What does “native” really mean — and who decides? A visit to Pittsburgh’s Point State Park, reflections on urban ecosystems, and even the humble stink bug reveal surprising lessons about biodiversity, adaptation, and belonging in our ever-changing garden of life.

Do hard winters really curb “bad bugs”? A reader’s question opens the door to a deeper conversation about beneficial insects, plant diversity, and why harmony — not eradication — is the key to resilient gardens and balanced lives.

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

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

A while back, I enjoyed a pre-spring theatre outing with my design colleague and dear friend, Marty Carson. Our jaunt allowed me to brain-pick her favorite summer flowering bulbs to plant in the spring. How fun to learn that one of her favorites is technically a corm.

Hello, fellow lover of all things green, While walking Jolee this morning, I admired crocuses on the side of the road. A white one sits solo with purple lines on the petals, almost like runways, leading pollinators to the yellow puffy pollen. I stood above it, watching the dance of tw

Hello, fellow readers; I was honored to participate in the Women and Their Woods retreat hosted by the Ridge and Valley Conservancy in Newton, NJ, to help landowners care for their woods –filled with tips on native plants to help heal our land. Before my talk about Landscaping with Na

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

Hello, fellow readers, We’ve chatted about how moths are like butterflies that party at night, a sentiment shared by Randi Eckel of Toadshade Wildflower Farm (link to the story below). Since then, I’ve grown far fonder of them; like butterflies, moths are beautiful too. A

Hello, fellow readers. A while back, Kay wrote in response to a column titled Antics of Meadow Wildlife featuring my birder buddy Dennis Briede’s meadow just up the road a piece. Dennis shared there has been a notable decline in butterflies in recent years due to habitat reducti