Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries, Ask Mary Stone, New Jersey Garden blog
Litter being picked up in a white grovery bag with a smiley face next to mugwort

Weeding Mugwort – Picking up Litter

Hello fellow readers, Did you ever wonder why folks toss trash out their window littering our world? Did someone teach them that? Or is it they have no respect for our dear earth. Rather than being angry about it as I used to be, I’ve begun to pick it up during road walks. I think of
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native beneficial ladybug on a hand

Beneficial Ladybugs

Hello Fellow Readers, Sometimes, I think I should’ve been a bug expert given all the garden dilemmas from insects that folks ask about. Fortunately, there are also beneficial bugs, such as the much-loved ladybugs. Aphid remedies before introducing beneficial ladybugs For sure ma
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Hakonechloa-Hanoke-Grass-Mountsier-Garden-Lawn-Alternative

Lawn Alternatives Part 2

Hello Fellow Readers, Last week’s chat about Dutch clover (Trifolium repens) as a lawn alternative created quite a buzz. Beyond the buzz of our happy pollinators scurrying from bloom to bloom. It seems the algae bloom on New Jersey’s Lake Hopatcong has brought the devastating di
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Garden Blog,Northern New Jersey Landscape Designer, Moss on Boulders

Removing Moss Madness

Hello Fellow Readers, Last week, I received a text from Chris of Blairstown, “Look what we’re doing today, getting the moss off the retaining wall.” He shared pictures to boot. “Nooooo,” I wrote back with the big-eyed emoji, then added a wink and a smile. To follow is the story about
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Knotweed with feathery white flowers along the stems.

September Roadside Beauties

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green, “Is there such a thing as wild hydrangea?” asked Tammy of Marshalls Creek, PA. There is. Hydrangea arborescens is commonly known as Smooth Hydrangea or Wild hydrangea, and it’s native to the woodlands of the northeast, but it
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A yellow golden retriever with a water bottle lying on grass in the Dog Days of Summer

Origin of the Dog Days

Hello fellow readers, The dog days of summer are soon to end. No longer will we be sweating like a pig. These old sayings came up as Curt and I were walking Miss Ellie during these last hazy, lazy days of summer, and we wondered their origin. After all, what do dogs have to do with su
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Garden Blog, Hydragea

Fair Talk Tidbits

Hello fellow readers, Thanks to those who braved the heat magnification of the glass conservatory during our pow-wow of garden dilemmas at the NJ State Fair. As always, critters were a hot topic. Lorraine of Sparta NJ, a Flower Show volunteer, master gardener, and friend who invited m
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Garden Blog, getting gardens vacation ready

Getting Gardens Vacation-ready

Hello fellow readers, The week of July 4th ignites the summer vacation season. With the plentiful rains so far this summer, plants will likely be more vulnerable to heat stress once the heat and dryness kick in.  So, before you head off to de-stress, here are a few tips to help your p
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Garden Blog, Mary Stone with Miss Ellie Mae

Independence Day on the Top of the World

Hello, fellow readers. Last Sunday, we visited Big Pocono State Park, which sits atop Camelback Mountain Resort in Tannersville, PA. I’ve coined it the Top of the World, where you can see eastern Pennsylvania and portions of New Jersey and New York. More than that, there’s
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Mary Stone, Garden Dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone,Gardening tips, Garden Blogs, Stone Associates Landscape Design, Squirrels in the garden, chipmunks in the garden

Phil’s Squirrel Dilemma

Hello fellow readers, Last year, a fox den provided a reprieve from my chipmunk dilemma. They’re back! – Leaving piles of dirt around the garden pots. But their antics pale compared to Phil’s squirrel dilemma in Whitehall, PA, worthy of a standup comedy routine. Phil
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