Columns
Through the Garden Gate: Just a typical week in the garden
Gardening is supposed to be peaceful, calming, and restorative. Most of the time that’s true, but once in a while, things don’t go according to ...
Gardening is supposed to be peaceful, calming, and restorative. Most of the time that’s true, but once in a while, things don’t go according to ...
The earliest spring ephemerals have finished blooming, but there’s still time to see twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla.) Several years ago, I was desperate to find this ...
Gardens seem so peaceful. We talk about them as refuges, great places to relax, read, meditate, and just escape from the hassle of everyday life. ...
“If you are afflicted with melancholy at this season, go to the swamp and see the brave spear of skunk-cabbage buds already advanced toward a ...
“Ditch lilies are native. I know they are; I saw it on the internet!” “Dandelions must be native. They’ve been here forever!” Explaining what makes ...
It’s February, that short month that seems to go on forever. It threatens us with cold, wet weather and then teases us with warm, breezy ...
It’s Boxing Day, and life has mostly returned to normal here at Mother Nature’s Garden. The dogs are slumped on their beds, refusing to make ...
If you’re of a certain age and grew up in the South, then you’re probably familiar with this phrase. It can refer to many different ...
As Sir Francis Bacon wrote in his essay on gardens, “There ought to be gardens for all months in the year, in which, severally, things ...
Throughout New England and the mountains in Virginia, there are stone walls built by farmers primarily from the mid-1700s until the early 1800s. There used ...
Since the late 15th century, we humans have moved around 13,000 species of plants from their native habitats to other areas around the world. Sometimes ...
Traditional gardening has always been about wrestling nature into submission, an approach that’s labor intensive and somewhat like warfare. Gardeners have to be vigilant in ...
“You can see the goldenrod, that most tenacious and pernicious and beauteous of all New England flora, bowing away from the wind like a great ...
Wildflower meadows have been an important feature of the British landscape for hundreds of years. Nevertheless, they didn’t develop as natural features of the landscape, ...
A few weeks ago, I escaped to Maine to explore some gardens and late-blooming native plants there. Obviously, the growing season is shorter, and the ...
Even though the days are still warm, there’s a chill in the early morning and late afternoon air. Autumn is here, so it’s time to ...
Farmville is blessed with many talented gardeners. Explore the various neighborhoods, and you’ll find English kitchen gardens with tidy paths, carefully clipped borders, and thriving ...
Nestled at the end of a long winding driveway in Pamplin is a picturesque farm belonging to Al and Betsy Lookofsky. There’s an old smoke ...
Way back pre-pandemic, when travel was easy, I spent some time in Cornwall with friends. It was a great opportunity to explore local gardens and ...
Hi fellow gardeners, it’s me, Anca. My Mom is busy filling in some holes in the backyard, so I thought I would chat with you ...
The Perfect Plant for the Midsummer Garden The hot, humid, potentially dry days of summer are upon us, but even those gardeners who retreat indoors ...
We tend to think of orchids as fragile, delicate plants requiring pampering, but they are extremely resilient and capable of growing in a wide variety ...
It’s magnolia time! The sweetbay magnolias have finished blooming in the wet lowlands along the High Bridge Trail, but the iconic southern magnolias all over ...
You all know that I’m slightly obsessed with daylilies. They’re the perfect plant for hot summer days when I just can’t be bothered to work ...
Farmville is blessed with many talented gardeners. Explore the various neighborhoods, and you’ll find English kitchen gardens with tidy paths, carefully clipped borders, and thriving ...
For years I’ve found heartleaf (Hexastylis spp.) all over Cumberland, Appomattox, Powhatan, and Prince Edward Counties. There are eight species of this low growing, evergreen ...
One of my favorite spring ephemerals, the eastern shooting star (Primula meadia), has a variety of common names – pride of Ohio, prairie pointers and ...
In one of the many compelling matchups on the NBA schedule today, the Atlanta Hawks and the Chicago…
The Washington Wizards (2-11) host the Boston Celtics (12-3) after losing three straight home games. The Celtics are…
The Big South hoops lineup on Friday is not one to miss. The outings include the Winthrop Eagles…
The Boston Celtics (12-3) hope to build on a five-game road winning streak when they visit the Washington…
The Friday college basketball slate includes eight games featuring a ranked team in action. Among those games is…