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.

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.

If I only had one piece of gardening advice to give this spring, it would be to test your soil - in particular the PH. Simply put, PH refers to the acidity or alkalinity of the soil. Here’s why it’s important.

Waking up the garden for spring is no day at the beach - and you need good sharp tools. Without them, every chore is an uphill battle - good tools make your work easier and more effective. As early spring involves plenty of clipping and pruning, I’d like to address cutting tools - hand pruners, loppers, saws and hedge clippers.

If you find yourself leafing through catalogues, not knowing what you should order or what you’ll be successful with, I feel you. Getting the same results you see on those glossy pages can be a stretch. So what can you do to ensure success? Here are some simple ways I’ve tried that make it easier.

January - it’s too long and way too cold. About the only good thing I have to say about winter is it’s a good time to think. Our gardens are on pause and so are we - there’s plenty of ways to reflect, dream and come up with new ideas for spring.

The onset of winter makes you slow down and appreciate the little things in a garden. On dark cold days, a lingering flower or brightly colored leaf is cause to celebrate. A recent gift from a gardening friend brought this home to me even more.

It’s never too late to make changes in your garden - or at least a plan. For those of you who haven’t gotten around to picking up your shovel, I hope to encourage you with some lessons I learned from my recent tweaks.

Fall chrysanthemums aren’t your only option if you’re hungry for a final blast of color in your garden. If you’re thinking there isn’t much that blooms in October, let me acquaint you with a few lesser known beauties that brightened up my October garden and mood considerably.

Sometimes you just can’t see the forest through the trees. As I studied my garden with growing dissatisfaction. I knew it was way overdue for some serious editing, but for the life of me I just couldn’t put my finger on exactly what was bugging me. I

If you want a garden that looks good all summer, you need plants you can count on. I doubly appreciate those that are useful as well as beautiful.

Plants are only part of the of a garden. The real magic unfolds as you meander through it. Take a wild walk through this one - an exuberant tapestry of plants, whimsical little nooks and garden rooms.

In June, you can sit back on your laurels and admire your garden to your hearts content. You think you’re golden, but wait - what about future holes that mar your garden in late summer?

Guilt spurred me on to start my shopping at home this spring. Yes, I’m talking about the secret stash of plants hidden behind my vegetable garden.

I’ve spent the past month nursing lettuce seedlings in the spare room, eagerly planning this year’s vegetable garden. With a small garden like mine, you’d think the planning part would be a no brainer. After all, how many vegetables can one possibly cram into three raised beds? The answer is plenty - you just need efficient trellising.

Want to create a new planting, or improve a problem area and have no idea how to get started? This month I thought I’d share a design shortcut that helps me get unstuck, and allows me to run wild with any idea that pops into my head.

What can you do if you want a garden that’s less work without sacrificing beauty? The answer - fewer flowers and more foliage.

Stuck in the house, winter travels shelved. But no worries, I’ve added a good dose of the tropics to my indoor plant collection. Bring on the bromeliads.

The quest for the right plant, plotting the next project and even bemoaning my garden failures has kept me going in a year without much good news. Here's the best of 2020 in a nutshell.

 If you're strapped for time, space and energy, why not pot up leftover bulbs, tuck them away in a protected spot to force and bring inside later? It's worth doing just to get a sneak preview of spring! Here's how.