Last week I zeroed in on my list of gardening jobs that I’m not too crazy about doing – the ones that will be the first that I farm out as age forces me to scale back. This week it’s time to look at the seven jobs that I like most – in […]
As I was finishing off the last few bucketfuls of my most recent 10-yard load of mulch, my back reminded me why I’m not a fan of this labor-heavy activity. Mulching might be great for discouraging weeds and keeping moisture in the soil, but it’s not much fun. “Brutal” better describes it […]
Those of you who wanted the Philadelphia Flower Show to go back inside after two years of COVID-forced outdoor shows will be getting your wish. The 2023 Philadelphia Flower Show will take place March 4-12, 2023, inside its former home of the Pennsylvania Convention Center, 12th and Arch streets in center-city Philly. […]
Did you ever feel like the deck was stacked against you on a yard project? All the time, eh? For me, I got that feeling when I started tackling the 60-foot-long, steep bank that lines my driveway. This area was a mess when we bought the place. Earlier owners obviously […]
One day earlier this month while down on my knees doing battle with the oxalis, it occurred to me that a lot can go wrong in a gardener’s weed-fighting efforts. A lot can go wrong anywhere in the garden, for that matter. But narrowing it down to weeds, it’s easy to get overwhelmed […]
I’m beginning to think that maybe nature has banned me from the blueberry list. At my previous place in Cumberland County, I harvested quarts of tasty berries every summer from five blueberry bushes I planted along my western backyard border. The main thing I learned was to drape and secure a sturdy […]
I’ve long suspected that deer have some sort of sophisticated, yard-monitoring network that lets them take maximum advantage of the plants that gardeners set out. Now I’m sure. There’s just too much efficiency going on to assume that simple-minded deer happen to wander by and find certain target plants for dinner almost […]
I’ve seen a big shift these last few years in what gardeners view as the “best,” or at least the “desired,” way to garden. The trend is strongly toward a natural look in which lots of different plants intermingle and grow in laissez-faire masses – similar to how plants grow in the wild. […]
Flower color is one of nature’s most joyous gifts to people. Even non-gardeners appreciate it, while many a gardener strives to load the yard with a nonstop parade of flower power from the season’s first hellebores to the last Montauk daisy petal of fall. That’s not easy. More color means more […]
The lackluster color we see (or don’t see at all) in so many yards up to this point in the growing season is largely because we’re under-bulbed. Spring blooming bulbs like tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths are the leading way to color our spring landscapes, but the majority of yards I see are totally […]