Posts By

Matt Dursum

Matt Dursum is a freelance writer and gardener from Michigan. He has a BA in Geography from the University of California, Santa Barbara. His favorite horticulture endeavors are pushing plant hardiness limits in his garden in Michigan and learning about wild botanicals.

A vigorous vining tomato plant to start sown in April, with slender stems and curling tendrils bears clusters of small, glossy red cherry tomatoes nestled among jagged, deep green leaves.

Edible

13 Tomato Varieties to Start From Seed in April

There’s nothing like harvesting juicy, ripe tomatoes in the summer. To get an abundant summer crop, start some of your tomato seeds in April. In this article, horticulture expert Matt Dursum shows you the top tomato varieties to start planting before Easter.

Delay spring clean up. Close-up of female hands in red gloves cleaning dry branches in a spring garden.

Gardening Tips

How Delaying Spring Garden Clean Up Helps Birds

Do you love cleaning your garden in the spring? When temperatures warm up and your plants are ready to bloom, it’s tempting to get everything in order. However, horticulture expert Matt Dursum explains why you should delay spring cleanup for your garden’s resident birds.

A garden bed of gladiolus varieties displays tall flower spikes in purple, yellow, orange, pink, white, and burgundy, rising from sword-shaped green leaves and upright stems.

Flowers

13 Pretty Gladiolus Varieties to Plant This Spring

Are you looking for show-stopping blooms for your cut or perennial garden? It’s hard to beat gladiolus for eye-catching flowers and sturdy stems. In this article, horticulture expert Matt Dursum covers the best gladiolus varieties to plant this spring.

Don't grow these plants featuring cascading clusters of pale purple flowers hanging from long, woody stems with compound leaves below.

Gardening Tips

Don’t Grow These 21 Plants In Your Landscape

Are you designing your dream landscape garden this year? If so, don’t grow these plants if you want a healthy and easy-to-maintain ecosystem. In this article, plant expert Matt Dursum covers why you shouldn’t plant these species and which ones to try instead.

A green vegetable with a fractal pattern of conical buds surrounded by large, bluish-green leaves.

Vegetables

How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Romanesco Broccoli

Have you seen a vegetable that demonstrates fractal geometry at its finest? Romanesco broccoli is not only cool to look at, it’s easy to grow and delicious. In this article, plant expert Matt Dursum shows you how to plant, grow, and care for this unique Brassica.

Close-up of blooming supertunias with large, delicate, trumpet-shaped flowers with gently ruffled petals in white and pink shades against a background of spreading stems covered in dense foliage with soft, slightly wavy-edged leaves.

Flowers

How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Supertunias

Are you looking for one of the easiest and most productive flowers to grow? If so, you may want to try growing Supertunias. In this article, plant expert Matt Dursum shows you how to plant, grow, and care for these majestic flowers.

A dense cascade of magenta and yellow flowers spilling over a hanging basket.

Flowers

How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Wave Petunias

Are you looking for the ultimate spreading flower for your garden beds or containers? Wave petunias are a wonderful hybrid that will transform your garden. In this article, plant expert Matt Dursum covers how to plant, grow, and care for these stunning bloomers.

The hands of a gardener in yellow-orange gloves hold a handful of fresh irregularly shaped wood chips with rough, jagged edges in shades of light brown and golden tan to an evergreen thuja showing the benefits of its use in the garden.

Mulch

13 Ways Wood Chips Benefit Your Garden

Are you looking for the ultimate mulch to use this year? There are many reasons why you should try using wood chips. In this article, horticulture expert Matt Dursum covers the ways wood chips can benefit your garden.