Columns
The Adder’s Tongue: An unusual looking plant
It doesn’t look like a fern, and it really isn’t one, but it’s fern-like in some respects. Meet the southern adder’s tongue (Ophioglossum pycnostichum), a ...
Dr. Cynthia Wood, Author at Farmville - Page 3 of 8
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up: The other holiday plants
For many people, the holiday season means evergreen garlands, wreaths, trees and poinsettias. Yes, the tropical plant with showy multicolored petals (actually bracts) is the ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Thursday, December 30, 2021 2:02 pm
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
The fanciful turkey tail fungus: nature’s recycler
“Nature doth thus kindly heal every wound. By the mediation of a thousand little mosses and fungi, the most unsightly objects become radiant of beauty.” ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, December 10, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up: In praise of sweet potatoes
It’s been a good year for sweet potatoes. In early summer, we feasted on sauteed shoots and leaves seasoned with a dash of sesame oil ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Sunday, December 5, 2021 10:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Gardening at the end of the season
The days are short; so short that it’s dark long before I usually stop working in the garden. The air is crisp, and the nights ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Thursday, December 2, 2021 6:00 am
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
There’s magic in the woods
The desire to foresee the future, improve one’s strength against enemies, expel evil spirits that may have caused illness or other harm and to enhance ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, November 5, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up: That’s not a Christmas tree!
It’s not even an official holiday, but it’s the fastest growing festive occasion in the United States. We Americans spent more than $8 billion on ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Thursday, October 21, 2021 5:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Trends in daylily hybridization
Gardeners are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, and I suspect that daylily growers are the nicest of the nice. This summer I ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Monday, October 11, 2021 4:44 pm
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
Remembering Anne Mason Field and yellowroot
For many years, I hiked local trails with my friend Ann Mason Field. We followed the cycle of the seasons by celebrating the first skunk ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, October 1, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up: Late Summer in the Garden
Story and photos by Dr. Cynthia Wood When the dog days of summer set in, most gardeners and their plants just quit. The humans are ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Wednesday, September 29, 2021 10:58 am
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
Groundnut: The plant with a crumpled red velvety blossom
I confess that I’m often overcome by the sheer number of yellow flowers that appear in late summer. There are more than 50 species of ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Sunday, September 12, 2021 6:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Beware those yellow ‘blooms’
Earlier this summer, my husband commented that he really liked the funny looking yellow flowers in a pot by the front porch. I was puzzled ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, September 3, 2021 6:00 am
Uncategorized
Common yarrow is a cheerful plant
When I hiked the High Bridge Trail recently, I found myself surrounded by a sea of green. It’s that time of the year when the ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, August 6, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up — Boxwood provides the bones of many gardens
Virginians have always loved boxwood. They’ve traditionally rooted sprigs and given them to newlyweds setting up housekeeping in a new location. No home was complete ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Monday, July 26, 2021 6:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
The ultimate pass along garden plant
You’ve seen them growing along the side of back roads, near abandoned homesteads and even along the edge of wooded areas. You’ve probably also seen ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, July 9, 2021 6:00 am
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
The oxeye daisy is a weed, but an interesting one
Wander around the edge of the woods near the office at Holliday Lake State Park, and you’ll likely find several oxeye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare) blooming ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, July 2, 2021 6:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Beware of poisonous plants in the garden
Hello, fellow gardeners. It’s me, Anca. Some of you already know me. I’m my mom’s new gardening assistant. She says that I’m more trouble than ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, June 11, 2021 6:00 am
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
Mountain Laurel is putting on an exuberant display
“…but the typical mountain laurel overshadows all, dominates the scene, defies descriptive effort, lays a hush on the tongue and thrills the soul with the ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, June 4, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up — Life is awakening everywhere
In time of silver rain The earth puts forth new life again, Green grasses grow And flowers lift their heads, And over all the plain ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Thursday, May 20, 2021 6:00 am
Columns
Wisteria is the perfect plant for a pergola
Whenever I visit friends in England, I’m seriously envious of their garden, but especially the wisteria (wisteria sinensis) that festoons one side of their 19th ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, May 14, 2021 1:06 pm
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
The joys of growing potatoes
I’ve always loved growing and eating potatoes. There’s nothing better than planting seed potatoes, watching them grow and waiting for just the right time to ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, May 7, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up — Master Gardeners celebrate 20 years of service
Ever since they were founded in 2001, the Heart of Virginia Master Gardeners have been enthusiastic about sharing a love and knowledge of gardening with ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Wednesday, April 14, 2021 6:00 am
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
Discovering the harbinger-of-spring
While there are plenty of interesting plants in our area, sometimes I like to go hiking in an entirely different area, one known for having ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, April 9, 2021 6:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Embracing the unexpected
Every spring, I look forward to participating in several workshops on gardening. If I get one or two new ideas for what to plant or ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, April 2, 2021 6:00 am
FARMVILLE THE MAGAZINE
From the Ground Up — Asian delights not your grandma’s vegetables
Story and photos by Dr. Cynthia Wood I’ve always loved Asian food — hot spicy ma la-flavored dishes liberally showered with cilantro from Szechuan, bold ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Tuesday, March 16, 2021 6:00 am
THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE
Loropetalum — a versatile garden shrub
Have you met Loropetalum chinense, better known as the Chinese fringe flower? I first learned about it last fall when I was looking for something ...
by Dr. Cynthia Wood, Friday, March 12, 2021 6:00 am
MOTHER NATURE'S GARDEN
In search of the southern grape fern
I’ve always been fascinated by ferns. They’re old. So old that ancestors of modern ferns were here long before the dinosaurs. Ferns just seem to ...