Return of the Sun
We will soon turn the corner! As of the Solstice, the Sun will be on its return trip, and the days will be, however imperceptibly, getting longer. Winter has just…
O Christmas Tree, O Tannenbaum
Nothing brings to mind the holiday season quite like the smell of fresh cut balsam. Bringing the outside in has been a tradition for hundreds of years, with some changes…
Plant Profile: Wintertime Hollies
The shining jewels of the holiday season belong to the genus of plants known as Ilex, the hollies. Be they bunches of twigs covered in glossy, pointy leaves and red berries,…
Closing Up for the Year
End of November, again. Time to get the last of the oak leaves off of the lawn (at least till the first real snow comes, and then whatever is left…
Decorate Your Table with Nature
Most of the leaves are off the trees now, gardens are all but put to bed, and we're starting to hunker down for the longest season; a time for spending…
Pest Profile: The Asian Ladybug
That time of year is here again... actually, it's been that time of year for several weeks, but they just showed up in my apartment over the last weekend. Zipping…
Final Preparations before Winter
Over the last several weeks, gardening has slowed down, but people are still calling and coming in with questions. This week, we'll go through the most popular ones, so all…
Plant Profile: Ornamental Grasses
The great garden cut-back has started, with the first real frost/freeze that came earlier this week. Hosta turned yellow and melted into the ground, daylily blossoms turned to mush; there…
Taking a Peek at Peak Leaf Season
October is well entrenched. The smell of woodsmoke is everywhere, cool, crisp mornings and evenings have become the norm, and the sky is that perfect blue that only happens in…
End of the Year Veggie Wrap-Up
So... it's fall. Some parts of southern Maine, at least, have in fact gotten a killing frost. I brought the few annual herbs I have in pots inside the house…