Woodland forget-me-nots are short-lived perennials valued for their color, with numerous pink buds followed by small, attractive, half-inch five-petaled blue flowers. A short plant (often just 5 inches at maturity) with a medium growth rate, forget-me-not has hairy stems with single flowers growing at the end of bunches of flowering stems. It attracts butterflies and resists rabbits and deer. Forget-me-nots are cold hardy. Although they can grow in the sun or shade, they prefer moist, woodland environments with dappled light. In warmer, southern climates with high heat, they grow best in a shady spot. Although technically a perennial, most gardeners treat forget-me-not as a biennial, sowing seed in midsummer and enjoying the blooms the following year. It is used as a groundcover, in garden beds, woodland gardens, rock gardens, or containers. Deadhead flowers if you don't want them to overgrow in an area since they reseed readily and are invasive in some areas. Forget-Me-Not Meaning and Symbolism Woodland forget-me-nots (Myosotis sylvatica) are different from Chinese forget-me-nots (Cynoglossum amabile). The word "myosotis" in the species name comes from Greek words meaning "mouse ear." The plant's foliage has short, pointed leaves resembling mouse ears. A forget-me-not variety, Myosotis scorpiodes, also has a unique common name, "scorpion grass," for its flower clusters that curl like a scorpion's tail. Forget-me-nots are a popular bridal flower for their symbolism. They historically symbolize true love, respect, fidelity, and devotion. Forget-Me-Not Care Here are the main care requirements for growing woodland forget-me-nots: Grows well in full sun or partial shade, preferring dappled light. Prefers moist soil; do not allow it to dry out. Handles heat and cold climates and does not like intense heat. It needs rich soil, augmented with compost or fertilizer annually. Light In the North, you can grow it in full sun or partial shade, although this plant prefers dappled light. At the southern end of its range, give forget-me-not afternoon shade. This plant does not like intense sunlight. Soil Forget-me-not prospers in organically enriched, consistently moist, well-drained soil. Never allow the soil to dry out. It grows best in neutral pH, although it handles slightly alkaline or acidic soil pH. Water Forget-me-not prefers wet soil. It can handle muddy or waterlogged soil and thrives near a stream, pond, or bog. The more sunlight it receives, the more water it will need. Temperature and Humidity With a range covering six USDA zones, forget-me-not withstands heat and cold well. Unless you're trying to grow it north of zone 3, you don't need to take measures to winterize it. However, due to its susceptibility to powdery mildew disease,2 it isn't recommended for areas with intensely hot, humid summers. Fertilizer Fertilize forget-me-not with compost or general-purpose fertilizer annually. Follow the product label instructions for the amount of fertilizer to use. Types of Forget-Me-Nots There are about 100 species of forget-me-nots. Most are called forget-me-nots or scorpion grass. Some of these plants were historically used to treat wounds and some medical conditions.3 Other common types of forget-me-nots include: Small-flowered forget-me-not (Myosotis stricta) Broadleaf forget-me-not (Myosotis latifolia) Water forget-me-not (Myosotis scorpioides) Field forget-me-not (Myosotis arvensis) Alpine forget-me-not (Myosotis asiatica) Cultivars of Myosotis sylvatica with more options for color, plant size, or flower size include: Blue basket: Taller, deeper blue flowers Music: Flowers larger and deeper blue Pompadour: Compact growth habit; pink flowers Snowball: White flowers Ultramarine: Smaller plant; deep blue flowers Victoria blue: Compact growth habit Victoria rose: Pink flowers Victoria white: White flowers Pruning Forget-me-nots do not need pruning unless you want to trim away extra growth. You can remove dead or dried-up branches at any time, but the best time to trim overgrowth is immediately after the plant flowers. Use sterilized pruners to remove the spent flowering stalks at the base. Basal pruning also prevents seeds from dispersing. Once you introduce it to your garden, you'll have it for many years (unless you actively suppress it). Propagating Forget-Me-Not Forget-me-nots are best propagated by seed and division. To divide it, here's how: Dig up plants that have spread from the original. Transplant them to other areas in spring. Dig the holes the same depth as they were growing previously. Place in the hole and backfill with soil. Space them 10 inches apart. Water deeply to settle the plant. How to Grow Forget-Me-Not From Seed Forget-me-not plants are grown easily from seed, as evidenced by the plant's ability to reseed and spread. Here's how to sow seeds: Source seeds by early summer. Select a spot in the garden. Prepare the soil by raking it to loosen it and smooth it out. By midsummer, broadcast the seed across the surface. Water lightly afterward and often enough to keep the soil moist. Seedlings emerge in the fall; blooming will occur the following spring. Potting and Repotting Forget-Me-Nots Forget-me-not grows well in containers, whether outside in a shady spot or indoors. Plant it on its own in a 8- to 12-inch pot with good drainage filled with fresh potting mix. It also makes a good filler plant in a larger container with a mix of shade-loving plants. Keep the soil moist but not soggy and make sure the plant has good air circulation. Indoors, keep the pot in a spot with indirect light and rotate the plant frequently to ensure even light exposure. Water the plant regularly to keep the soil evenly moist. When the plant becomes