Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries, Ask Mary Stone, New Jersey Garden blog
A light brown bottlebrush buckeye seed with tough leather-like capsules

Sowing the Treasures of Buckeye Seeds

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, Once again, I was late tending to my garden, scurrying about just before the first snow. You’ve likely heard the phrase “a shoemaker without shoes.” It’s ironic how folks who provide a service often neglect to provide i
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a green pencil labeled Blackwing 17 sitting on an African violet with dark purple blooms

Essential Nutrients for Gardens & Life

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, I always felt giving is more glorious than receiving, but I’m not sure now after a gift came with a delightful surprise. While opening the box of green Blackwing pencils Ken Roberts gave me, my dear friend and singing partner for the Kar
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Garden Blog

A Long Winter’s Nap

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, The Press takes a hiatus between their Christmas and New Year’s editions, and so, my faithful online readers, I thought I’d revisit a story from long ago, A Long Winter’s Nap, when dear Ellie was by our side, with a few tweak
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a blonde woman, Mary Stone, in sunglasses and a denim shirt hugging a three foot wide water oak trunk.

Giving Thanks for Nature’s Gifts

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, I just returned from being with family in Tennessee and Virginia for Thanksgiving, a treasured time. I hope you enjoyed the holiday too. Thanksgiving is about giving thanks, which is timeless and universal. We give thanks for the gifts of life
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a field of red poppies

Significance of Veterans Day Poppies

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, It was confusing the day before Veterans Day this year. Folks were off, and schools closed. I thought it was always on November 11. There’s a significance to 11-11, and why poppies are on lapels on Veterans Day and in our garden. So, I d
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Avis Campbell Gardens octagonal pond with a pedestal fountain.

Avis Campbell Gardens Wheel of Life

Hello Fellow Readers, In last week’s story about Ripening Fall Hand-me-Down Tomatoes, I found Ed’s kindhearted lab Dolce feasting on Kousa Dogwood berries, reminding me of a fabulous Kousa adjacent to the Avis Campbell Gardens in Montclair, New Jersey. It was a summertime
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Looking up at the shaggy bark of a shagbark hickory trunk.

Shagbark Hickories – Nutty Mast Years

Hello, Fellow Readers, These are nutty times. Far nuttier than usual in my neck of the woods. The Shagbark Hickory nuts are overabundant and golf ball and size, so much so that walking amongst them is risky for ankle stability. It’s called masting when there’s an excess of
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a dark grey quarter-sized baby snapping turtle in a stream next to native aster blooms

Saving Snapping Turtles Lifts Spirits

Hello, fellow readers, Saving snapping turtles lifts spirits. While walking Jolee, I saw a baby snapping turtle on the side of the road and a momma snapper a week later. I hope you enjoy the story. I walked a quarter of a mile with the quarter-sized baby snapper to a feeder stream, mu
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a lake surrounded by evergreen trees and deciduous trees in their orange and gold fall colors.

Why Some Trees Remain Evergreen

Hello, fellow readers, I always enjoy hiking along the Appalachian Trail with a longtime friend from Boonton, NJ. While meandering the rocky terrain peppered with hemlock and Spruce, Barbara asked why some trees remain evergreen and others don’t. Good question. Let’s ask t
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a large yellow sunflower with a honeybee standing in front of a field of sunflowers.

A Sunflower Maze Brings Happiness

Hello, fellow readers, What a joy to visit Liberty Farm’s Sussex County Sunflower Maze in Sandyston, NJ, who invited us for a special day bringing happiness. It’s their 14th year of growing the maze. Raj Sinha started growing sunflowers when the New Jersey Audubon Society
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