Learn to Avoid these Crimes Against Horticulture!

The concept of “crimes against horticulture” is the creation of writer/landscape architect/humorist/rock drummer Billy Goodnick, who loves to find examples, attach funny captions, and post them to his Crimes against Horticulture Facebook page.

CRIMES12-001 — These junipers want to be 15 feet wide!

That page collects photos of what Billy calls the “amazing, boneheaded, f’ugly things that people do in the name of gardening” and now has dozens of photos from everywhere, and 1,614 followers.

Here’s just a sampling of the photos, and you’re encouraged to contribute more, especially with your own suggestions for captions. Horticultural crimes can be fun! Readers, can you name the identified “crime”? Or more gently, error?

AAAFeb201321 — Left, wrong plant, wrong place. Right, ivy hedge has taken over half the sidewalk.

AAAFeb201319 — Junipers pruned incorrectly (and brutally!) left, and correctly (and beautifully) right.

CRIMES1 — This gardener has a plan and is sticking to it!

Learn How to Prune Shrubs

Whether you like the natural, healthy look in your shrubbery or a more formal style that’s still healthy, correct pruning techniques are the answer. So attend our free workshop this Saturday, February 23 (2013) from 11:00 to 1:00 at our Potomac store. Chris Lewis will teach the basics of pruning common landscape shrubs, including what tools to use, which shrubs should be pruned and how much vegetation to remove.

Stephanie Fleming

Stephanie Fleming was raised at Behnke’s Nurseries in Beltsville. Her Mom, Sonja, was one of Albert & Rose Behnke’s four children. She was weeding from the moment she could walk and hiding as soon as she was old enough to run, so many weeds, so little time. Although she quickly learned how to pull out a perennial and get taken off of weed pulling duty.