ARTICLES TO READ

The April Not-A-Raffle-Raffle! Our 2nd raffle of the year has begun, and it's a big one! New companies, new prizes, and lots of them! Get out your bag of acorns and dive in. Crocus A sure sign of spring, crocuses have low-growing, colorful, cup-shaped flowers that are a welcome sight in garden beds and lawns. Irises: Growing and Caring For Irises are grown throughout the world. Perhaps the most commonly recognized is the bearded iris with thousands of registered cultivars. Planting Groundcovers Use low-growing perennial plants and shrubs as groundcovers to cover slopes and rough ground or to replace high-maintenance lawns. Choose plants that thrive in your particular soil and climate. Hardy Kiwi Have you tasted these remarkable miniature kiwis yet? Every bit as delicious as the larger, more familiar fuzzy kiwi, hardy kiwis are much easier to grow and eat (skin and all). And just about every home gardener in North America can grow them. Leeks- Too Good Not to Grow Leeks have an unfair reputation for being complicated to grow. These delicious, mild-tasting, non-bulbing onion relatives are in fact easy to start from seed and, with some simple techniques, produce long, white stalks that taste great in traditional leek and potato soup, braised in wine, or chopped in casseroles and risottos. Planting a Pollinator Garden By creating a garden that attracts a range of pollinators, you can provide vital oases amidst seas of buildings and concrete. Kids can play a role in digging shallow pools and mud puddles and providing piles of twigs and animal hair for nesting materials.

AWESOME NEW PHOTOS FROM THIS WEEK

Dahlia 'Creme de Cassis', by pinkiris: Grecian Windflower (Anemone coronaria 'Lord Lieutenant'), by evermorelawnless: Tall Bearded Iris (Iris 'Kazkove Korolivstvo'), by dimson67: Mojave Yucca (Yucca schidigera), by Baja_Costero: Rembrandt Tulip (Tulipa 'Absalon'), by cliftoncat: Redbirds in a Tree (Scrophularia macrantha), by magpi1953: Intermediate Bearded Iris (Iris 'What About Me'), by lovemyhouse: Landscape view by TBGDN: Landscape view by Caruso: Landscape view by AntMan01: Landscape view by valleylynn:

NOTABLE DISCUSSIONS FROM OUR FORUMS

Subject	Area	Replies
Carolina Show and Tell - 2018	Irises forum	131
Show off your glaucous grays!	Cactus and Tender Succulents forum	48
Peony Blooms 2018	Peonies forum	45
🐥Our Orchid Blooms in April 2018🐥	Orchids forum	34
You really must grow....(recommend your favourites and why)	Irises forum	32
April 2018 -- Photos and Chat	Roses forum	27
My new dream/wish list	Daylilies forum	24
Floristically Challenged Alphabet Soup: Letters S through Z.	Garden Photos forum	24
This bug	Ask a Question forum	20

NEW CORPORATE NGA MEMBER:

DutchGrown.com has joined the National Gardening Association as a corporate member. DutchGrown.com is a supplier of high quality flower bulbs from the Netherlands. The company has an operating base in the Netherlands, centrally located close to the best flower bulb growers in the world. They ship from their family farm in the Netherlands to their warehouse in West Chester, PA. From there they ship to customers throughout the United States. We're glad to have them join as corporate members. Do you own or work for a gardening company? Learn more about the benefits of joining as a corporate member.

THE NUMBERS FROM LAST WEEK:

1,124 members joined. 5,630 posts written in our forums. 3,407 photos posted to the plant database. 785 plants added to personal inventory lists.