root-bound, move it into a container one size larger than its current pot. Fill the new container with fresh potting mix, place the plant in the center and firm it into place with additional potting mix. Water it well to eliminate air pockets and allow the pot to drain. How to Get Forget-Me-Not to Bloom Bloom Months Forget-me-nots typically bloom from April to May for several weeks. What Do Forget-Me-Not Flowers Look and Smell Like? The plant produces many dainty blue, pink, or white flowers, just under 1/2-inch across. The five-petalled star-like blooms have no discernible scent. How to Encourage More Blooms Provide rich, consistently moist soil for the longest blooming period and the most flowers. Deadhead spent flowers to encourage more flowers. Forget-me-not, as a biennial or short-lived, reseeding perennial, reblooms annually with minimal care. Common Pests and Plant Diseases Garden pests mostly leave forget-me-not alone, but aphids, slugs, and snails can sometimes become problematic. Aphids are sap-suckers that can be controlled by a regular spray of water or wiping them away by hand. Slugs and snails are best eliminated by hand-picking and dropping them in soapy water. If the problem is extensive, use traps made of sunken bowls of beer around the plants. The fermentation smell entices the pests and drowns them. Reset and repeat until these traps no longer capture new slugs or snails. Forget-me-nots are susceptible to two diseases: powdery mildew and rust.4 Powdery mildew is that light-colored, powdery covering on a plant's leaves. Seldom fatal, it temporarily ruins plants' appearance. Minimize it by avoiding overhead watering. Common Problems Forget-me-nots are easy plants to care for and grow. The biggest concerns with these plants are managing their spread and giving the right amount of water. Managing Growth These prolific self-seeders are best controlled by removing the seed heads or flowering stalk immediately as the flower begins to fade. Dig up new stands of emerging growth and transplant them to a new section of your garden to control overgrowth in one area. Or, remove and discard them if you want to limit them in your garden. Wilting Leaves Forget-me-nots are water lovers. If the plants look like the leaves are wilting and crispy, they are likely not getting enough water. If the leaves look wilting and limp, they may be getting too much water. Adjust the water level accordingly. If the problem continues, consider digging up the plant and replacing the soil with better-draining soil.

Butterfly weed is a milkweed plant that attracts butterflies to the garden with its clusters of bright orange-to-yellow blooms rich with nectar and pollen. This clump-forming perennial grows two feet tall from tuberous roots with glossy green, lance-shaped leaves. It requires at least eight hours of full sun and well-draining soil and can handle a wide range of temperatures, from freezing to high heat. Unlike other milkweeds, butterfly weed does not have caustic milky sap, but it is still considered mildly toxic to humans and animals. Butterfly Weed Care Plant butterfly weed in late spring after the soil warms. Do not expect it to bloom the first year; flowering may take three years. Blooms last about two months, from late spring until late summer. A. tuberosa produces seed pods that release silky-tailed seeds to disperse on the wind. Here are the main care requirements for growing butterfly weed: Grow butterfly weed in a sunny spot with well-draining soil. Sow seeds directly in the garden—butterfly weed does not require much tending to to thrive, Water a new plant well during its first growing season, but the plant will prosper even in drought-like conditions when established. Its seed pods will turn brown towards the end of the growing season (early autumn) and will burst to spread seeds throughout your garden, which emerge as new volunteer plants the following spring. While the plant can take up to three years to fully mature and produce flowers, its blooms will gradually grow denser with each season that passes. Light Choose a spot in your garden that boasts bright sunlight daily, as this plant loves to soak up the rays. Full sun is your best bet. Soil Butterfly weed can prosper in various soil conditions and compositions, from sand to gravel, and it generally prefers a neutral to slightly acidic pH. Water During its first year of life (or until new plants start showing mature growth), you should maintain a moist soil environment for butterfly weed, giving it about one inch of water per week through combined rainfall and irrigation. Once the plant appears well-established, you can cut back to watering it only occasionally, as it prefers dry soil. An extensive, deep taproot helps it thrive even in dry conditions. Mature plants can do well with just monthly watering in all but the driest climates. Temperature and Humidity Butterfly weed thrives in various temperature and humidity settings, growing well in zones 3 to 9. Generally, the plant emerges in late spring, hitting its peak bloom during the warmer summer months and drying on the stem throughout the autumn and winter. It handles high humidity and arid climates equally well, provided it gets adequate soil moisture. Fertilizer Butterfly weed is a low-maintenance plant that does not require any additional fertilization. Doing so can harm the plant, making it excessively leggy and reducing blooms. Types of Butterfly Weed There are several named cultivars of this plant. Most varieties, as well as the native species, are orange. But some popular varieties offer color variations: 'Hello Yellow' is a variety with bright yellow flowers. 'Gay Butterflies' has decidedly reddish flowers. 