Hello fellow readers, A visit to Point State Park in downtown Pittsburgh was a highlight of a recent trip. The mist from a glorious 150-foot fountain that sits at the point where the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio Rivers combine provided soothing relief from the oppressive heat of th

Hello Fellow Readers, When I began as a designer I thought barberry overtaking forest floors was native which is not the case. The maroon leaf Japanese Barberry, Berberis thunbergii, has been overused in deer populated areas for years; though it’s understandable why their popularity.

Hello Fellow Readers, Earlier this season my brother Rick from Knoxville, TN and a dear friend Ruth of Hope, NJ asked about rose dilemmas. Personally, I find roses fussy and hard to keep in their glory. There are spider mites and aphids that often run amok. Never mind the fungus among

Hello Fellow Readers, Forsythia is one of the first shrubs to bloom announcing spring has arrived! I love the sunny yellow welcome to the bland dormant landscape. It’s true after the early yellow wakeup call they can turn into unwieldy shrubs inspiring folks to prune them into unnatur

Hello Fellow Readers, Hector and Judy of Morristown NJ, longtime clients become friends, have a “Big and Little” vignette of blue spruces that have begun to decline. Their little blue looks as though the needles were stripped from the lower branches. “Did the deer do this to my baby b

  Hello Fellow Readers, One of the marvels of Cape May NJ is the abundance of Silver Maple trees that shimmer along roadsides. Silver Maple, Acer saccharinum, are native to the eastern US and Canada and are often found near water. Hence they’ve acquired other common names such as

Hello fellow readers, We’ve had a brief hiatus from the heat and humidity, but its quick return has me weary. It occurs to me one of the biggest challenges in the garden of life is limited time. It’s true finding time in the garden is harder and harder as the summer unfolds. I b

Hello fellow readers, One of the native trees that grace my yard is a shagbark hickory (Carya ovata). Its common name speaks for itself, with shaggy bark that stands out like a sculpture. But a treasure to some can be a nuisance to others. It’s true, the first time a golf ball sized n

Hello fellow readers, Do you recall as a kid waiting until the last minute to finish your homework? As adults, it’s not about waiting, more about not having a minute to spare. Rush, rush, rush. You know the drill. Last on the list is my own garden. When I do make the time it bri

Hello fellow readers, I recently attended the Woody Plant Conference held at The Scott Arboretum in Swarthmore, PA. We learned about new plants and the dozen or more years it takes from propagation before they become available to buy. Plant patents, once rare, are now commonplace. The