Maple Seedlings Make Their Own Sunscreen & 4 Trees We’re Growing
Seedling maple trees have a cool trick to protect their fragile new leaves from the sun. They can make their own “sunscreen.” Are you kidding me? I wish I could do that. I learned that cool fact this week after riding the rollercoaster of “will it or won’t it live” for a volunteer maple tree we’ve been watching grow. The emotional investment is getting out of hand. The Maple Tree’s Origin Story In the summer of 2025, we noticed a maple tree was growing out of a potted fern we had on our deck. This wasn’t completely unexpected since there is a giant maple tree in our backyard. What was…
A Neighbor’s Compliment That Stuck With Me
We were doing yard work near the road recently and a neighbor walked by and said, “Hey, Man! Your flowers are so pretty.” “Thank you!” we both responded in unison as if we had everything to do with those flowers blooming. I’m fairly certain he was referencing the rhododendrons since they were in full bloom then. Truthfully, I had nothing to do with the rhododendrons blooming. I didn’t even plant them. We have three of them and I think they are older than me. Not that my kids would believe that since I was born in the *GASP* 1900s. Anyone born in the 1900s must be ancient according to them.…
Fun Outdoor Gardening Finds
Now that spring is here, many of us will be looking for excuses to be outside and gardening gives us so many excuses. Too many, really. It’s the overachiever of reasons for us to be outside. Between the weeds and the thirsty plants, it could be your full-time job. But wait. You probably already have one of those. Same. I found some fun outdoor gardening finds recently and between Mother’s Day, Easter, birthdays, etc. These are great ideas to treat yourself or someone else. Check them out! Brass Rabbit Spigot Handle | Etsy I’m into bunnies lately, so this brass rabbit spigot handle caught my eye, but it comes in…
A Mixed Bag For Overwintering Plants This Year
It’s been a mixed bag for overwintering plants this year (2024-2025). We’ve had some successes and some unfortunate failures. Have you ever had one of those restaurant experiences where the food was great, but the service was terrible? You think to yourself, “I don’t know if this was worth trying again.” That’s me right now with overwintering plants. Keep in mind, I also forgot childbirth was painful, and I had more than one child. So, take my whining with a pound of salt, and meet me back here next year for another update. Ha! Seriously though, we have the ideal setup for overwintering plants on our sunporch. It’s like having…
How To Plant Hydroponic Lettuce From the Grocery Store
I love buying the hydroponic lettuce from the grocery store. Did you know you can plant your hydroponic lettuce in soil, if it still has a rootball, and it will continue growing? Lettuce try it and see what happens! I don’t have a particular green thumb, so if I can do this, so can you. Here’s my simple process for getting hydroponic lettuce to grow in soil. First, don’t pick all of the leaves off the lettuce before you want to plant it. Leave some healthy leaves on the plant. I have the best success with the lettuce continuing to grow if I plant it within two weeks of buying…
May Day Basket Tradition – Did You Do This As A Kid?
Did you participate in the May Day Basket Tradition as a kid? I did! May Day is always May 1st. As a kid, I thought it was the best thing EVER to leave a small bouquet hanging on our neighbor’s door, knock, run away giggling, and try to hide before they answered the door. I can’t tell you what the flowers were but they could have been dandelions. I’m unsure if we always hung the bouquet on the door. My brother and I might have just left flowers on the front porch and then skedaddled out of there. It was the thrill of doing something nice but being sneaky that…
In Praise Of: Colorful Patio Umbrellas
Spring has arrived, the temperatures are warming up, and we are so close to being able to dine alfresco. That’s why I have all things outdoor furniture on my mind, including colorful patio umbrellas. I’ve been solidly in my black and white patio umbrella phase for the last few years. If anything were to tempt me cross over into the land of color, it would be one of these colorful patio umbrellas. Check them out! Bourbana 9′ Market Umbrella | Wayfair A pop of yellow sunshine on your patio would bring a big dose of happy no matter the weather. (image: Wayfair) Having the beach in the background wouldn’t hurt…
How Many Porch Plants Survived The Winter?
I brought our porch plants inside for the winter approximately six months ago. How many porch plants survived the winter inside on our sunporch? *drumroll please* Technically speaking, all of them. Not-so-technically speaking, our green pepper plant might be on its last leg due to pests but I haven’t given up watering it hope yet. While the pepper plant might be dropping out, the ferns are the overachievers of the group. I really wish they’d dial it back a notch. They’ve already been trimmed multiple times this winter and in the below picture, you can see their current state. To describe it delicately, they are bustin’ out of their britches,…
How Our Landscaping Survived A Dry Summer
Our neighborhood group chat discusses things like power outages, bear sightings, contractor recommendations, and how our landscaping survived or didn’t survive a long, dry summer. So, the usual. Most people I know would categorize New Jersey summers as hot and humid with plenty of rain. That combination lends itself well to New Jersey being nicknamed the Garden State. Fess up! You were thinking of a not-so-nice nickname for New Jersey, weren’t you? It has plenty of those too. Ha! New Jersey has certainly been hot this summer, but also very, very dry. We started the summer with everything looking lush. Yes, it really was that electric green. Then we ended the…
I Successfully Overwintered Our Porch Plants
I hope I don’t jinx it by saying I successfully overwintered our front porch plants which included the ferns and the Spike plants. But I did! For those of you who enjoy gardening and consider it one of your life passions this will seem like not a big deal. To me, it was a big deal to keep my summer plants alive all winter long because I’d never tried to save my front porch plants. Frankly, I’m usually sick and tired of watering them by the time August rolls around and they die a sad death. Then I feel guilty that my neglect caused this catastrophe. But not last summer!…
