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I have a hard time waiting for spring, don't you?! This year, like most, I started getting ready for spring early, and ...
03/30/2026

I have a hard time waiting for spring, don't you?!

This year, like most, I started getting ready for spring early, and one of the early tasks was a bit of direct seeding at the very beginning of March.

If you start plants from seeds, too, then you know what I mean about how exciting it is to see the seedlings pop up...and the best part is that year after year it never gets old!

Last week in my veg I saw spinach and arugula coming up, but no photos. Sorry veggies, but you're not quite as exciting this year as the teeny tiny California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) coming up in this garden! Why so excited? Well, I used to grow them in my former garden, but that was more than 10 years ago, and I have been looking forward to them again since I ordered the seed last fall.

I looked at this old photo all winter long, and yes, it's an actual photo taken just short of 20 years ago, back when I had an actual 35mm camera. So fun to remember this part of the garden that was right outside my back door, where I grew herbs and other plants that would make me happy to see as I was taking my dog out, going to the garage, and all the other comings and goings that were part of daily life. Useful and beautiful.

I loved that once had the CA poppies growing, they pretty much took care of themselves. They would reseed every year, and reliably bloom from early to mid summer. A cutback after the first flush typically meant I'd have another flowering well into fall. The sunny orange flowers open with the sun, greeting the day. Their silvery, ferny foliage makes them a nice addition, too, and they're low growing for along a path or front of a border. I highly recommend them!

If you're tempted, the seeds are easy to sow and easy to find. I almost always see them on the racks this time of year at the good local nurseries, grocery and hardware stores, etc. To sow, sprinkle the seed on open soil, moving aside any mulch. I don't cover them with soil, but if it says to do that on the back of the package, go ahead. Water in and keep the soil moist like a wrung out sponge to germinate, and while the seedlings are still small and vulnerable to drying out. They can tolerate the cool temperatures of spring, obviously, so no need to wait until mid May like we do with the heat lovers.

It's nice to have simple little joyful things to look forward to, don't you agree?!

Plant labels aren’t exactly exciting, but we tend to get a little bent out of shape when they fail!Here's a trick I lear...
03/24/2026

Plant labels aren’t exactly exciting, but we tend to get a little bent out of shape when they fail!
Here's a trick I learned that's never failed me...use pencil. I know it seems counterintuitive, but pencil lasts, unlike the sharpie. Pencil lasts so long that I even reuse the labels for years for the plants I start season after season from seed, like arugula (which you can direct sow now, BTW, along with other cool season veggies and herbs like spinach, radishes, cilantro and dill).
The seed labels themselves are cut up old blinds, in case you're curious where I got them.

What a nice day for the first day of spring! I know you're as excited to get out in the garden as I am...it feels so go...
03/20/2026

What a nice day for the first day of spring!

I know you're as excited to get out in the garden as I am...it feels so good to smell the earth (is that just me?!) and get things going. But, first things first...after the rain and snow over the past week, my soil is too wet yet. And yes, that matters.
Not only is wet soil a slog to work in, it's just good practice to avoid either walking on or digging in our gardens when the soil is wet.

Why? Well, we'd be compacting the soil, squishing the air pockets out! Roots grow best in friable soil, with plenty of little channels for roots, air and water to move through, freely.
So how do you know it's too wet to play in the garden? Try grabbing a handful of soil and forming a ball. If it crumbles, dig in! If it sticks together, give it more time to dry out.
As for my test ball…the soil was so wet I could hear it squish when I squeezed it. Definitely not workable yet.

Here's another benefit to this simple little test...if one area is too wet, try another spot. This way you'll start learning which areas of your garden dry out faster. Raised beds are typically on that list, and areas that are sunnier tend to be as well.

Since the weather is so nice for the next few days, you might want to push it a little, and not wait. Some days we have goals, and want to get further into the beds vs just standing on the lawn or paths.
Luckily, there's a workaround using boards to stand on, which displaces our weight over a greater area instead of concentrated just under our feet. I use three, so I have one for each foot and a spare nearby so I can keep moving around without the excitement of a balancing act!

Hope this helps if you're itching to get out and enjoy the weather, the smell of warming soil, and the birds singing...Happy Spring!

Bumblebees, asleep in the flowers. One of those late in the season garden moments to enjoy!I snapped the first two shot...
10/10/2025

Bumblebees, asleep in the flowers. One of those late in the season garden moments to enjoy!

I snapped the first two shots while snipping dahlias and other blooms for a bouquet earlier this morning, and took the last photo a few hours later, once the temperatures had risen to a more bumblebee appropriate level!

They’re always overnighting in the flowers this time of year, and with so many different places to shelter, I’m sure I only ever see a few of many.

