can view the EXCERPT from the
Striking Stems Provide Winter Interest feature.

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Features

• Indoor Gardens Under Glass by Kris Wetherbee
  When winter has your yard in hibernation mode, bring the beauty of the botanical world indoors by creating a terrarium.
   
• Dangerous Lives of Plant Explorers
  In this excerpt from his new book, Planthropology, Ken Druse recounts the exploits of two fabled 19th-century plant hunters.
   
• Striking Stems Provide Winter Interest by Rita Pelczar*
  Many shrubs and small trees offer colorful stems, arresting forms, and textured bark that add interest to winter gardens.
   
• Lester Rowntree by Judith Larner Lowry
  An early champion of Western native plants, Lester Rowntree’s accomplishments in the first half of the 20th century still inspire California horticulturists.

Web special: Some Californian Flower Shrubs by Lester Rowntree (1935)

Web special: California Sierras in War Times by Lester Rowntree (1943)

• Witches’ Brooms by Kathryn Lund Johnson
  These strange plant mutations can cause significant damage to some plants but in others yield exciting new cultivars.
   

• Notes from River Farm*
  Insights and updates about American horticulture and the AHS from Board of Directors Chair Susie Usrey and Executive Director Tom Underwood.

Web special: Photos and tributes to Dr. H. Marc Cathey

• Members’ Forum*
  Reader letters to the editor.
   
• News from AHS*
  Updates on American Horticultural Society programs and events. In this issue: Visiting scholar Norm Lownds focuses on the AHS’s youth programs, gift from Daniel family benefits a garden at River Farm, the AHS helps celebrate a greener Boston, AHS editor is honored by Garden Writers Association.
   
• AHS News Special: America in Bloom Winners*
  Communities that received the 2008 AIB awards.
   
• One on One With…
  Interviews with today’s leaders and trendsetters in gardening and horticulture. This issue: Norm Lownds, children’s garden innovator.
   
• Green Garage*
  A series focusing on the AHS’s latest initiative to promote environmentally responsible gardening tools, supplies, and techniques. In this issue: Useful specialty tools and winterizing tips.
   
• Gardener’s Notebook*
  Short, newsworthy articles on horticultural topics. This issue: Student’s wild onion research yields clues to plant diversification; ladybug sleuths sought to assist population study; new online resource for encouraging children to get involved with nature; edibles replace City Hall lawn in San Francisco; Seed Savers Exchange names new executive director; Texas wildflower campaign to honor Lady Bird Johnson.
   
• Gifts for the Gardener*
  Our annual year-end look at garden-related ideas for holiday gift-giving.
   
• Book Reviews*
  Featured: Perennial Combinations, Designer Plant Combinations, The Heirloom Tomato, and Don’t Throw It, Grow It!

Special focus: Fascinating flowers.

• Regional Happenings*
  Listings of lectures, flower shows, and other gardening events across the country. Featured: Gardens under glass exhibit at Des Moines Botanical Center and Glen Echo Gardens in Bellingham, Washington.
   
• 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 a user-friendly guide to pronouncing their botanical names.
   
• 2008 Magazine Index*
   
• Plant in the Spotlight
  A closer look at selected plants. This issue: Chocolate flower (Berlandiera lyrata).
   

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.

Items marked with an asterisk (*) can be viewed
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Letters to the editor should be emailed to: editor@ahs.org or mailed to:
Editor, AHS,
7931 East Boulevard Drive,
Alexandria VA 22308.