home & garden

Spring has arrived, and as we look around all we see is the work that it entails. The snow banks have melted to reveal yards littered with snow mold, dirt...

We have had enough of winter, yet spring is at least a month away. Many gardeners beat the winter blues by starting seeds indoors. We may purchase some flowering plants...

I am often asked if I have started seeds inside yet. Years ago, I would start many seeds under lights, but after a whole flat of impatiens succumbed to 'damping...

Since we are snowed in for the winter, it is a good time to catch up on some reading. I just finished reading "The Gardener's Gripe Book" by Abby Adams...

The winter landscape has subtle beauty that we can all enjoy. I have observed this year that the flowering crabapple trees are especially laden with their red fruits. I was...

My husband and I celebrated Thanksgiving in Northern California with three of our children and our granddaughter. As we left for home on December 1, the deciduous trees were just...

The leaves of brown (red, yellow and even green) have tumbled down and raking them is a major fall job. Most years we have many pleasant days to accomplish this,...

My husband and I recently visited Ireland, a trip that has always been a dream of mine. Ireland claims to be the land of saints and scholars and there are...

Summer was lovely, but fleeting, and now it is officially fall. Autumn can be a wonderful time of year, even though darkness comes so quickly to shorten the days. It...

Our gardens have reached their peak and are almost more beautiful than they were all summer. Sadly, this always occurs just before a killing frost. The median first frost in...

Wherever you go, it is important to slow down and allow yourself to notice what is around you. Although walking is the best way, road trips are also good, but...