Since they’re always so busy it’s cute to think they’re just plumb tuckered out, but it’s likely they’re males and now on their own instead of being able to return to the nest. A few may be older worker bees that you’ll see from time to time in the morning, but these in the photos look young.

I always feel a special thrill in finding them on late summer and fall mornings, sluggish and sleepy and tucked into safe, welcoming places.

Wide side view & thin side view, same stem.While it might make you wonder, it’s oddly normal, and fasciation can occur i...
09/29/2025

Wide side view & thin side view, same stem.

While it might make you wonder, it’s oddly normal, and fasciation can occur in many plants.

This sweet alyssum has a fasciated stem, but sometimes it’s also the flower that has the odd, flat and wide growth pattern.

Not to worry, there’s nothing wrong with the plant, just an interesting occurrence.

In fact, I never would have noticed this stem, except I was trimming back some of the stems to keep this exhuberant plant going since we’re still having such oddly warm weather!

Always something to get curious about out there in the garden, nature is fascinating!

Oh, and there’s a little more info about fasciation in the comments if you’d like to dig a little deeper.

09/05/2025

Yellow jackets, actually, but the point is that the sign is a veeeery helpful reminder to give these guys the space they need. If you see this kind of activity this time of year, pay attention! It pays off. If it’s in an area you can safely avoid, a sign can be a simple solution vs killing them. Ultimately, the decision is yours and my advice isn’t gospel, as I’m well aware of the dangers near a front door or for those who have allergies.

Nectar robbing Yes, this could be happening right in your backyard! Carpenter Bees love Monarda, and I typically watch ...
08/25/2025

Nectar robbing

Yes, this could be happening right in your backyard!

Carpenter Bees love Monarda, and I typically watch them forage the typical way. But this wise guy was taking the shortest route to his sweet treat, cutting a hole in the base of the flower. He actually methodically went to each corolla on the flower head, in turn. While I not only watched but took photos as evidence! Cheeky little bee.

Not to worry, just kind of fun to catch him doing something I’ve heard of but never actually seen. Apparently, now there’s the opportunity for other secondary nectar robberies to occur, with other pollinators using the same access hole. Clever!

Delight would be the word!I’m well aware that I’m easily excited by plants, but was not expecting to see something so…we...
08/25/2025

Delight would be the word!

I’m well aware that I’m easily excited by plants, but was not expecting to see something so…well, delightfully unexpected!

Today was the Heritage Seed Fest at Garfield Farm, and along with the weather and the garlic vendor, the prairie tour was one of the highlights.

It’s always an interesting learning experience to get a tour from a volunteer. They know the site from working there, and have little bits of knowledge and history that they love to share. So I knew it would be well worth going on, and it was.

And then, the gentians. One large group and scattered here and there just to keep it fun.

I’ve never seen so many and vowed, on the spot, to try the seed again this winter!

Gentiana alba at Garfield Farm, Campton Hills

One of my favorite garden moments every year. Gardens are more than just a bunch of flowers that look pretty. They chan...
08/23/2025

One of my favorite garden moments every year.

Gardens are more than just a bunch of flowers that look pretty. They change with the seasons, the light and the weather.

They attract our attention and pollinators; they have moods…and evoke emotions.

This moment when the Korean wax bells begin to bloom, echoing the color of their voluminous Japanese forest grass skirts is a reminder of this, for me, every year. It’s so quietly perfect, and always with a noisy soundtrack of cicadas in their late August frenzy!

I could stay in this late summer garden moment forever…but that’s another thing about gardens. So much more is left yet of the season, more flowers, more changes and more moments yet to come.

Kirengeshoma palmata & Hakonechloa ‘Aureola’

A busy and beautiful week Enjoy the weekend…plant deets under photos 😊
08/09/2025

A busy and beautiful week

Enjoy the weekend…plant deets under photos 😊

I’m not going to lie, I was seriously crazy for going out to work in this weather. I thought early might help with the h...
07/28/2025

I’m not going to lie, I was seriously crazy for going out to work in this weather.

I thought early might help with the heat and humidity, boy was I wrong! But I ended up having an interesting time, despite the challenge to stay calm & cool…and freely admit that I did melt at the very end!

I took a few photos while working, including a few fun garden visitors like the video (in the comments) of the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail I tried to quietly creep closer to. I’m not a good creeper 😂 but as it flew off I was excited to realize I could see a Mourning Cloak! A first for me 💚
Click on the photos for more details.

Sometimes it’s just all about the color and the abundance. Mid-summer is such a joy as a gardener! Well, the heat and hu...
07/26/2025

Sometimes it’s just all about the color and the abundance.

Mid-summer is such a joy as a gardener! Well, the heat and humidity has been a bit much 😅but I forget looking back at some photos from the week.
Here are a few that are really making me smile, details if you click on the pics.

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West Dundee, IL
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