Trees have an almost mystical fascination for many people. Their silent lives, spread over decades or centuries, and even millennia, speak to us of survival and endurance. The almost magical experience of a walk in the woods has been proven to promote calm and balance in our bodies and souls. Even trees along our busy city streets purify and cool the air, reduce visual harshness,…

These days, recycling is everywhere. We recycle everything from newspapers to car tires. But our gardens give us one of the most worthwhile opportunities around to recycle and get the benefits for ourselves. I am talking about garden recycling, or, as it is usually known, compost making. Our gardens generate quite a bit of waste for most of the year, but fall is a season…

Winter is a time when the garden is quiet. Few shrubs or trees bloom, although in warmer areas there are a number that do – the fascinating Paperbush (Edgeworthia) for one. But for the most part our gardens in winter are a place for gentle reflection on the beauty of twigs, and the soft tones of green on our evergreens. For many, ‘evergreen’ brings an…

As fall arrives, and the holidays are just a short few months away, red berries in the garden start to look like a great idea. There must be a million pictures out there of holly berries and snow, it is such an iconic Christmas image, but it remains an attractive and enduring one. That splash of red not only lifts the garden, but it makes…

Fall color is one of the great highlights of the year. Tourists come from around the world to see the colors of eastern North America, and almost everywhere, as the summer comes to an end, our gardens pulse with the brilliance of maples and oaks. In older, larger gardens, there is always room for a large shade tree, but in today’s modern, smaller gardens, such…

If you can only grow one citrus tree, the lemon is the ideal choice. It takes a lot of oranges to make a pint of juice, and not everyone loves grapefruit, which anyway grow on a large tree. But one lemon goes a long way, and if you only have room for a tree in a pot, then a lemon tree will give you enough…