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Clarington Forge Wizard Rubber Rake: a Review
“A rubber rake? Seriously?” That was Amy’s reaction when we opened the carton of English gardening tools from Clarington Forge. My reaction? “YES!!! IT’S A RUBBER RAKE!!!” I’d never seen a rubber rake before, but I was immediately taken with the idea. First off, normal metal rakes are LOUD. I remember as a teen getting…
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Haven Brand Manure Tea Bags (With Gratuitous Kitty Photos)
Just two weeks ago I was lucky enough to win a package of NINE Manure Tea Bags from Annie Haven (@GreenSoil on Twitter). After enduring much teasing for my excited whooping, and days of terrible jokes from everyone I told, I got my parcel and ripped it open! About five minutes later, Mr. Orange saunters…
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Staying Warm While Winter Gardening
It’s gettin’ cold out there, yet in my coastal climate, we garden all year round. After getting frostbitten toes one particularly nasty winter, I did some research to figure out how I could work outside even when it is C-H-I-L-L-Y out there! I share my tips in this video: Things mentioned in the video: Toasti-Toes…
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Book Review of Plant-Driven Design by Lauren and Scott Ogden
In landscape design, there seems to be a constant gentle friction between gardeners who see a landscape as a setting for plants to shine, and people who come from a more architectural standpoint and see the plants themselves as secondary to the design aims. You can tell from the title, Plant-Driven Design: Creating Gardens That…
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Book Review of Japanese Maples by Vertrees and Gregory
Book Review of Japanese Maples: The Complete Guide to Selection and Cultivation, by J.D. Vertrees and Peter Gregory, Fourth Edition, Timber Press As a landscape designer, a critical part of my work is in recognizing the subtle differences between plants and what they do, so that I can play off the most unique attributes and…
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Book Review of Lavender: The Grower’s Guide by Virginia McNaughton
Lavender: The Grower’s Guide is a thorough and easy-to-use encyclopedia of the lavender varieties most common in production today. Virginia McNaughton begins the book strongly by discussing how to grow lavender, how to prune it, the special requirements of lavenders, which ones grow well in containers, and the pests and diseases that can strike lavender…
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The Little-Known Favorites of a True Gardener: Books From an Estate Sale
This morning I took my mom to an estate sale I saw advertised locally. (An estate sale, for those of you not familiar with the lingo, is a sale of someone’s possessions after they’ve died.) I find them heartbreaking and fascinating and delightful all at once. We put so much of our hopes and dreams…
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Review of The Nonstop Garden by Stephanie Cohen and Jennifer Benner
Is the word “garden” a noun or a verb? If much of the joy you take in your garden is that you get to play, experiment, fiddle, and tend to it, then this is the book for you. Stephanie Cohen has put together a thoughtful design primer for gardeners who love to garden, and want…
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Cobrahead Weeding Tool: A Steel Claw for Veggie Gardening and Weeding Cracks
I’m constantly on the lookout for new and different ways of doing things in gardening. For one, it keeps things interesting, but also, if you garden as much as I do, having a few different ways of doing the same task can really help cut down on the risk of injury or repetitive strain on…
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The GroundHog Rake: A Video Review, and Why I Love it for Mulching
This time of year, I’m adding a fresh layer of bark mulch to many of my gardens to hold moisture in and keep the weeds down. Right now it’s especially easy to do because the plants are still small from winter dormancy, so I can spread it out without having to bend and wiggle to…
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Book Review: The NEW Low-Maintenance Garden by Valerie Easton
You’d think that a landscape designer who also does landscape maintenance would be dismissive of the whole low-maintenance gardening thing. After all, there’s a negative impression of low-maintenance gardens as being dull, static, lifeless places devoid of wildlife or any personal character. But there is a balance in a well-designed garden between hardscape (the patios,…