GARDEN DILEMMAS? ASK MARY!

Hello fellow readers, I’ll admit I am not a huge fan of cut flowers, though I find artful arrangements lovely. But I always feel bad when the flowers fade, tossing them in the compost pile when a houseplant gift lasts for years. Recently a story came from a dear friend who bring

Hello, fellow readers. One of the gems that jumped out from The Book of Hope we chatted about last week is Jane Goodall’s closest childhood friend, Beech, a beech tree she asked her grandmother to pass on to her in a handwritten will. You see, I have a beloved Mr. Beech, too, al

Hello fellow readers, What a treat to hunker down to The Book of Hope by Jane Goodall and Douglas Abrams with Gail Hudson borrowed from the library. The subtitle— A Survival Guide for Trying Times. I don’t know about you, but merely surviving seems sad. I like to think of it as

Hello fellow readers, When you think about it, the most resilient things in nature are soft and pliable, like blades of grass that bounce back after being trampled. And trees that sway with the wind, enduring severe storms, heavy snow, or ice. Birch trees, one of my favs, have a reput

Hello fellow readers, My “big kid” project is dragging on, but I haven’t given up hope. You may recall the column inspired by Cheryl of Blairstown, who I met while walking Jolee. She started avocado seeds in water as a science experiment to encourage her daycare cent

Hello fellow readers, Life cycles are much like the cycles of nature and the seasons, and while our plants are dormant is a perfect time for inventorying gardens and our lives. Looking forward. Then, looking back.  It occurs to me when we are young, entering adulthood, we are in a sta

Hello, fellow readers. As I sit to write you, it’s Martin Luther King’s Day honoring a great man. In preparation, I dug through the internet maze to learn more about the advocate of equality, looking for a connection to gardens or nature to share with you today. And there

Hello fellow readers, While enjoying the respite from gardening, we can relish the winter landscape filled with many treasures. Such as the winter beauty of native Winterberry I came upon along the access road to Camp Mohican in Blairstown, NJ— the red berries brilliant against the dr

Hello fellow readers,  A New Year, just as birthdays, gifts the opportunity to start fresh—maybe to begin new things or improve upon others. A chance for turning over a new leaf, as they say. One new leaf I’d like to turn over is sharing more of how plants inspire our lives. Let