GARDEN DILEMMAS? ASK MARY!

Hello fellow readers, Several of you like the idea of standing tall while picking vegetables and are intrigued by the decorative possibilities of vertical gardens.  Ted from Allamuchy uses a cattle panel arched in half so he can walk under it and secures each corner with T-posts – Wal

Hello fellow readers, Oh goodie!  Garden catalogs are here to tease our fancy and tickle our toes. Not sure what toes have to do with it, but it sounds exciting. And it is! John from Hope asked whether to grow veggies in those newfangled vertical garden “systems” and bags. It’s fun an

Hello fellow readers, Last week we spoke about sunflower seed being one of the best seed to attract the widest varieties of birds.  Rachel from Fredon asked which kind is best.  There are 2 types; black oil seeds with easy to open thin shells most desired by seed-eating birds and stri

Hello fellow readers, Winter weather can be for the birds.  Not for those of us with a passion to play in the snow mind you, but winter brings the desire to feed and watch the antics of backyard birds.  Emma and Josh of Mt. Bethel asked if there is a certain seed they should buy.  The

Hello Fellow Readers, If I may share the origin of a memoir underway titled the Lesson of the Leaf. My beloved brother Bill passed away on December 21st.  I was blessed to be able to travel to Florida to be by his side in his last weeks. Several overnights in the hospital and hospice

Hello fellow readers, Not a single write-in this week, but I won’t take it personally.  No doubt everyone is up to their eyeballs in the fa la la la la of the holidays. So if I may ask a question about the timing of my 15-year old Christmas cactus, which has bloomed well before Thanks

Hello fellow readers, Most of you have decked the halls, but I am late this year and wrestle whether to dig out the artificial standby or go for a much preferred real tree. I bought my standby many years ago to use the times I visited the folks in Florida over Christmas. Some travel y

Hello fellow readers, Since my recent admission several of you have fessed up that you have yet to cut back your perennials.  Glad I am not the only one!  And it is true that leaving seed heads on your dormant perennials over winter will encourage many of your plants to spread.  John

Hello fellow readers, Winter predictions are always a popular topic this time of year. You’ve heard the folklore; the wider the middle brown section of the wooly bear caterpillar the milder the coming winter. The more frenzied the nut collecting of squirrels the harsher the wint