See You Soon!
Out the Kitchen Window
I regularly volunteer at our library’s used book sales. It’s fun sharing recommendations with fellow readers and I find that many readers tend to be gardeners as well. In my mind, that’s the perfect combination of characteristics! This past weekend I was chatting with a young couple who had just bought their very first …
Invite An Insect: Black Swallowtail Butterfly
Whether you are planting to attract butterflies, bees or a host of other native pollinators, finding out which specific plants are the best to include can be complicated. In order to help you design your pollinator garden, I have pulled together a list of some beneficial insects and their related plants. Look for “INVITE AN …
The Not So Secret Lives of Bees
Originally published in September 2018, our two part series on native and non-native bees adds important information to our current discussion of native pollinators. Two years ago, when we moved into this house, I planted the beginnings of a butterfly garden. Last summer it didn’t amount to much — the perennials were small and it …
Preparing for Pollinators
With all the Buzz about pollinators in the news lately (sorry, just couldn’t resist it), I thought that this might be a good time to think about adding a pollinator garden to the landscape. For the past few years, flower and gardening magazines, websites and even home improvement television shows …
Plant A Patch: Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis)
For a glimpse of spring during those last, long days of winter, plant a patch of Lenten rose. Clusters of the cup-shaped flowers will rise above the snow to delight the eye and lighten the mood. Lenten rose prefers a protected location in partial to full shade and rich, well-drained soil. Cut back flower …
Plant A Patch: Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
Whether used as a divining rod to find water, a cure a broken heart or to ward off evil, the native shrub witch hazel has held a noteworthy spot in American folklore for centuries. Better known today for its offering rare “golden blooms in the dead of winter,” witch hazel deserves a …
"Bee-Friending" Insect Populations
Insect populations around the world are rapidly declining. Within the next 20 years, 40% of the earth’s insect species may be extinct and within 100 years insects could disappear completely. Insects are the foundation of the planet’s ecosystems. When just one type of insect disappears, dozens of other species, including humans, are directly …
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