After 17 years in one house and nearly 30 years in lovely Northfield, Minnesota, I’ve moved. My husband is now semi-retired and for a variety of reasons, we decided to move to St. Paul. Last May, we sold our house (and garden!) and moved to a bungalow in the city. Our new garden is smaller and flatter than our previous…
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Sunday (March 13) I noticed this little Iris reticulata blooming in my front garden. It’s my first bloom! This plant is often the first one to bloom in my Minnesota garden, and 2016 is the earliest ever for it to bloom. In 2012, a notably warm spring, the plant bloomed on March 15. However, in many years, it is well…
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Here we are in the first week of November, with several days of 60s and 70s ahead, and my poor Minnesota garden does not know what to do. So many things are blooming in November. We’ve only had a couple of freezes so far, and several plants just keep on blooming. What’s blooming in November? These guys.
I’m one of those lucky garden writers who receives new plants from several plant wholesalers to test before the plants are introduced to the public. The companies—Proven Winners and Bailey Nurseries this year—use feedback from writers (and many other plant testers) to make sure the plants will perform well in home gardens. These are new plants that you will likely…
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Fall seems to be rushing in here in Minnesota, which is all the more reason to preserve some of the garden harvest for enjoying over the winter. This past weekend, I spent some time pickling and jamming, using vegetables from my own garden and a few I bought at the farmers’ market. Here’s the round up with links to all…
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