Blades of glory
Goodbye to gas powered, polluting lawn mowers: It was nice knowing you
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
I’ve never been a big fan of the lawn. My own front lawn, despite considerable care and cultivation, remained thirsty, rusty, weedy and quite unreasonable. That’s why, as I write these infinite pearls of wisdom, it’s being dug up and removed by “my people.” It’s a wrap, baby! In its place I’ll be planting native and drought tolerant plants.
Orchid rehab
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
For years I’ve been awkwardly baffled and shamefully intimidated by orchids. They’ve always seemed so pretentious, high maintenance and smug. They reminded me of the spoiled Park Avenue prom queen who never had to worry about acne or boyfriends.
Roses are my weakness
Winter rose care
Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2008
When I was a petulant high school student in NYC, my sweet Aunt Cecile lived upstate, in the country and grew the most spectacular English roses. My sisters and I would sigh loudly and roll our eyes, as she’d go on and on about her Wife of Bath and Heritage roses. The payback for judging people is that someday you become just like them.
My 2008 Flowery Resolutions
Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2007
Yippeee! This is going to be the best garden year ever because we just fired our lawn! No more co-dependency. Another round of organic, locally produced egg nog for all! We’re excavating our front lawn and replacing it with native and drought tolerant plants.
10 gifts for the die-hard gardener
Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007
Last month, when my local plant nursery had its annual fall sale, the rain was pouring down nonstop, yet there they were, those wild gardeners shopping for plants ... outdoors. As if this was normal behavior! It’s a die-hard habit, so you may as well feed and nurture the dreamy, florally consumed mind of the horticulturally inclined.
Attack of the worms!
Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2007
It’s time we started showing some respect and gratitude for the underappreciated earthworm, the night crawlers, and their boy back-up band, fungi and bacteria
Conserving water this summer in your yard
Saturday, Aug. 11, 2007
Many state water districts estimate that homeowners use over 50 percent of their summer water for landscape irrigation. In light of global warming and drought, doesn’t that make you feel a little guilty? It’s time to end our long, luscious love affair with needy, thirsty plants.
Locally grown
What’s up with supermarkets in Iowa selling apples from ... (huh) China?
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
When you purchase a food item in your supermarket, there’s a good chance it traveled many miles to get there. This requires more packaging, refrigeration and fuel, and generates large amounts of pollution and waste.
Annie’s Annuals: A cottage gardener’s dream
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Many of us home gardeners share the same enthusiasm for the look of the dreamy cottage garden.
Sowing seeds indoors
Saturday, March 10, 2007
After months spent indoors, by early March I always have an urgency to plant or die. So, with a gardener’s optimism I germinate a plethora of seeds indoors.
Seeds, They Are A Changin'
Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2007
Seeds, glorious seeds! This is the time of year when seed catalogues arrive in the mailbox and propel the hortiholic on a spending spree that is off the hook, baby!