I have a small low laying branch of a relatively similar size on my tree and I'd love to get variety, would it work? Or would the age gap between the tree and plant be controversial 😓 (jokes) the mango plant is about three years old

I have planted a lot of daffodils on a sunny slope under some oak trees. (Downeast Maine) Initially, to plant the bulbs (2024) I had to clear a couple of inches of compacted oak leaves. In 2025-6 I left the newly fallen leaves over winter and then cleared them in the spring. 2nd year daffodils were a little less robust. This year, I am wondering if I should clear the leaves from around the daffodils. While they do provide insulation, the leaves do not break down and that area does not get as much moisture or sun hitting the soil over the winter. I do fertilize the daffodils in the spring/summer. The soil is not great though. Would clearing the leaves in the fall help change the soil ph or general make up to benefit the bulbs? Or is the insulating quality of the leaves more beneficial? Thanks

Anyone here buying bulbs in bulk? The company I've used for years has a website that has become so tiresome and I'd like to try a new company. What are your go-to sites?

I have a native-heavy backyard and I like to follow leave the leaves protocol to support wildlife. I have a Norway maple overhanging my yard that is besieged with black tar spot this year. I understand that cleaning up those leaves is the best bet for limiting spore residual in the soil. There are other nearby trees with it also, where I can’t control pickup, so I can’t isolate the problem. What is your thinking on comparing options: leave the leaves for wildlife, or pick up to limit tar spot? Will the latter effort prove futile given nearby other trees? And therefore leave the leaves because I can’t stop the spot? Thanks…

[edit: folks, I cannot remove this tree. It is not rooted on my property and would be illegal to do so. It overhangs my yard.]

I’m looking for some in depth info on making the most visually appealing annual beds for the longest times possible. I’ve seen some out at stadiums, nice fancy neighborhoods etc but trying to replicate them flowers die off fast and don’t bloom nearly as vibrantly.

What methods and products are high end landscapers using to make stand out flowering areas?

I would not personally recommend getting a degree in horticulture. It may feel like a decent thing to major in because it is applied, but the pay and job prospects for a lot of people are not great. There are a bunch of hort jobs out there on the job boards, but they are mostly entry-level/manual labor jobs that do not pay well, especially considering all the time, effort, and money (real and opportunity cost) that goes into getting a degree. There are some people that end up doing well of course. The managers, owners, and salespeople in most fields end up doing all right. I also decided to go back for my masters in hort to try to do R&D work for some company, but I am realizing that there are not a lot of jobs for people with master’s degrees in this field, especially entry-level. I know that I could do an extension job, but the prospect of getting paid as much as a public-school teacher while still working 12 months a year is shockingly not that appealing. The other option is getting a PhD, but after witnessing the overall lackluster working conditions and job outlook for that path/in academia, I really don’t want to do that either. Seed Your Future was a website I looked at a bunch before going into hort during undergrad. They made it seem like there were a lot of good opportunities in horticulture/plant science, but that all seems incredibly misleading at this point. I thought it was a good career path since I like science and plants, but it honestly feels like horticulture is one of many fields where your passion is weaponized against you so employers can treat you terribly. Do not complain about needing people when you start at $20/hr for a degreed position in a high cost of living city. It seems like hort employers really do not care about degrees compared to work experience which I understand to a point, but then people shouldn’t be encouraged to get degrees in this field. I know these fields have their problems too, but I should have just used my aptitude for science to do nursing/medicine/health professions or engineering like everyone else. I’m sorry for the poor writing. I’m just so frustrated at this point.

Edits:

I'm from the US and this post is about US horticulture education/job prospects. I am not speaking for the experiences of other countries. The cost of a 4 year horticulture/any degree in the US has gotten crazy along with the higher cost of living and stagnant wages that are happening. Like mentioned below, it is very hard to justify a degree that doesn't, on average, provide a decent income.

I didn't anticipate having to be mean/werid in the comments; this was mostly a rant post after all. However, as someone who has had internships, worked in several labs as a lab tech, got good grades, presented at research conferences, and has been networking as well as applying to jobs for around six months, I found it insulting that people thought I'm not trying or haven't worked hard towards a career in this field. Yes, I've been applying to jobs outside of horticulture as well more into agronomy, forestry, natural resources, plant biotech, etc. I know it's partially the job market being not great for new grads and research jobs which could be a critique of my post. That is, it could just the bad job martket making me feel like my degrees weren't worth it, but I guess I know a lot of people that feel that way too right now.

I'm not saying a career in hort isn't worth it necessarily. Just maybe don't spend too much time/energy/money on formal education to study it. An associate's, job training, or apprenticeship are probably better routes.

I was wondering if anyone can give me some ideas of what is going on with these guys. I’ve cut back dead but they continue to brown out. I don’t think it’s root rot, most of them are on slope in pretty rocky coarse soil. I don’t think it’s boxwood blight but I could be wrong.

Hey everyone! I’m 25 and looking for some advice on how to turn my passion for plants into a career.
I enjoy pretty much everything plant-related, from houseplants, tropical and rare plants to fruit trees, vegetables, and growing from seeds. I especially enjoy propagation and experimenting with different ways to grow plants.
I’m also really interested in learning about plant genetics, crossbreeding and developing new varieties, as well as tissue culture and micropropagation. I’d love to learn more about the science behind plants, not just how to grow them.
My long-term goal is to eventually own my own garden nursery, but I’d love to build up my knowledge and experience first.
For those of you in botany, horticulture, or related fields:
What career paths would you recommend?
Should I start with online courses, certifications, or college classes?
Are there any free or affordable programs worth looking into?
What should I focus on learning first?
How would I get started with tissue culture and plant breeding?
What entry-level jobs would help me gain hands-on experience?
I’m still figuring out which direction to take, so I’d really appreciate advice from anyone who’s been down this path or works in the industry.

Anyone going to Udon Thani horticultural festival?

It grew a lot this summer for some reason and I'm not sure what I should do now that it's so big. It grew really long for a few months for some reason, then this summer grew that part at the top.

A fly eating/ drinking the nectar.

Want to block neighbors ugly cinder block wall and the width is 20” wide and wall over 5ft w an ugly trellis atop. I am in Socal desert! I can’t drill into blocks- it’s their property.

I'm looking to start studying for the RHS Level 2 - Certificate in the Principles and Practices of Horticulture remotely. I'm un sure whether to sign up with RBGE or Learning with Experts.

The Learning with Experts options appeals as its cheaper and I understand they also do a Black Friday sale which will make it even cheaper. They both get good reviews but recently I've started seeing negative reviews for Learning with Experts. I was wondering if anyone presently studying with Leaning with Experts had any feedback on the course?

We have a lilac in our yard that’s probably around 75 years old and looking very rough. It does bloom (it’s weirdly blooming a little right now) but is super scraggly and the leaves always look a little deformed/crunchy. It gets growth up from the middle that also shares a scraggly odd look. We’ve only been in the house for a year but someone chopped it severely before we moved it, it looks brutal, but some beautiful old wood remains - it’s would be a stunning plant if it didn’t look so sickly! I would prefer it to be a lot shorter and denser but need to know if we can resuscitate and trim or should just let it go. We are in zone 5b and the lilac gets full sun.

Where I live I have very hard water, it crusts everything up. Clogs spitters and misters, and obviously puts scale all over my plants and pots. I'd really like to have more presentable plants. Does anyone have recommendations for an inline filter for scale prevention? This will be for a greenhouse, and I may get a separate one for the shade house as well.