Finally! Thanksgiving has passed, and I can talk about the holidays without incurring the wrath of Nordstrom's and everyone else who is tired of seeing the holiday décor turn up in August. Woot! I don't know about all y'all, but I'm feeling a … [Continue reading]
If your winter "gardening" is usually comprised of bulb and perennial catalogs, highlighters, and very little in the way of actual outdoor gardening, then I have a new tool to make your winter plotting that much more exciting. Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp … [Continue reading]
Jack out in Oklahoma read about my native evergreen huckleberry, Vaccinium ovatum, and wondered whether it might grow in his area: "Will this actually grow in Oklahoma City area? Or is it a borderline plant for our state? Thank … [Continue reading]
When selling your home, it really stinks to spend money on improvements that you may not recoup. However, it stinks worse to have your perfectly lovely home sit for ages, unsold, because that first impression isn't all it could be. Recently, I … [Continue reading]
This is a question most of us pros have come to dread. Not because we dislike answering questions, but because the subtext is so often, "I want a particular tree, but I don't have room for it. May I have your professional go-ahead to hack the holy … [Continue reading]
I was delighted to read about Amazon's new Kindle lending library for Prime members, where we can choose from 5,300 books to borrow and read on our Kindle. While the list of people who have both a Kindle and an Amazon Prime account may be small, … [Continue reading]
Does your fern have shriveled, brown fronds or a bleached, discolored appearance? We know that people are susceptible to sunburn, but we don't think of plants as being able to get sunburned as well. It's a common problem. When shade-loving plants … [Continue reading]
Photo at left: Mackerel showing his love of Phormium 'Black Adder' October always makes me want to curl up with my gardening books and highlight the deliciously wicked black plants found within. But you don't need to limit black and dark plants to … [Continue reading]
With Halloween around the corner, what more appropriate topic to tackle than darkness? Specifically, dark and black foliage. Black is dramatic. Unexpected. It's all about contrast - between dark and light, living and dead. Like a glittered Day of … [Continue reading]
I'm absolutely elated to have my first feature article in this month's Fine Gardening magazine. It's about four quick design fixes that homeowners can make in order to have a more beautiful garden with minimal effort. There are five sets of … [Continue reading]
Pictured: a normal strawberry, 'Rugen Improved' alpine, 'Yellow Alpine', and 'Golden Alexandria' berries Alpine strawberries. Seriously, have you guys tried these things? They're like little red garden crackberries. They're definitely one of my … [Continue reading]