“There’s a saying: All flowers must grow through dirt,” floral designer Hafsa Lewis tells me over lunch on a sparkling late-spring Nantucket day. “The first time I heard it, it just slapped me in the face.”

It’s easy to see why that expression hit home when you learn how Lewis found her way to floristry—and to a rebirth, of sorts—on this Massachusetts island. A series of traumatizing experiences beginning about a decade ago had left her reeling. First, she was near the Boston Marathon finish line in 2013 when the bombs went off, and she went to the aid of a gravely injured woman. Two years later, she lost her savings in a Ponzi scheme, and then in 2017 her husband abruptly left her. Devastated, she quit her job at a Boston hospital, abandoned her plan to become a mental health counselor—she holds a master’s degree in clinical psychology—and moved to Nantucket to take a bartending gig.

“It was a dark, dark time in my life. I lost 30 pounds. I had no confidence,” she says. “The only time I didn’t feel like I wanted to die was when I was surfing—or playing with flowers.”

Lewis had enjoyed dabbling in floristry as a freelancer for an event planner. But now flowers felt like her salvation, a way to lose herself in beauty when things felt so bleak. They also presented a path forward. In 2018, she launched Hafsa & Co. as a floral marketing company specializing in the kind of large-scale fresh and faux installations that businesses increasingly use to beautify their spaces, attract customers, and generate social media hits. After attending workshops in her native England, as well as in Ecuador and Mexico, to learn the mechanics of the displays (hint: it’s all about chicken wire and zip ties), she started building her portfolio.

Among Hafsa & Co.’s most enthusiastic clients is Lemon Press, the airy organic café where we’ve met for lunch. It’s owned by cousins Darya Afshari Gault and Rachel Afshari, who happen to share Lewis’s Persian heritage and her belief in the magic of flowers.

“Our first install with Hafsa was [a small piece] over the coffee bar,” says Gault. “It was so well-received—people would come in just to Instagram it—we said, ‘Wow, let’s keep going.’ ”

Now, the Hafsa & Co. touch is everywhere at the café. An ethereal 16-foot swag of preserved white blooms—hanging amaranthus, lunaria, helecho fern, and others—graces a brick wall in the dining area; a canopy of faux wisteria dangles over the bar; and a border of foraged grapevines and silk daffodils and forsythias frames the eatery’s exterior doorway. (Lewis would soon be shifting that seasonal entrance display to summery spray roses and ranunculus.)

Lewis has also “flowered” the Artists Association of Nantucket gallery, the Nantucket Hotel, the Nantucket Dreamland movie theater, and a host of boutiques both on and off the island. She’s done displays for annual events including the Nantucket Wine & Food Festival, the Christmas Stroll, and the Daffodil Festival; made custom pieces for private parties (floral crowns, anyone?); and presented workshops for aspiring florists.

In 2021, the noted Los Angeles–based fine-art photographer Gray Malin enlisted Lewis to create elaborate floral props for a series of vignettes he’d come to the island to shoot. That same year and again in 2022, the local Coast Guard station asked her to put her creative touch on the iconic seasonal wreaths—daffodils in spring and poinsettias at Christmastime—that it hangs on the Brant Point lighthouse. (Lewis wasn’t involved with the 2023 daffodil wreath, which was delayed by lighthouse renovations, and then made and hung at the last minute by the Coast Guard when repairs were complete.) 

Like most small-business owners, she’s faced challenges. When Covid hit, she stayed afloat by making and delivering $50 bouquets with inspirational messages to residents who were stuck at home. Then in 2022, Nantucket’s Sign Advisory Council questioned whether her temporary outdoor installations were technically “signs” and therefore subject to a permitting process, a red tape–heavy requirement that likely would have sunk her business. Some detractors also sniffed that her displays were not appropriate on Nantucket.

Lewis went to every council meeting for six weeks to argue that her pieces were not signs—and that they were no different from the flower boxes most shops maintain. “I also wanted them to know the reason they were seeing more installations is because our community wants them. They make people happy.”

