How Many Leaves Does Poison Oak Have

Many plants have parts so similar that, without specialized terms to distinguish them, a poisonous plant can be mistaken for a harmless or edible one. Taxonomists, or those who work on the classification and identification of plants, depend upon these...

Repeat with remaining potatoes. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 20 minutes or until tender.Mash cauliflower; transfer to a 3-qt. Cook until soup is heated through and cheese is melted.Preheat oven to 350°F.

Copperleaf roots very easily. Article writing leads to a constant search for new material. (I do!)Friend and dedicated gardener Gita visited one of her favorite nurseries in early summer.

The green spots are stomata, and the inset is a close-up of a single stomate.Particulate matter that comes into contact with the potting soil is removed by the microorganisms living in it.In both cases, plants break down the polluting substances into...

The layered hands in the center represent the center leaf, with "thumbs" or serrated edges on both sides of the leaf, while the two outer hands represent the outer two leaves, with smooth edges on the sides nearest the center leaf, and "thumbs," or serrated...

Some severe reactions require prescription medications, such as steroids to reduce inflammation, or even hospitalization.First, be sure of your identification before you remove the sumac shrubs in question.

"Girl" foliage doesn't get its name by being frilly or pretty (although it's both!) but from the history of hybrid African violets. If you water your African violets from the top, or when you give them a bath at the sink, you'll find these leaves are...

This is also one reason why I don't consider chimeric variegation to be genetic, even though the difference in genetic constitution is what makes this variegation happen. One reason has to do with the differing rates of cell division amongst the colored...

Nevertheless, we made fun of the situation, by foretelling that even our children's children would never have to buy laurel dry leaves again! And this was practically fulfilled, since now after twenty years I still have a few remainings of those bay laurel...

How inventive we were with those punishments and how much we all laughed! To avoid being caught, I tried to always keep a green leaf inside my pocket, or in my sock, if my dress didn't have apocket to hold the a piece of green "treasure." I actually preferred...

The air is crisp, the sky is blue and you are surrounded by more brilliant colors than you could have imagined. We'll call these pigments, since this is what creates the brilliant colors we ultimately see.Throughout the spring and summer, plants continually...

Most of the more exotic foliage plants require shade and moisture or warm climates, but many will grow in otherted. What does "going green" really mean to those of us who love to garden?

After the front passes, the cooler temperatures will slide in behind. It is always a dance with the season to get it in at just the right time.This is the time of year when hurricanes that can pound the Gulf Coast or eastern seaboard to a pulp will sometimes...

For more about RobinFor more information on communal South Amana and its sister villages,Tourist information on the Amana Colonies is availablePhotos of swans and deer courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

My husband has also started to wear long sleeved shirts to work. The golden light of the fall sun shines on our faces and makes us look like gilded statues. Fall is the perfect time for putting in a new lawn, or renovating a used up one.

Thus, I had no trouble believing my co-worker, though I eventually found out that he and my childhood impression were both wrong. We have fall color here, though I admit that it is not knock-your-socks-off New England color.There are several reasons why...

You can purchase mulch by the bag or by the truckload, or you can save money by recycling materials that might otherwise end up in a landfill.Fall is a great time for mulching with fallen leaves! Your own trees may provide all you need, or you can pick...

Erillas have been garden denizens for centuries among the countries of southeast Asia and, to some extent, in American gardens as well, especially during the Victorian Era.But they certainly didn't look anything like ‘Magilla!' (See my photo at right.)Taller...

Mums are known as November's flower and they can provide beautiful color until the first hard frost (in most cases).Beyond our own gardens, the source for all inspiration -- nature itself -- has many wonderful gifts to bestow upon us.

I think we all have a ?love-hate? Leaves are a great source of "brown," high-carbon material for the compost. However, be warned that leaf mold can take up to three years to make. The bottom of the leaf pile will have decomposed into black leaf mold within...

Its large glossy leaves stay on the tree year-round, when other trees are bare, which is one reason it's so popular in yards and gardens."Evergreen" is a misnomer for evergreen plants and trees, because all types shed older leaves or needles as part of...

And it would be such a waste of this beautiful flower if it were to vanish, so better in people's gardens than in the wheat fields. Bumblebees seem to like their nectar!All parts of the plant are poisonous because of the saponins it contains.

However, it is a rugged plant and can also be found in rocky chaparral, the tangles of a riparian woodland, hot coastal sage scrub, and on low coastal bluffs just yards from the high tide line.

Green is everywhere, from shallow sea to alpine tundra. Green is used in some Christian denominations to indicate Ordinary Time, that is, the time between Pentecost and Advent, when there are no major church festivals.

But will happily grow in much colder zones. Clethra grows as an upright suckering bush to about four feet tall. Suckers will grow to equally fragrant shrubs, whereas a seedling sweetshrub can lack the fragrance of its parent.also hails from eastern and...

In the last installment, I will describe those shrubs with variegated foliage. In parts 1 and 2 of this three part series about hardy deciduous shrubs for northern gardeners, I discussed the most popular yellow-foliaged and purple-foliaged shrubs in the...

This is where shrubs with colourful summer foliage come into play. With our short growing season, flowering shrubs are particularly important but many of these have rather limited blooming periods, sometimes only a couple of weeks.