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Want to loosen up your garden style? Add self seeding and spreading plants to the mix
Since visiting gardens in England back in May, I’ve been obsessed with the art of letting it flow. Every garden I visited had an abundance of self-seeding and spreading plants melded together in a seamlessly exuberant fashion. I know we don’t have the same varieties of plants here, l admire the concept of a looser garden style and have been thinking about how to reproduce it with the types of plants grown here.
Year end garden review: 6 top picks and inspiring garden tips
Yep, it’s time for year end resolutions - I’m much more successful with garden resolutions, and they’re way more fun! As I scroll through my garden photos and reflect on past successes and failures, I see plenty to provide me with the framework I need to make the coming year even better.
Letting Nature Take Its Course: 6 Tips for Sustainable Leaf Management
To be sure, the practical aspect of what to do with the onslaught of leaves can seem daunting to anyone. I think there’s a way to strike a balance between neat and tidy and sustainability. My own approach is primarily driven by a combination of practicality and laziness. Interested in giving it a shot? Read on.
Save leftover plants for later: 5 ways to savor the joys of recycling them
Putting the garden to bed for the winter is no day at the beach. And what do you do with the motley assortment of leftover plants that don’t fit anywhere? Here are some ways you can recycle them.
Garden out of hand? Don't wait, shape it up now in four easy steps
At some point all gardens need editing, and perennial beds can seem particularly overwhelming - especially if you’re doing it on your own. Here are some ways to make it a little easier.
Gardening in the heartlands: hot plants, prairie gardens and crazy containers
Life is full of surprises. I wasn’t expecting hot plants, sophisticated prairie gardens and flipped out container plantings when I hopped on a plane for Minneapolis. Here’s what I discovered.
Want a new look for your garden? Tips for melding the wild and tame together
There are so many questions about creating a naturalistic landscape - how do you keep it from looking sloppy? What do you to plant to attract pollinators, manage cultivated and uncultivated areas, eliminate invasive plants and so forth? I don’t have all the answers, but here’s a garden checks a lot of the boxes.
No mow May and more: Notes from a wild, crazy and wonderful trip to England
No now May is over the top in the UK. As the concept originated here, I guess it’s no surprise they take it to another level. I was struck by the seamless blending and balance of wild and cultivated areas I saw everywhere I went.
Boxwoods looking stressed? Check them out for boxwood blight
All is not sweetness and light in my garden this spring. Boxwood blight has crept into four hedges of Boxwood sempervirens ‘North Star’ that outline my front beds. At first they just looked mildly stressed, but it was more than that! Blight is really hard to diagnose. Here’s how I finally identified it and what I did.
Want to take an adventure down the garden path? Outdoor rooms add magic
Why, where and how? Much thought and sometimes lots of angst goes into creating a garden room. Read about my saga and lessons learned along the way.
A yearly sojourn to Vietnam: Sumptuous containers inspire a wintry world
Many of you know about my yearly sojourns to visit family in Vietnam. Every time I go, I discover something new - what caught my attention this time were the sumptuous assortment of containers.
Happy Accidents: Uplanned successes and surprises from my 2022 garden
Looking for inspiration for your 2023 garden? Scroll through last summers garden photos. It’s interesting how much you miss when you’re busy in the act. I’ve noticed that some of my best combinations were accidental. Lest I forget, I made a list of several that jumped out at me. Seems like a good way to begin a new year of gardening.
The best in the garden: 11 plants that sparked delight
As I store away plant memories for the winter, there were a bunch that put a smile on my face this summer. In the interest of not forgetting what they were and to share my delights, allow me to rave about the highlights of 2022.
Bedraggled and brown? No way-celebrate Thanksgiving with pods,seedheads and stems
Thinking of centerpieces for the Thanksgiving table? Maybe it’s time to change it up to celebrate the end of fall season. There’s plenty to choose from in your own backyard.
Save the last dance for me: 5 Shrubs with staying power
Over the past decade, small deciduous shrubs have earned a special place in my garden and my heart. What began as an experiment to add more structure and reduce weeding has led me to an increased appreciation of their merits. Flowers, foliage and texture, they’ve got it all going on - especially those that go out with a bang in the fall.
Will the garden ever be done? The never ending quest for perfection
While helping a friend move plants around in the most recent iteration of her garden, she turned to me and asked, “do you think the garden will ever be done?” Fat chance! Most of us can’t give up the quest for perfection. As elusive as it is, we don’t (or can’t) stop trying.
Plant native plants in a pot: Easy steps to attract pollinators to your garden
If there was ever a time to introduce native plants into your garden, it’s now. Maybe you’ve thought about adding few, but were unsure of which varieties to choose or how to use them. Here’s a fun and easy way to to get going.
It’s out of hand! 7 ways to keep containers in check
Are your containers getting out of hand? It can happen pretty fast toward the end of July and August. If yours are beginning to look crowded or sloppy, now is the time to take action.
Garden tours yield creative ideas: 4 ways to manage plants, problems and space
I never get tired of garden tours. No matter how grand or humble a garden might be, I always take home an idea I can use to improve my own. Last weekend, my friend Martha and I took a tour through a bunch of small neighborhood properties. None offered anything I’d term over the top, but each one had some interesting ideas. Read about few I filed away for future use and others that spurred me into action.
Got deer, roots and shade? Jazz it up with these 4 great perennials
Gardening nightmare 101 - what can you plant underneath a maple tree? Choices are limited by harsh fasts - shade, shallow feeder roots and obviously, you don’t want to damage the tree by severing large tap roots when you dig. It’s all about choosing the right plants. Hope you’ll find my latest planting saga useful.