The controversy ended when the town unexpectedly ordered the council to disband before it made any recommendations. “And I’m still here to flower another day,” she says, smiling broadly.

Through it all, Lewis has remained mindful of what drew her to flowers: their power to heal, to express joy and sorrow, and to forge connections.

“The science part of my brain,” she says, “is really interested in how therapeutic flowers can be”—so interested, in fact, that she’s starting a doctorate program in clinical psychology this year with the idea of one day using flowers in a counseling practice.

“We have art therapy and pet therapy,” she says. “Why not flower therapy?”

There’s a bit more to the tale of how Hafsa Lewis blossomed on Nantucket. Those Coasties she helped with the lighthouse wreaths? Last summer, she married one of them.

“It was such a ‘meet cute,’” she says. “My friends tell me my life should be a Hallmark movie.” hafsaandco.com  

DIY Floral Design

Granted, you’re probably not planning to erect an elaborate floral installation in your home. But Hafsa Lewis says the principles behind her “big stuff” apply to the simplest arrangements, too.

1. Picking your flowers: “Go with the ones that make you feel something,” she says, “whether it’s a $24 stem or a sad-looking Charlie Brown–type grocery-store flower. If you’re moved enough by something that nature’s created, and it sparks joy inside of you, then you should take it home and make it your own.”

2. Choosing your vessel: “Pick one that allows your flowers space to breathe. If they’re stuck in a vase that just stands them straight up, they can feel stiff. That’s not how they are in nature. They grow loose and wild and free. Let each flower have its moment—it doesn’t matter if it’s the side or the back or the front of the stem. Flowers are beautiful from all angles.”

3. Setting up for success: “First, make sure your vessel is clean. Remove any leaves from the stem that would be under the waterline, since submerged leaves can cause bacteria that will shorten the flowers’ shelf life. Give the stems a fresh cut before you put them in water.”

4. Taking your time: “I often walk away from a piece for a while so that I can come back to it with fresh eyes. And I take pictures in order to get a different perspective. That helps me see what’s missing and what I could do differently. I think that works for both large- and small-scale things.”

5. Honing your skills: Lewis recommends photographing one arrangement you do now and one you do in six months, then studying the pictures to see what you’ve done differently and what has stuck with you. “Did the shape change? Did you pick different colors? Once you start to pay more attention, you learn what you like and what is most meaningful to you.”

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One of summer’s small pleasures is watching butterflies bounce from flower to flower in the garden – especially if the garden has been designed just for them and packed with plants that attract butterflies and other native pollinators.

There are two ways to develop a butterfly-friendly garden: the nectar-rich gardener’s plot, designed to lure butterflies, and the larval food garden, designed to satisfy hungry caterpillars.

Most butterflies will travel great distances to lay eggs on their favorite plants, so larval food plants (like milkweed) have the advantage of attracting the species you want to see. For this list of the ten best plants that attract butterflies, we’ve chosen primarily nectar food sources.

10 Best Plants That Attract Butterflies

Milkweed

The swamp milkweed functions both as a nectar plant and as the monarch butterfly’s larval host. Its purple-white blossoms smell heavenly in early summer, and hungry monarch caterpillars munch the leaves well into early fall.

Joe-Pye Weed

Looking like something out of a Dr. Seuss book, this eye-catching late-season local attracts swallowtails, fritillaries, dusky wings, and skippers.

Buddleia or Butterfly Bush

Though not native to North America, this perfumed shrub is easy to grow. It produces cascades of colorful blooms from mid- to late-summer.

Blazing Star

Colored like the invasive loosestrife blazing star is benign and manageable, a choice midseason libation for many butterfly species. Some varieties do well in dry sites.

Goldenrod

All types of goldenrod are an excellent late-season food source patronized by bees as well as butterflies, but old field goldenrod is the most common. Its mustard-gold blossoms add bold color to the summer landscape.

