Seeds this Spring - Cucumbers

Hey Kids, last year we had so many cucumbers. They were prolific. More than I knew what to do with them. Pickles were made out of them, relishes, salads. Even though I have never been any good at zucchini, my cucumbers produced more than my zucchini ever did. Unfortunately, with all the wet weather...

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Golden ragwort (Packera aurea)

It's hard not to like Golden ragwort (aka Golden Groundsel) = Packera aurea.It's a native across the Eastern U.S.  It flowers early in spring, supporting some early pollinators, providing a brilliant yellow in woodlands, etc.It's a exuberant colonizer, and successful self-seeder, so grows prolifically...

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Spring

Okay Kids, spring is one of my favorites. I love taking pics of the yard because it only happens once.Here in Ohio, we have had a strange one. Everything is so Late 3 weeks ago we got SNOW!And things were just starting to come  up too. look at these baby radishes! Just covered with snow!My helleborus...

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Rain gardens

Capturing water on your landscape (aka garden) is a good thing.  We DON'T want water to sheet off or run off anywhere, rather soaking in (as it does in undisturbed natural landscapes)."Rain gardens" are a bit of an invented concept (in my opinion), but learning about how they can be used and adapted (along with other "natural" water management approaches) are certainly useful encouragement!I've...

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Gardening as you get older

I had the privilege of visiting a truly lovely landscape created by a devoted gardener today.  She's worked with some excellent designers and landscapers over the years, and brings her gift of loving plants and gardening to her landscape.Now, after 15+ years in her post-work landscape, and tussles with serious illnesses, it's hard to keep up everything, even with monthly landscape help.My advice...

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Seeds this Spring - Beans

Okay Kids, Mama always told us to eat our beans. So I am listing to mama (I can hear my mom saying 'Finally!'). I love me some bean so Here are some of the varieties that have bought this year that I have never tried before. I have never grown a pole bean, only the bush beans, Here is what I got.I always...

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Sedums and sedum mats

I've so enjoyed our sedum bed in the mountains as it's provided all-season interest for almost 4 years. And it continues to do so.But the combination of a cool, and very wet summer, with an extremely cold winter left me with some gaps to fill.  A non-sedum, Irish moss (Sagina subulata), was the...

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