Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries, Ask Mary Stone, New Jersey Garden blog
a milkweed seed with silky feathers

What We Release – What We Grow

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. As we begin a new year, we tend to reflect on what no longer serves us and set intentions that grow in their own time. I’m writing this on a cold winter morning, shortly after a quick cross-country ski around the property. A light dusting of s
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the sun peering through a forest in the fall

What Nature and Gardens Taught Us

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, Happy New Year! A new year feels like an ideal time to pause and reflect on the path we’ve walked together, noticing what has grown—not just in our gardens, but within us. Curiosity Over Fear: A Copperhead’s Lesson One story that stood o
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two brown chairs in snow in front of a brook with reflections of the trees

Stillness Teaches Growth Through Nature

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. Recent rains washed away the late-fall trifecta of snow that had so festively decorated our world. It felt curious to have snow arrive ahead of schedule, but everything has its season. And sometimes, seasons come early. Now winter has official
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Ellie’s recovered memorial holly Jolee, a white dog wiht black ears.

Hope Unfolds in Holly’s Renewal

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, You may remember the story of the replacement tree planted in memory of Miss Ellie Mae, my rescue before Jolee. The first tree, a ‘Baby Blue Eyes’ Blue Spruce, didn’t survive. Its roots were severely cut and crisscrossed—what’s known in the tr
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Mary Stone and Marty Carson in Stone Associates Display at the Springfest Garden Show

Goodbye to Garden Legend, Marty Carson

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, A Late-Season Harvest and Autumn Reflections Last week, I shared a late-season harvest from my no-till vegetable garden. Since then, I removed the deer netting, stakes, and cages and found other tomatoes that could’ve been harvested desp
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Ken Roberts and Mary Stone standing behind Julia Quinlan in a wheelchair.

Promises That Live Beyond Seasons

Honoring the Karen Ann Quinlan Home for Hospice and a Beloved Friend Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, As you may know, you can subscribe to my free newsletter (sign up below), which arrives in your inbox every week or two. Since the beginning, my dear friend and garden design
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a close up of a single sunflower with a sunflower maze behind it.

A Sunflower Maze of Healing

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. Sunflowers not only purify our earth of toxins, there smiling faces also bring happiness that can help heal our hearts. What a delight to revisit Liberty Farm’s Sussex County Sunflower Maze in Sandyston. Raj Sinha kindly offered a tour o
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A side view of Jolee with her ears flat on her head next to Mary Stone.

Nature Teaches Endings Bring Beginnings

Birthdays have a way of encouraging us to pause and reflect, don't they? We may consider changing a few things or planting new seeds. There is such wisdom in nature, teaching us that endings bring beginnings— even unexpected, sad endings and losses— because from them comes new growth.
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a stone edge maze amongst a forest with an upright wooden cross in next to a tree in the center.

Labyrinths Provide Paths of Healing

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. Labyrinths provide paths of healing to help you maneuver through loss and grief, but the contemplation benefits are all-encompassing and beautiful, too. Comfort Zone Camp, in partnership with A Little Hope Foundation I participated in Comfort
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A selfie of Mary Stone smiling and wearing a beige sun hat with a happy sunflower.

A Milestone in Our Journey Together

Hello, fellow lovers of things green. The podcast version of our weekly chats reached a milestone of 200 episodes, which grew from thirteen years of columns in my local newspaper. I’m so thankful for The Weekly Press and all of you who join me online. There’s much to learn
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