Bee Balm

Fritillaries like this one, and it may draw hummingbirds as well. The lavender form (wild bee balm) is more reliable than the red (wild bergamot).

Coneflower

In addition to the popular black-eyed Susan, the nectar-producing orange coneflower is especially appealing to monarchs and fritillaries. Purple coneflower works well, too.

Aster

All asters serve well as plants that attract butterflies to the garden, but the showy New England aster is the prettiest.

Sweet Pepperbush or Summersweet

That delicious fragrance in our wetlands in July and August comes from these drooping white bloom stalks of sweet pepperbush, which draw swallowtails and skippers.

Highbush Blueberry

May blossoms attract early-season butterflies, and have the bonus of fruit in July. Just try to get to the sweet berries before the birds do!

Edited excerpt from “Flutter By: Top-Ten List of Plants That Attract Butterflies” by Marty Carlock (first published in 2003, updated by Yankee Editors in 2023)

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It’s hard to picture the New England coastline in summer without the lush and colorful addition of hydrangea blooms. If you’re looking to add hydrangea to your yarn or garden this year, here are six perennial varieties that have the ability to thrive in the cranky New England environment, and how to prune them based on whether or not they form buds on new or old wood. To learn more about which choices will do best in your zone, visit a reputable local nursery or garden center for more advice, and once you’ve chosen your plants, don’t miss our post on Hydrangea Planting and Maintenance Tips.

6 Notable New England Hydrangea Varieties

Bigleaf (Hydrangea macrophylla)

From flat lacecap to rounded mophead, these beloved hydrangea varieties are the stuff of coastal postcard perfection. Blooms are most often blue and purple, but pink and white (and even red!) can be found. Next summer’s buds are formed this fall, so a rough winter or aggressive prune could leave you without flowers. Prune in the spring when hard frosts are over. Newer varieties, like Endless Summer, bloom on both new and old wood, making them a better choice for the unpredictable New England weather.

Panicle/Hardy (Hydrangea paniculata)

With sizes ranging from shrub to tree, panicle hydrangeas have large cone-shaped flowers that put on a glorious show of changing color from late summer to late fall. Light green buds turn into flowers that are first tinged with green, then solid creamy white, then with deepening rose and mauve tints as the season ends. Because they bloom on new wood, they are a reliable source of big, beautiful blossoms.

Smooth (Hydrangea arborescens)

Blooming on new wood, this winter-hearty variety of hydrangea is a safer alternative to bigleaf/mophead varieties, while retaining the classic hydrangea shape and style.

Oakleaf (Hydrangea quercifolia) 

The leaves on this hydrangea resemble (you guessed it) oak leaves, and they go from green to dark red as the season progresses. Its white blooms also deepen to pink and mauve in the fall. Like panicle hydrangea, it blooms on new wood, making it easy to care for.

Climbing (Hydrangea petiolaris) 

As the name implies, this hydrangea is a climber. Be patient while it gets established, and then get ready to watch it move. The white lacecap flowers have a lovely fragrance.

The post 6 New England Hydrangea Varieties – And How to Prune Them appeared first on New England.

Ever wondered how to grow berries in New England? Native strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries sell like hotcakes at local farmers’ markets every summer, so why not skip the middleman and grow your own? Visit a reputable local garden center for healthy plants, then get growing! Below are some handy hints for planting, caring for, and harvesting popular New England summer berries, plus a link to even more information from the agriculture experts at UNH Extension.

How to Grow Strawberries

Few things taste as good as a fresh native strawberry. Treat yourself to a home supply that will replenish itself for years to come.

When: Plant in early- to mid-spring to enjoy fruit this summer.

Planting: It’s recommended you plant 20-30 plants for a generous crop. Plant your strawberries in rows, six inches apart, making sure they will get a minimum of 6-8 hours of sunshine per day. Laying down straw between the plant and the soil will help keep fruit off the ground, where it can quickly rot.

