Succulents are succulent; they make me happy

Fine Gardening magazine recently had an article on 10 outstanding succulents to try, which prompted my thinking — midst continuous snow fall and crazy temps — of how happy succulents make me. They teach us snowbunnies much about surviving the winter. They tolerate dryness by holding onto any moisture they can muster up, as best as they can. This…

Creating a garden mosaic: Could it be knitting for gardeners and a perfect winter gardening activity?

The art and craft of mosaic seems to have suffered an identity crisis as of late — maybe a few too many uninspired stepping stones have popped up here and there and it’s been done to death — but I would like to encourage you to consider creating one for your garden. Mosaic is like…

Garden clubs ignite the gardening spirit, soothe the tired winter soul

I had the pleasure of speaking at two garden club meetings this week at opposite ends of the city — the Hennepin County Horticultural Society and the Dakota Gardeners. They were both lively, spirited groups with gardening enthusiasm for days! I spoke of the winter gardening turning point in my head; that moment when you…