Central New York Gardening

CNY Gardening is a resource for ornamental gardeners, particularly those who live in Central New York or anywhere in USDA Hardiness Zones 4b-5b. If you are involved in perennial gardening, you will find here practical information about light, moisture, and ease of care for your garden plants.

This is not intended to be an encyclopedia of perennial gardening. Rather, this web site is a guide to garden plants that perform well in Central New York, based on our 35+ years of trial and error. Our philosophy of ornamental gardening is definitely toward the “lazy” side. If it has to be painstakingly staked, pruned, protected in winter, or pampered with fertilizer, it doesn’t stay in our garden. Low-maintenance gardening is our mantra. Garden plants featured here can pretty much fend for themselves, survive the fickle weather of Central New York, and provide outstanding seasonal enjoyment. For each ornamental plant, we provide information about size, and proper siting for sun and moisture, as well as our own personal and purely subjective rating on a scale of one to five “flowers.” You will also find photographs of most plants including their interesting features.

We hope you enjoy this information as much as we enjoy sharing it.