Living with Chickweed
The other day I saw a research report from some agricultural scientist who'd decided that chickweed—that disgusting little kissing cousin of kudzu—was the ideal winter cover crop for soybean farmers. …
gardener
Planting Out
I am standing in the garden, a plant in my hand, in a state of indecision. Where shall I plant it? I have a new raised bed ready for planting. …
The Consolation of Flowers
It is something to have flower-fields and beauties to remember amid the enveloping universal darkness of the world. For the utmost griefs of beings, races, and continents come and pass, …
A Spring Gardening Checklist to Grow Your Best Plants Ever
Friends, it is officially spring. The sun is out, the skies are blue, and the local flora and fauna are appearing. There's a robin in a tree near my window …
Why Are My Pea Plants Turning Yellow?
Why are my pea plants turning yellow? Is it something I need to worry about? Are my plants done for? The concern is understandable. After all, yellowing plant leaves could …
Perennials are Forever
Over the years, I’ve come to appreciate the seasons in Upstate New York: Summers full of warmth and sunlight, punctuated by the crashing of epic thunderstorms off Great Lake Ontario; …
Gnomes? Why Gnot?
I’ve often wondered how my father developed his gardening expertise. Born and raised in the East End of London, Cyril was a true Cockney and was surely more familiar with …
Spring Time
Beets, radishes, and spinach are easy to grow in colder or milder climes. Their seeds are among the first that can be directly planted into the garden bed in early …
Try to Remember
What did you plant in your garden the year before last? Or the year before that? (And no peeking if you’re the sort of well-organized gardener who keeps notes.) Human …
Cutting Down a Tree You Love
My name is Amanda, and I'm a tree hugger—in the literal sense! As a wildly energetic person, maybe I like how trees are always grounded, and maybe they help me …
