Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries, Ask Mary Stone, New Jersey Garden blog
a blue jay wiht an open beak in a branch wiht dry leaves

Acorns and a Ruckus of Blue Jays

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, Last week, while recording the podcast version of our weekly chat from the screen porch, a loud ruckus of birds erupted, sounding like an argument from the oak tree by the vegetable garden. The ruckus was equivalent to the deafening sounds of
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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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large brown ring shaped patch on lawn with a dachshund dog in the center

The Phenomenon of Fairy Rings

Craig has had two rings that have made recurring visits to his lawn over the past few years in the same place. Each one is about ten feet wide and spaced five feet apart. He and Caroline live in front of a farm field and thought pesticides used over the years could be causing the myst
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a birds eye view of two conjoined white giant puffball mushrooms next to a pair of work boots

Fun Fall Fungi in Lawns

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. As dry as our weather has been, there’s been some fascinating and fun fall fungi that have shown up in our lawns, including Giant Puffball Mushrooms, which are intriguing and edible. I harvested conjoined twin giant puffballs before cutt
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A copperhead with hourglass-shaped bands laying in dirt

Curious Copperhead Encounters

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. About a month ago, at late dusk, I took Jolee over the footbridge across the pond to her potty spot. On the way back, I noticed an oddly flattened snake, but there was no blood, and the head was intact. How strange, given there’s no vehi
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Garden Blog, Sweet Autumn Clematis, Clematis ternifora, Fall flowering clematis

Sweet Autumn Clematis Native Alternative

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, I look forward to sharing an update on a long-ago story about a real softie, a soft-wooded Sweet Autumn Clematis, in its glory this time of year. With a plethora of tiny white blooms from August to September, she resembles a snowdrift and smel
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An empty cardinals nest in a rhododendron shrub in front of a yellow house.

Curiosity About Cardinals Brings Wisdom

There's wisdom gained in having a heavy heart when I saw the empty Cardinal's nest, only to learn there was likely a happy ending after all.
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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 large light and dark orange moth feeding on a white flower.

Moth Survey in a Mountain Meadow

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. I recently had the thrill of participating in a moth survey, thanks to my friends Blaine Rothauser of GZA Geoenvironmental, Inc. and Dennis Briede of Blairstown, NJ, whose meadow at the base of the Kittatinny Mountains harbors and nurtures abu
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A lime green Mile-a-minute-weed-leaf is almost a perfect triangle

Mile-a-Minute Remedies – Native Butterfly Plants

Hello fellow lovers of all things green, Mile-a-Minute Weed is running rampant, and now is the time to address it before the berries ripen. While at the eye doctor the other day, Pat at the front desk described her overwhelming mile-a-minute dilemma, reminding me of a client long ago
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