by Mary Townsley   Agaves, slow growing plants with striking structural features, are related to asparagus (YES!) and yucca. Most agaves are monocarpic, meaning that they send up an asparagus-like flower stalk once, produce flowers and seeds, then die.  Their long-lived nature has led to them labeled as "century plants".  However, agaves don't actually live for 100 years. The large Agave americana specimens you see in landscapes around Mobile County may take 10-25 years to fl

Lady Banks disease-tolerant climbing rose By: John Olive, Retired Director, AU Ornamental Horticultural Research Center| www.mobilecountymastergardeners.org     April is here, one of the busiest and best times of the year for a gardener. Since today is April Fool’s Day, it is appropriate to consider some garden related things that can fool us or make a fool of us. A good place to begin is with dwarf plants. The term “dwarf” refers to plants that are small and low-growing, us

Mobile County Master Gardeners Working with MGM Agribusiness students by Pat Hall By: Pat Hall, Mobile County Master Gardener | www.mobilecountymastergardeners.org     Along the Gulf Coast, spring arrives early—and for gardeners that means it’s time to plant. By late March our soil has warmed, the days are growing longer, and warm-season vegetables are ready to go into the garden. Tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers, and herbs all thrive in our climate when planted at the ri

Holly Fern by MaryJo Broussard By: MaryJo Broussard, Mobile County Master Gardener | www.mobilecountymastergardeners.org     Ferns have been around since before the dinosaurs and are still here today—hardy, long lasting, dependable, adaptable, and beautiful. They just do their job without fuss, if you give them shady locations and good drainage for the most part. These are not the monster ferns that often hang from ample South Alabama front porches and can sometimes be overwi