Edibles

Of Vegetables and Weeds

By |2018-07-27T21:55:59+00:00July 27th, 2018|

Thankful as most of us are for the drenching rain this weekend and thunderstorms this week, it remains a hot summer with wasps and Johnson grass around every corner. Spring gardeners are leaving their hard-core cousins outdoors as they beat a hasty retreat to air conditioned sunrooms, prosecco glasses in hand. Any further gardening will [...]

Nursery Spotlight: What’s Old Is New Again at Mar-Lu View

By |2018-07-06T20:07:00+00:00July 6th, 2018|

There’s something new on Frederick County’s plant scene. Perhaps you’ve seen signs in your neighborhood, pointing you in the direction of a garden center that you’ve heard about, but never visited.  Perhaps you’ve been driving along a country road in Jefferson only to screech to a halt in front of a wild and wonderful assortment [...]

Nursery Spotlight: Brews and Blooms at Thanksgiving Farms

By |2018-06-15T15:15:37+00:00June 15th, 2018|

Shopping for plants is good.  Shopping for heirloom vegetables is even better.  But when you combine those plants and veggies with a hand-crafted beer, then add a band, a food truck and a lot of loungeable patio furniture on a weekend in the summer, you have the makings of Heaven on earth. That’s the vibe [...]

A Gardener’s Progression of Cruelty: Volunteer Seedlings

By |2018-06-03T19:23:58+00:00June 1st, 2018|

‘One must be cruel to be kind’ is a hackneyed phrase that must have originated in a garden setting. Where else do men and women of good conscience perpetuate extreme acts of violence without a moment’s thought or consideration of that conscience? Once the deed is done – be it dismemberment or execution – ‘tis [...]

Getting Edgy

By |2018-05-11T12:35:09+00:00May 11th, 2018|

  May has dawned, and with it, the realization that my edges will have to be seen to.  I speak of course of garden beds. There is little that can be done to smooth the sharpness of my tongue and it certainly needs no further definition. There are many ways to approach this problem, and [...]

The Case for Plant Labeling

By |2020-12-04T16:07:02+00:00April 21st, 2018|

We all believe (as Garden Geeks) that the minds we have at twenty-four will stay supple and fit, able to remember a thousand genera and ten thousand named species at a moment’s notice – not that we have much call to provide such information at a moment’s notice (at that age) unless we’re lucky enough [...]

In The Frenzy of Spring, Remember The ‘Why’

By |2018-04-02T18:40:00+00:00March 30th, 2018|

Not satisfied with feeling overwhelmed with spring cleaning, spring wardrobe changeover, spring home repairs and spring holiday plans, I thought it might be clever to go outside last week, pick up a trowel and increase my anxiety in the spring garden. Beginning the process means a shift in priorities and a horrifying realization of everything [...]

Growing a Beautiful, Not Just Edible, Vegetable Garden

By |2018-03-15T15:00:27+00:00March 16th, 2018|

Beautiful vegetables?  What is she talking about? Aren’t all vegetables beautiful?       For those who live and breathe a garden life and not just a garden life-style, the answer is of course yes.  Even flopping potato vines are attractive when you know that there are forty pounds of soon-to-be buttered lusciousness a few [...]

My Soil / My Self

By |2018-02-23T21:12:45+00:00February 15th, 2018|

Whether you like it or not, planning what you’re planting in the season ahead is less important than figuring out what you’ll be planting it in. Soil matters, and can spell the difference between healthy, beautiful plants that resist the malevolent forces of Mother Nature, or weak, pest-infested plants that you have to stop yourself [...]

East Coast / West Coast: We’ve All Got Our Issues

By |2018-02-23T20:15:17+00:00February 9th, 2018|

If you look carefully, there are very few places teeming with more stories than an airport terminal. In more innocent days when such things were still allowed, I’d hang out occasionally at the international arrivals gate watching people reconnect after time apart. The idea that I should have so much free time on my hands [...]

Just Starting to Plan? My Top Five Tips for Beginner Gardeners.

By |2018-02-20T20:40:43+00:00January 19th, 2018|

This week, five tips for beginner gardeners just starting to plan their spring gardens.   Tip #1. Keep it small Whatever else I try to do in this column, my overriding goal is to encourage more life-long gardeners, and nothing makes a person feel more inadequate and exhausted than biting off more than they can [...]

End of season wrap up: My favorite plants of 2017

By |2018-02-20T20:40:44+00:00December 7th, 2017|

  Now that the garden has gently shifted into architecture and mush, it’s time to reflect on the plants we grew this season and decide whether we’ll continue to grow them for seasons to come. Whether sexy new introductions or old favorites, plants excite each one of us for totally different reasons and what lights [...]

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