Tag Archives: gardening tips

And the Rain Rain Rain Came Down Down Down.

July showed up wet and topical here in our part of the Ohio River Valley. Brief but angry thunderstorms. Long, gentle rains. Soakers and Sprinkles. Gully Washers and Frog Stranglers. And when it’s not raining, it may as well be, … Continue reading

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Sharing the Garden-Passing Along Love & Blisters

I often think about gardening with my mom and grandmother when I was young. Time has softened the experience now, but the (hard) time spent in the garden as a wayward youth was usually as punishment. Failure to do chores? … Continue reading

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“Not yet,” Spring whispered. “Not just yet. But soon.”

A string of warm, bright days coaxed the jonquils and hyacinths and early tulips from their earthy slumber.  Happily, these sturdy plants are built for early spring because, as luck would have it, the warm weather was quickly followed by … Continue reading

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The Garden Lies Waiting

This gallery contains 8 photos.

When March arrives, our green thumbs start to itch. (Okay, let’s be honest, our green thumbs start to itch in January.) But in March, we can really hear the garden calling. Partly because the days are getting longer. Partly because our … Continue reading

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Winter still. But, perhaps, in those brief slants of sunlight, we see the beginnings of spring!

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Honey, Put the Kettle On, We Have Visitors!

The combination of a recent snowfall, coupled with a heavy application of black-oil sunflower seeds to the bird feeders, turned our backyard into quite the beehive…or…aviary of activity. The guests were well-behaved (for the most part) except for this gang … Continue reading

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Break Out the Mittens, Here Comes Winter!

The weather map shows ominous arrows sweeping down from the frozen tundra of the North and pointing straight at our little slice of the Ohio River Valley later this week. This is when we realize (and usually quickly forget) that, … Continue reading

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Wrap Yourself in Daisies

“Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit…” ~e.e.cummings. Ms. Professor and I grew our first patch of these confident little daisies (actually Chrysanthemum carinatum) this year. They’ll definitely be … Continue reading

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Cosmos: A Gardentime Odyssey

“Let’s go wait out in the fields of the ones we love…” ~The National As the flowers wind down for the year, petals shriveling, stems and leaves hunched against the chilly October mornings, the Cosmos is still radiant, shooting up … Continue reading

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Bees & The Sweetness of October

“Bees do have a smell, you know, and if they don’t they should, for their feet are dusted with spices from a million flowers.” ― Ray Bradbury, Dandelion Wine October is the month that always seems to pass too quickly for … Continue reading

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