'Western Gold Mix' has golden-orange flowers and is bred primarily for the alkaline soils of the western United States. Pruning Butterfly Weed Though butterfly weed does not need much pruning throughout the year, it can be cut back to the ground ahead of winter. In late autumn, the leaves on the butterfly weed begin to yellow, and the stems dry out and turn brown. This is a sign that the plant is entering dormancy for the season. You can take a clean set of pruning shears and cut the plant to the ground, where it will stay until it reemerges in spring. Propagating Butterfly Weed Propagating butterfly weed from stem cuttings is easily achieved. Here are the basic steps: Select a healthy stem that's about half a foot long. Pinch off the leaves of the bottom half. Place the cutting in a jar of water. Wait a couple of weeks, and you will begin to see roots forming. Once the roots are a few inches long, plant the cutting in its own small pot. Allow the cutting to establish itself in the pot, keeping the soil moist while the plant grows roots. Transplant the new plant in a few weeks. How to Grow Butterfly Weed From Seed Typically, the easiest and most successful way to add butterfly weed to your garden is to grow it from seed. Plant fresh seeds in the fall for growth the following spring, or allow any established butterfly weeds already in your garden to do the work for you. Beginning in late summer or early fall, the plants should develop seed pods at the base of the pollinated blooms. If left on the stem, the pods will eventually burst, and the seeds inside will be blown throughout your garden, allowing them to establish themselves in the soil in time for the following year. If you'd rather have more control over the eventual location of any new butterfly weed plants, you can remove the seed pods from the plant before they burst open and simply plant new seeds by hand instead. If you want to start seed indoors, the seeds need cold stratification. Here's how to do it: Place seeds in moist seed starting mix in a container. Cover with a lid and leave in the refrigerator for two months. Remove from the refrigerator eight weeks before the last expected frost, and place in a warm spot under grow lights. Do not let seeds dry out. Once the seedlings have two sets of true leaves, pot them in potting soil and continue to grow inside. As temperatures warm outside and all danger of frost has passed, harden off seedlings for a week, then transplant them in the garden. Potting and Repotting Butterfly Weed Butterfly weed doesn't usually fare well with transplantation as an older plant because of its long, knobby taproot. But you can reliably grow butterfly weed from seed in potting containers. Butterfly weed will grow easily in a 10 to 12-inch deep pot with ample drainage holes. It does not need repotting or its soil refreshed. It thrives in poor soil, returning each year in the spring after emerging from dormancy. Overwintering Overwintering butterfly weed is a simple matter of cutting off the plant stem near ground level as soon as the plant succumbs to cold temperatures in the fall or early winter. There is no harm in leaving the plant stalks in place, though this encourages rampant self-seeding, which is usually not desired. Don't mulch over the root crowns, as this can promote rot. Common Pests and Plant Diseases In most circumstances, butterfly weed is largely trouble-free, but it can be susceptible to root rot if planted in dense soil with too much moisture. It can also be vulnerable to fungal diseases such as rust and other leaf spots, though these are usually merely cosmetic and not fatal.1 The plant can be susceptible to aphid damage, which usually is controlled by lady beetles and other predator insects.1 The plant hosts many butterflies, including monarchs, so expect the leaves to be eaten. Do not use pesticides on milkweed. How to Get Butterfly Weed to Bloom Bloom Months Butterfly weed blooms from June to August. How Long Does Butterfly Weed Bloom? The butterfly weed blooms are long-lasting and make a good cut flower. They also dry well. What Do Butterfly Weed Flowers Look and Smell Like? Small, star-shaped flowers in bright orange appear in a large, flat, or dome-shaped cluster atop hairy stems. The flowers have a mildly sweet, candy-like fragrance How to Encourage More Blooms Butterfly weed is not difficult to cultivate and should bloom freely once mature (which can take up to three years). If you're struggling to get your butterfly weed to bloom, a few factors could be at play. It's essential to get the plant's watering cadence right. It should be watered regularly until new growth starts to appear (including leaves and stems, not just blooms), at which point you can decrease watering frequency. Additionally, butterfly weed plants should not be fertilized. While fertilizer may work to make other plants bloom, it can harm butterfly weed and discourage blooming. If the plant is not receiving adequate sunlight, it may not bloom; consider moving it to a new location. Common Problems With Butterfly Weed Other than the root rot that can appear in dense, wet soils, there are only a few common problems with butterfly weed. Self-Seeding The most common issue with butterfly weed is rampant self-seeding if the seed pods aren't removed before they burst and scatter their seeds. This can be prevented by removing the seed pods before they dry and burst open. The volunteer plants that appear due to self-seeding should be removed before they establish long tap roots. Rabbit Damage Butterfly weed is very attractive to feeding rabbits. Rodent-repellant granules or sprays can provide some prevention, but metal fencing around the plants is the best solution.