Care: Weed frequently and keep your plants watered. You’ll also want to watch for “runners,” which are long stems with new tiny plants at the end. A strawberry plant will send out runners to take root nearby and form new plants. This is helpful because strawberry plants lose their oomph over time, but you’ll want to keep an eye on where the runners roam. An orderly strawberry patch is a happy strawberry patch. Cover your strawberry plants with mulch or straw for extra protection over the winter. They’ll pop up on their own next spring.

Harvesting: Once the greenish-white berries form keep a close watch – they will ripen to red in a matter of days. You should plan for 2-3 weeks of fresh berries, from June until early July.

Learn More: UNH Extension “Growing Strawberries”

How to Grow Blueberries

If you’re willing to take on the deer and birds to protect your crop, these berries (indigenous to North America) make everything taste better.

When: Early spring.

Planting: Blueberry bushes from the garden center are large and hardy. Dig a hole twice as wide and twice as deep as the roots in a sunny spot with acidic, well-drained soil. Space plants 5 feet apart, and generously cover with 2-4 inches of mulch.

Care: Prune in late winter or early spring for best results by removing low growth and dead or weak shoots. You can (and should) prune more generously once your bushes are fully established.

Harvesting: Blueberries need to be blue all the way around for them to reach peak flavor.

Learn More: UNH Extension “New to Growing Blueberries”

How to Grow Raspberries and Blackberries

When: Early spring

Planting: Plant a hedge row with crowns two feet apart, in a sunny spot with well-drained soil. A trellis is useful, if not essential, in keeping your canes tidy and your fruit accessible and unblemished.

Care: All bramble crops need pruning annually. Raspberry plants are perennials, but raspberry canes (aka their arm-like branches) have a two-year life cycle. First-season canes (primocanes) are green and produce no fruit. Second-season canes (floricanes) have a brown bark and produce fruit in early- to mid-summer, before dying. Be sure to prune all the spent floricanes every year after harvest.

Harvesting: Raspberries are ready to pick when you can easily pull them from the core. Blackberries do not separate from the core, so pick and sample once they have a deep color and taste if it’s time.

Learn More: UNH Extension “Growing Fruits: Raspberries and Other Bramble Crops”

See More:

Best Pick-You-Own Fruit Farm in Every New England State

12 Classic Berry Recipes From the Yankee Archives

The post A Beginner’s Guide to Backyard Berries: How to Grow Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, and Blackberries appeared first on New England.

6 Favorite New England Garden Centers

Snug Harbor Farm | Kennebunk, ME

House by the Side of the Road | Wilton, NH

Issima | Little Compton, RI

Ballek’s Garden Center | East Haddam, CT

Bay State Perennial Farm | Whately, MA

Red Wagon Plants | Hinesburg, VT

4 Flowering Spring Garden Favorites

Tulips and Daffodils

Forsythia

Lilacs

The post New England Spring Garden Essentials appeared first on New England.

Fall is a great time to work in the garden—bright sunny days paired with cooler temperatures make for a perfect climate to plant and prepare for the next growing season. Here’s our fall planting guide for the best five things to plant before New England’s first frost.

New England Fall Planting Guide

What to Plant Before the First Frost

Trees & Shrubs

Fall is an ideal time to plant trees and shrubs. Roots systems will begin to form before the frost sets in, essentially establishing the shrub or tree in the ground for the winter. Mulching around newly planted trees and shrubs will help protect the new transplants throughout the winter as well. Be sure to remove any coverings on the root balls of plants before planting.

Perennials

Don’t let the droopy appearance of perennials that have completed their growing season get you down. Even though they do not look as appealing as they did when they were at their peak earlier in the season, they will bounce back in full force in the spring. If you are undecided about where to plant them now, you can always keep them in pots and soil in a covered or protected area outside until the spring and plant them then. Be sure to label the perennials beforehand for easy identification when it is time to put them in the ground.

