Some of the most beautiful bulbs you plant in the spring are like flowering pets such as freesia, dahlias, and most gladiolas. Then there are care-free hummingbird magnets such as crocosmia.

Hello Fellow Readers, While recording episode six of my new podcast series from the screened porch, an arresting sound came from thousands of swarming blackbirds that landed in our front yard. Squawking and feeding for a few minutes, then they took off in a synchronized wave – e

Hello Fellow Readers, I stumbled upon the most beautiful field of clover. Pollinators were scurrying from one dainty puff to another busily gathering nectar and pollen. Their hairy legs were combing through each petal of the pinkish-white blooms. There were mostly honeybees, but many

Hello Fellow Readers, I recently shopped for annuals for Ron of Stillwater NJ who wished for bright hues. Previously he planted marigolds. I haven’t used them for years, which likely has to do with a childhood memory of my first garden – primarily marigolds grown from seed. “Mar

Hello Fellow Readers, I am thrilled to report the robin mentioned last week did indeed nest in the Doublefile Viburnum outside our kitchen window. Perhaps the same robin that nested there last year. They say they can return to a spot if they’ve had successful broods prior. It turns ou

Hello Fellow Readers, How about all the carpenters buzzing about – eastern carpenter bees, that is. Xylocopa virginica, the most common species, is wreaking havoc on my neighbor’s deck which is not inspired by their yen to eat wood. Rather, they’re nesting. Please don’t hold the

Hello fellow readers, A walk in the meadow with my friend and go-to mystery solver of all things in nature is always a treat. While Dennis Briede’s day responsibility is Stewardship Manager for The Land Conservancy of New Jersey (http://tlc-nj.org/), his true passion is living among n

Hello Fellow Readers, We had a near stinging episode from a garden pot begging for its annual dressing; a task not yet done due to a humbling hand procedure gratefully on the mends. A client grew tired of deer spraying and passed along Hosta, which I nested in the pots as a temporary

Hello Fellow Readers, I didn’t realize until Bruce Crawford, Director of Rutgers Gardens, emailed the plant list for his recent lecture that it was titled Sexy Natives. The G-rated version in the program for the NJ Plants tradeshow held in Edison NJ was Native Plants for Native Pollin

Hello Fellow Readers, “Plant more plants” was music to my ears shared by Claudia West at the recent NJ Plants tradeshow held in Edison NJ. Claudia is the Ecological Sales Representative of North Creek Nurseries; my go-to wholesale propagation nursery in Landenberg, PA. Her presentatio