Garden Gems

At summer’s end, one of the loveliest spots in my garden is under the redbud tree. Redbuds, Cercis canadensis, are easy keepers, justly appreciated for their spring blooms. Come summer, they are garden stars for the dense shade cast by their pendulous…

Gardens are home to more than plants. Birds and small mammals are often poking around, seeking sustenance. Invertebrates make their living in the garden too, and encountering them gives many gardeners pause. We may recoil, or we may want to observe. And…

Knowing that success begins with their soil, many avid gardeners continually seek to improve it. Some of us go so far as to collect our vegetable scraps and lawn clippings (greens) in a backyard compost bin, mix with fall leaves and the…

They say that you should give what you would like to receive. With that in mind, and knowing my husband reads this column, I am going to recommend a few things I would like to receive and a few tried-and-true gifts. For…

Whether you call it the verge, tree lawn, banquette, boulevard, or curb strip (or any of several dozen other names, depending on where you grew up), that piece of land between the sidewalk and street is a difficult row to hoe. Often,…

A while ago, I heard about a perennial herb that was said to resemble celery in appearance and flavor, grow as much as six feet tall, and had hollow stalks that could be used for straws. Six feet! Novelty straws! Color me…