How to Cheat at Home Gardening
- jsrhollis
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
By Sue Dunn
There are so many questions and decisions when it comes to plants and flowers in a home garden. What the heck is it – a flower or weed? Is it invasive? Is it native? Is it poisonous? The list goes on and on. Or the age-old question of scientific names. I was told it was an asclepias incarnata – what the heck is that? Many times, I have pulled up what I thought was a weed in early spring only to realize it was a flower I have been coaxing along for a year, and I just threw it in the compost bin! If only I had known. Yikes, what’s a gardener to do?
Thankfully, there is an app for that. Actually, there are probably many, but the one I use is Picture This (nod to April Frost for the introduction). I am certainly not above a little cheating, and I will admit I have been doing so for the last several years. Yes, it does cost a little money, but when you think of all the flowers and plants that can be saved, it is well worth it!
“It’s simple—I cheat. And you can be a cheater too.”
The app is like an encyclopedia you carry around with you for plants, flowers, shrubs and trees. In fact, their tag line is Botanist in Your Pocket. Not only can you identify plants when they are emerging in spring, you can also learn an amazing amount of info about the plant, such as: height and width, watering and soil tips, propagation suggestions, light requirement, bloom time, pruning time, heat resistance, toxicity, the list goes on and on.
The Perks section of the app points out the benefits of each and every plant. It is great to know if it is a pollinator magnet or if the local deer will find it delicious. Is it a natural insect repellent or is it disease resistant? All info is geared toward your location, so you are not getting info for a different climate.
One of the most important features is identifying why a plant is sick and what to do. You can even communicate questions/problems by taking photos, answering a few questions and someone from the app will email you back with suggestions. I am using this right now for a hibiscus tree that just won’t bloom – wish me luck! There are many ways to use this app, many of which I have yet to discover, but so far I am putting it to very good use.
So when someone asks me how I know all this information, I reply, “It’s simple. I cheat, and you can be a cheater too! Let me show you how.”