Bulbs

September is the time to plant for early spring blooming bulb flowers such as daffodils, tulips, and crocus. Be sure to follow packaging directions for planting depths. A good rule of thumb is to plant tulips and daffodils 6 inches deep and crocus plants 3 inches deep. Bulbs should be put into the ground before late October to allow a bit of root growth before the frost.

Herbs

Fennel, lavender, lemon balm, rosemary, wild strawberry, mint, and parsley are some of the herbs that do well when planted in the fall, provided they are established plants or divided from an existing herb plant and not new growth or seedlings.

Garlic

October is the time to plant garlic in New England—it is planted during the fall because the cloves must be exposed to cooler ground temperatures before they can begin to grow. They will remain in a suspended state throughout the winter and begin growing full force in the spring when the temperatures are warmer. Garlic cloves must be planted separately and not clustered together or as a whole garlic. Green shoots will appear in the spring.

What fall planting tips do you follow? Do you have any perennial favorites that you plant?

This post about fall planting was first published in 2013 and has been updated. 

SEE MORE:
Fall Chore Shortcuts | Gardening Advice
How to Plant Fall Bulbs
How to Make Mums Last Longer | Gardening Advice

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The Decline of “Good Sleeping Weather”

What Exactly Are Weather Averages?

The Story of New England’s Fall Temperatures

So What Does It Mean for Fall Foliage?

The post Climate Change: Predicting the Future of Fall Foliage in New England appeared first on New England.

When to Plant Acorns

The post How to Grow Oak Trees from Acorns appeared first on New England.

When Baron Walter von Saint Paul first brought a flowering plant he called the Usambara violet from East Africa to Germany in 1894, little did he know how many people would fall passionately in love with the African violet. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about African violet care, along with prize-winning violet grower Jessie Crisafulli’s best advice. Her methods have produced a houseful of continuously blooming African violets, many of which sport blue ribbons won at flower shows.

African Violets Care & Feeding

What window exposure is best for African violets? African violets should grow well in any window with good bright light, not shaded by a porch or trees. In south-facing windows, protect violets from hot sun in summer with sheer curtains or blinds. African violets do well in a south window in the winter. For east and west windows, check to see that plants do not get too warm when the sun is in that area. North windows will provide sufficient light to bloom most of the year. Keep plants close to the window for maximum light. An African violet on a table in the middle of a room may look pretty, but may not receive sufficient light to keep blooming.

LEARN MORE: Sun-Loving Houseplants | 5 Windowsill Choices

What about fluorescent light? If you do not have bright window light, then fluorescent fixtures are the answer. I use four-foot fixtures with two cool white bulbs in each. I have used one warm white and one cool white bulb in a fixture with good results. Special plant bulbs, called “grow lights,” also produce an attractive plant. The optimum distance from pot to light is 8 to 12 inches.

How often should you water African violets? “How often to water African violets?” is perhaps the most pondered African violet dilemma. The best guide is to feel the top of the soil: if it is dry to the touch, then it is time to water. African violets should be allowed to dry out between each watering for best results. Overwatering can kill a plant. The fine roots of an African violet need air, which cannot penetrate a soggy wet soil mass. Once you’ve mastered how to water African violets, half of your work is done.

Should I water African violets from the top or bottom? Either is fine. It is important not to use cold water; lukewarm or warm is preferred. If you water from the top, be careful not to get water on the leaves when the plant is in the sun; this is to avoid leaf spots. If you water from the bottom, the excess water should be discarded after the plant has taken up all it needs. Do not allow an African violet to sit in water indefinitely.

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What size pot is best for African violets? Overpotting will delay bloom. The usual recommendation is that the pot diameter should be one-third the spread of the leaf span. For example. if the plant’s leaves measure 9 inches from one leaf tip to the opposite leaf tip, use a 3-inch pot. Violets bloom best when they are potbound.

