Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries, Ask Mary Stone, New Jersey Garden blog
a silver dog bowl below a rain gutter filling with snowmelt

Harvesting Rainwater & Snowmelt Wisdom

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, Many of us long for greenery, especially in winter. So much so that roughly 66 percent of American households have indoor plants. Not only are they beautiful, but they also improve air quality and provide joy and serenity, supporting our menta
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White pine branches layered in winter window box with holly and pinecones

Late-Fall Tasks into Décor

Hello fellow of all things green, Last week, I shared about the buck rub on Ellie’s memorial holly (link below) and how branches ended up strewn along the base of the tree. While rubbing, deer often chew on lower branches, then paw at the soil and urinate to mark their territory. I sa
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a colorful assortment of pansies in front of a red barn

Violet and Pansy Season of Happiness

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. In Episode 202 of the Garden Dilemmas Podcast (link below), I share a heartwarming story from my dear friend Vicki Johnson, a garden writer and photographer, about what inspired her to start gardening, which grew into a passion and a career. I
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a fig tree next to a house with a yellow sign offering free figs. But don't be a fig pig.

Don’t be a Fig Pig – Give a Fig

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. It’s a joy to walk the streets of Victorian architecture in Cape May, located at the very tip of New Jersey. It has attracted vacationers since the mid-18th century, designating Cape May as the country’s oldest seaside resort. Glor
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Kearny Community Garden with straw bales lined up in a row,

Straw Bale Gardening Builds Community

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, As we approach the end of winter, we begin to think about vegetable gardens. I hope to have an attractive fence this year rather than my workaround stakes and deer netting. Not so pretty, but the veggies are. In addition to the No-Till Gardeni
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a Mother Earth Face pot with a maroon leaf tall perennial and hakone grass bangs

Overwintering Potted Perennials

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, Typically, my garden ghost routine of covering pots with sheets to keep them from freezing begins in late October. Then, I grow weary of the ritual. Besides, one must accept endings. Now, after migrating from annuals in pots to perennials, the
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Garden Steps decorated with a colorful perennial garden with a golden retriever looking down from above.

Colors in Gardens and Our Lives

Hello fellow readers, Color in our gardens and containers impacts our lives. Then there are the other elements of the design—one of the most miraculous elements of nature, gardens, and ourselves is unseen. What fun to attend the annual conference hosted by the NJ Landscape & Nurse
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an open pea pod on a wooden table to be used to test soil for contaminants

Starting an Organic Garden

Hello fellow readers; Sara from Oxford, NJ, asked how to prepare a plot for starting an organic garden. She suspects the previous owners used chemicals, as when they moved in, the lawn “looked like a golf course.” Kudos Sara. It’s wise to consider the prior use of ch
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a red amaryllis in full bloom on a bay window at nighttime with white Christmas lights

Paperwhites & Amaryllis like to Party

Hello, fellow readers, I adore the gift of amaryllis already in bud received on Thanksgiving. Watching the alien-looking beefy blooms open, badly bending the stem, makes me wonder if amaryllis like to party like paperwhites. No kidding. A continuous drink of alcohol keeps paperwhites
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a glass dish filled with red, orange, and brownish hot peppers

Growing HOT Peppers into cool Jelly

Hello fellow readers, I interviewed my lifelong friend Russ and his wife, Sara, from Oakland, Tennessee, about their adventure growing hot peppers in pots and turning them into jelly. I watched them grow up!  Remotely that is when they decided to start their hot pepper seeds indoors.
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