Hello Fellow Readers, Pam and Ed of Sparta have a charming bluestone patio. The shady spot has encouraged moss to take up residence, which is lovely. The dilemma is, ants have also moved in. Previous attempts to evict the ants have caused the demise of their treasured green fuzz in th

Hello Fellow Readers, As we ready our gardens for the new season of growth, many add fertilizers and other nourishment such as compost and manure. You’ve likely noticed I advocate organic practices so we all may breathe green with a splash of color. Organic farming became known

Hello Fellow Readers, Earthworms are destroying forest floors shared William of Bangor PA after I bragged about the benefits of castings (worm poop) in the garden. I didn’t know, along with the benefits of our slimy garden guests, there are negative outcomes of their presence; especia

Hello Fellow Readers, I didn’t realize until Bruce Crawford, Director of Rutgers Gardens, emailed the plant list for his recent lecture titled Sexy Native Plants. In the NJ Plants tradeshow held in Edison, NJ, the G-rated version was Native Plants for Native Pollinators. And these bab

Hello Fellow Readers, So much came of last week’s chat with my birder buddies — welcome to more fun bird fodder part 2. One of the most loved and fascinating backyard birds are Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, who are migratory. As solitary birds, they don’t migrate in flocks.

Hello Fellow Readers, This time of year, what fun it is to peruse seed catalogs. Green beans aren’t only green anymore. And tomatoes come in all sorts of shades and mottled blends of colors. There are even tomatoes that stay green when they’re ripe. Charlotte of Stone Chur

Hello Fellow Readers, I received an email from AmericanHort that “Urgent Action is Needed”. “The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is evaluating whether to further restrict uses of synthetic pyrethroid insecticides.” Anything urgent and pertaining to the protection of our environm

Hello Fellow Readers, While visiting dear Mom in a nursing home in Virginia, we stumbled upon a historic place along the James River and took respite amongst nature. Entering Henricus Historical Park in Chester, VA is a remarkable Dominion Power plant powered by coal cohabitating amon

Hello Fellow Readers, Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of speaking with garden clubs and participating in their activities. I didn’t realize until digging into history, the magnitude and impact of garden clubs across the country, even the world. The first garden club in America

Hello Fellow Readers, There’s quite a buzz about widely-used insecticides impacting our pollinators. One out of every three bites of food depend on a pollinator; hence they are critical to our food supply. Digging through research, there are varying opinions on the effect of insectici