Which is better, a clay or plastic pot? Either is suitable. Plastic pots can be kept cleaner and will hold moisture longer, and are what I use for violets. Clay pots allow the air to penetrate to the roots, which is beneficial. but they dry out faster. I use clay for succulents and cacti. Salts may build up on clay pots, rotting violet leaves resting on the top rim. Protect the leaf stems by using a folded strip of aluminum foil to cover the top rim of a clay pot.

What’s the best fertilizer for African violets? Any reputable fertilizer is good. I like to use a water-soluble fertilizer. A balanced fertilizer with equal parts of nitrogen (first number), phosphorus (second number), and potash (last number), such as 18-18-18, has produced good show plants for me. If you are not getting good bloom try a fertilizer with a higher middle number, which will contain more phosphorus, such as 15-30-15

Should you withhold fertilizer when the African violet is in bloom? In my opinion this is poor practice. African violets need food when producing blossoms, and since the plant ideally should bloom continuously. It would severely deprive the plant if fertilizer were withheld.

What soil mix should I use? I use a mixture of two parts sterilized soil, one part coarse perlite, and one part coarse vermiculite. Any purchased sterilized soil can be used. Perlite and vermiculite help keep the soil loose and porous.

The lower leaves turn soggy — should I take them off? It is a good practice to remove all African violet leaves that have started to decay. It is a natural process for older leaves to die off. They will be replaced by new growth in the center of the plant. Any bottom leaves turning yellow or spotted should be removed.

LEARN MORE: How to Prune Houseplants

What is wrong when the soil is wet but the plant seems limp? This may be an indication that the plant has been overwatered, and possibly crown rot has set in. There is not too much that can be done. You may be able to take off a healthy leaf or two to start a new plant, but the old plant may not live if the center crown has started to rot.

How often should I repot my African violet? Repotting African violets is beneficial to the plant’s lasting health. Repot in fresh soil every year or two at most. Do not necessarily use a larger pot each time you repot.

LEARN MORE: How to Repot African Violets

What should be done with an African violet has developed a thick stem below the bottom leaves? This is usually called a neck. It can be taken care of by setting the plant deeper into the soil when you repot. Use the proper size pot, not one that is too large or too deep. If the “neck” is too high, carefully remove some of the old soil from around the violet’s roots, so it can be lowered further down into the pot. If the soil and roots are hard and compacted, and cannot be loosened, then a portion of the bottom of the root mass can be sliced off with a knife. Repot so that the lower layer of healthy green leaves rests on the soil line at the top of the pot.

Editor’s Note: This is a Yankee Classic article from January 1982. While, we are no longer able to respond to questions about African violets that are not covered within this article, you may find the answer you are seeking in the comment section below.

This post was first published in 2014 and has been updated.

The post African Violets Care and Feeding | Grow Healthy African Violets appeared first on New England.

Chrysanthemums (Mums)

Marigolds

Sunflowers

Ornamental Kale

Potted Ornamental Grasses

How to Choose the Best Fall Porch Plants

How to Display Fall Porch Plants

Fall Porch Plants Maintenance Tips

• Check the soil of the plants daily to see if they need water. Soil should be damp to the touch, not soaking wet or muddy and not dry, sandy or crumbly.
• Turn pots every few days so all sides of the plant get equal sun exposure.
• Deadhead as needed to keep the flowers looking healthy.
• On evenings when a frost is expected, cover the plants with a blanket to avoid freezing and remove the blanket in the morning when the temperature has risen.

SEE MORE: How to Use Fallen Leaves As Fertilizer Keep Squirrels Away From Fall Bulbs How to Preserve Gourds and Display Them, Too!

The post Best Fall Porch Plants appeared first on New England.

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Bittersweet Vine | Is the Invasive Plant Friend or Foe?

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The post Is Burning Bush Invasive? appeared first on New England.

SEE MORE: New England Fall Planting Guide | What to Plant Before the First Frost Fall Chore Shortcuts | Gardening Advice How to Make Mums Last Longer | Gardening Advice

The post When to Cut Perennial Plants Down | Gardening Advice appeared first on New England.