The popularity of butternut squash among home gardeners is not surprising. With its dense, sweet, and slightly nutty flesh, it is one of the most versatile winter squashes. It also comes in compact, bush varieties that fit small spaces, such as Butterbush, and it’s easy to grow. To fully enjoy the fruits of your labor, follow these tips about how and when to harvest butternut squash as well as necessary post-harvest steps, including curing and proper storage. If you haven’t eaten it all by then, it will let you put dishes made from your homegrown butternut squash on your Thanksgiving table. When to Harvest Butternut Squash Butternut squash is ready to harvest when you notice a few key signs: it turns from green to orange, the rind is hard, and the stem/vines have dried up and died back. Once you can check all the boxes, you don’t have to harvest it right away. Just make sure you harvest all the butternut squash before the first fall frost, as it will store longer if it isn’t exposed to frost. Color As butternut squash ripens, its skin turns from green to a light beige to a deep, solid tan color and no green streaks. Depending on the variety there might be some bronze or orange highlights (and no green streaks) in it when the fruit is ripe. Skin The skin or rind should be hard and pass the fingernail test: when scratching it with your fingernail leaves a mark or breaks, the butternut squash isn’t ready; it needs for time for the skin to harden. Another indicator is dull and not glossy or shiny skin. Vines and Stems The vines should be crispy, shriveled, and yellowing, in other words, dying when the butternut squash is ready. Green vines indicate that the butternut squash needs more time. The stem should be hard and dry and of uniform tan color. How to Harvest Butternut Squash When it’s time to harvest the squash, follow these steps: Using a sharp knife or pruners, cut the fruit from the vine about 3 to 4 inches of the stem on the squash. Do not lift or pick up the squash by its stem when removing it from your garden, as the stem easily breaks off. If any stems break off, set those squashes aside to use first. Butternut squashes without stems are more prone to rotting and won’t store well because bacteria can enter the fruit. Curing Butternut Squash After harvesting, it is important to let the skin of the squash harden more. In the process, any scratches or cuts are being sealed. This process is called curing. Cure the butternut squash for 1 to 2 weeks at a temperature between 70 and 80 degrees F.1 Pick a location that is warm, well-ventilated, dry, and not accessible for critters and insects. A screened-in porch, garage, or shed is ideal. Storing Butternut Squash After curing, store the butternut squash in a cool, dry, well-ventilated location at 50 to 60 degrees F.1 Make sure there are no apples, pears, or other ripening fruit nearby, as the ethylene gas they exude affects the storage life of squash. Properly cured and stored butternut squash can be stored for 4 to 6 months but it is best when used within 2 to 3 months. Saving Seeds of Butternut Squash If you want to save the seeds of your butternut squash, make sure that it is an open-pollinated variety; otherwise, the plants from those seeds won’t be true to seed and won’t have the same desirable qualities. Extract the seeds when you are using one of the squashes for cooking. However, don’t cut the squash open in half all the way as you would normally do because cutting through will damage the seeds. Only cut through the skin and top layer of the squash from top to bottom and as deeply as needed to split the squash open into two halves. Remove as much of the stringy pulp around the seeds as possible, then place the seeds in a large bowl with cold water and swirl them around to dislodge more pulp. Pour the pulpy water off the top and keep the seeds at the bottom of the bowl. Repeat this a couple of times. Drain the seeds in a fine strainer and place them in a single layer on plates lined with paper towels. Place them in a dry place out of direct sunlight for about one week, or until they are thoroughly dried. Store them in labeled envelopes in a dry, dark place.