Secret Gardens
Now a New Yorker, our resident green essayist brings her yardwork series to the big city, even if it means breaking into private plots.
Jessica Francis Kane
Leaving Charlottesville
Departing the (garden) lovers' state for one that loves its cement and money more, our scribbler of the lillies Our writer realizes the crucial difference between caring about plants and caring for them.
Adverb Your Enthusiasm
Experts answer what they know. The Non-Expert answers anything. This week we help a reader determine if her one true love is letting adverbs get in the way of romance.
Midnight in the Garden of Wood and Evil
Experts answer what they know. The Non-Expert answers anything. This week we address a reader's concern about her plant's feelings with stories about menacing shrubs.
Room to Read: A Modest Proposal
What better way to relax after a kid-filled day than with a nice book--and what less likely scenario can many parents imagine? For page-turners everywhere, a novel idea.
Book Digest: April 30, 2007
For a person who writes short stories, I have a funny way of reading them. I probably look more like a person scrutinizing a passing stranger on the street than someone settling down to read: skeptical, certainly frowning. Before the end of the first paragraph, I’ve already started flipping
Delphiniums, Delphiniums, Delphiniums!
Experts answer what they know. The Non-Expert answers anything. This week we celebrate National Gardening Month with some horticultural advice garnered from a Tri-Delt newsletter.
Catalog of Dreams
Our resident poet of the orange blossoms discovers the literary charms of gardening catalogs: reading for aesthetic pleasure, also for planning the future.
Tomato Mori
The botanical arts can be passed down, whispered along, or demonstrated with a spade. But who the teacher turns out to be can be a greater surprise than his secrets for growing tomatoes. Our resident gardener gets ready for the Fourth of July.
The Mommy Wars
Experts answer what they know. The Non-Expert answers anything. This week we help a frustrated mother cope: how to deal with--nevermind survive--those overly nice mothers at play dates.