Phenology: the study of nature's seasonal changes

Plant observer Patricia A. Pearson was so impressed by the life of a wild lilac bush growing in the Santa Rita Mountains that she bought one for her Sahuarita yard.

Homeowners to show gardens so visitors can snag some ideas

Artful teamwork created the lush 3-year-old desert garden at Bob and Judy Schumann's Oro Valley home.

Winners of Tucson garden-design challenge

A multipurpose living space that looks out on a Zenlike desert garden won the Growdown competition at Tucson Botanical Gardens.

Colorful, hearty bougainvillea save blooms for warmer months

Bougainvilleas follow two unbreakable rules that gardeners would be wise to pay attention to.

You can put your veggies to good use even if your garden is too bountiful

If you still have a bountiful harvest from your winter garden, don't fret. It doesn't have to go to waste.

Plant sales to offer fresh start

Time to get planting. Several plant sales by non-profit organizations can help you find stock for replacing frozen landscape, starting your veggie garden or trying something new.

Getting started: Organic gardening tips for newbies

If you're tackling organic vegetable gardening for the first time, here are a few tips to get you started. They're from organic gardeners and gardening experts around Tucson.

Landscaping enhances garden railway

Sometimes a model railroad meant to run outdoors can take over a yard. Track, trestles, tunnels, town buildings and other features become the overwhelming focus.

A rose of a smaller size smells as sweet

Valentine's Day flower bouquets may start to wilt by now, but you're lucky if your sweetie gave you a potted miniature rosebush instead.

There's a lot to consider when placing garden art

Just as putting plants in your yard requires a little bit of thought, so does installing a sculpture in your landscape.

Seed libraries, germinated last year, now bloom

It's been a year since the Pima County Public Library opened seed libraries, and there have been interesting "returns" and donations, says librarian Justine Hernandez.

Do's, don'ts for using old gardening supplies

With spring planting season approaching, it's time to take stock of what's in your garden shed or garage. That way you make sure to use what you have and toss out what you can't salvage.

Seek serene symmetry of a Japanese garden

You can have a Japanese garden without a lot of fuss and space.

Turn a patio pot into Winter salad

Sustainable farming does not have to involve rows and rows of veggies. Or even a garden plot in the backyard.

Garden honors victims of Jan. 8

While people talk about a permanent memorial commemorating the Jan. 8, 2011, shooting, a legacy already exists.

Bureau's stars for 2013 are wildflowers, gerbera daisies and watermelons

Every year the National Garden Bureau names plants it plans to showcase for the next 12 months.

Saving the planet - one tree at a time

Tree-loving Melo "Mel" Dominguez sees herself as a soldier in the fight to save the planet.

The cactus of christmas

Horticulturist Eric Clark's mother inherited her grandmother's Christmas cactus; it must be around 80 years old now.

Hoe! Hoe! Hoe! Holiday ideas for the gardener on your gift list

Stuck on what to get the gardener on your holiday gift-giving list? Here are a few suggestions, some of which came from local gardeners.

Flowers are the ideal hostess gift

Flowers - cut or potted - and plants make festive host and hostess gifts that last long past the party.

Pilot program makes saving water fun

Mead Mier is a three-time saver.

Pollinators, tips sought in urban gardens project

How does your garden grow?

Landscape designer to share secrets for enjoying your patio in any season

We lucky Tucsonans get to comfortably hang out outdoors for most of the year. Landscape designer Shelly Ann Abbott has ideas about making our patios inviting enough to do so.

Mesquite-pod milling gets energized

Last fall's mesquite milling event by the Tucson Audubon Society was so successful that some people had to wait awhile to have their tree pods turned into flour.

Efficient watering

If you're replacing one plant with another, planting your beds or changing your landscape around, it's a good time to also rethink your drip system.

Environmentally friendly gardens featured in 2 tours next weekend

Two self-guided garden tours next weekend will demonstrate that green living starts out in the yard. Plus, both tours are compact enough that you can walk them.

3 sales offer plants not often found elsewhere

October is the gardener's reward for toughing out a long, grueling summer of coaxing plants to thrive.

Three upcoming tours focus on gardening

Alternative vegetable gardening, a tribute to former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, and gardening classes are among the features of three tours in the next two weekends.

Workshop to give gardening tips on home shrines

Luis and Maria Gutierrez were so inspired by their 2004 trip to the Our Lady of Lourdes grotto in France that they built their own version in their front yard.

Keeping the critters at bay

If your garden looks more like a zoo - caged plants or fenced landscapes to keep critters from eating them - there are a few strategies you can try to keep hungry mammals at bay without ruining the view.

Use interior-design principles to create container landscapes

Expand your potting repertoire by creating a landscape in a container.

3 tours may spark ideas for your yard

With prime planting season coming up, three garden tours in Southern Arizona next weekend offer plenty of ideas.

How to be sure butterflies don't just flutter on by

If you're looking for a simple gardening project for the upcoming three-day holiday, put in plants that will attract butterflies.

Instructions with plants often wrong for Tucson

Transplanted and new gardeners hear the mantra pretty early: Gardening in Tucson is different.

Legume landscapes for non-veggiephiles

When Matthew Johnson talks about legumes at this week's monthly meeting of The Gardeners of Tucson, he won't focus on lentils, beans, peas or other veggie-garden crops.

Add a 'living sculpture' to landscape

Nursery owner Greg Starr sees two kinds of plant lovers. One enjoys cactus and succulents. The other fills the garden with leafy plants.

Give your tomato plants a second chance

Even if your tomato plant looks droopy, leggy and flowerless, you might want to hang on to it for a little while longer for a fall crop.

Monsoon season is time to plant heat-loving species

Planting at this time of year may be tough on you, but it's the perfect season for heat-loving species to get in the ground and grow.

Swale idea: Simple, inexpensive ways of saving rainwater

How much rainwater have you kept in your yard so far this season? It's not too late to start harvesting it.

Want to water potted cactus? Yes and no

With the monsoon season under way, the question for owners of potted cactus comes up: Water or don't water?

Plant collecting a hobby only for the hardy

Plant collectors are a hardy breed of hobbyists. They face challenges unimportant to accumulators of inanimate objects that can go anywhere.

Odd progeny, when cacti intermarry

Nature has created some pretty weird cacti for our enjoyment. Add a bit of human intervention and the strangeness doubles.

Plants for people with unusual tastes

Editor's note: This is the second in a two-part series on landscape designers' favorite underused plants.

Pointy plants add variety to landscape

Editor's note: This is the first of two parts on stories on landscape designers' favorite - and underused - plants. This week: pointy plants. Next week: Soft plants.

Tohono Chul flower book is garden-friendly

Author Sue Feyrer had gardeners in mind when she updated her book about flowers at Tohono Chul Park.

Curb appeal is essential to selling a home

With Tucson's housing market showing signs of life, curb appeal is starting to get more attention.

Mulch matters: shades, cools, feeds soil

Angelo Romeo's wife, Veronica, planted a lantana at their home several years ago.

Koi, pond fans find kindred hearts

Cardiologist Lee Goldberg was having a tough time getting a koi pond installed in his backyard.

Use versatile shrubs to add visual interest

Shrubs are workhorses in the landscape. They act as hedges or other visual barriers, stand on their own as specimen plants and accent sculptural species such as yuccas and agaves.

Even mature native trees may need extra water

Time to think seriously about watering trees. May marks the beginning of the Tucson's official dry season. That means gardeners need to carefully watch their irrigation to make sure their plants get enough water.