Seedbed Troubleshooting Causes Gardeners to Become Natural Technicians By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert These days when we\’re more and more inundated with technology, we can lose touch with the natural world. When I just think of all the computers I interact with on an average day – scanning groceries, pumping gas, text messaging on […]

Sowing Seeds Indoors By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert Once upon a time, I lived in a very cold place where the winters (measured by the first and last frost dates) lasted from Aug. 15 to June 15. This was back in the old days. This was back in the old days. I understand that […]

The Patio – Wild or Tame? By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert A few years ago I designed a front yard patio encircled by a low wall, in Phoenix where this is a popular style. A garden of native perennials and shrubs adorned the outer side of the wall and potted plants within. In such […]

The Color of Bark By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert My drive to work is pastoral and meditative. As I go over the hills and through the woods, I often turn off the radio the better to absorb the beauty outside. Now that the trees have shed their leaves, I behold the wood skeletons of […]

Waiting for Blooms By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert When you\’re 5 years old, one year is a fifth of your life – a full 20 percent. But when you\’re 50, it\’s only one-fiftieth of your life. Just the blink of an eye. This is why gardening gets easier as you get older. So much […]

Maintaining and Using Perennial Flowers By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert Perennials have different lifespans and while some, like peonies, can live for many (some say up to 50) years, all plants will die sooner or later. But you can keep them going by dividing and replanting, or by keeping the seedlings. After flowering, let […]

Compost By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert Every October when leaves fall, my neighbors complain. But I rejoice. I welcome dead maple leaves and tuck their crumbly remains underneath my shrubs to decompose and feed the soil. I started gardening to seek relief from my children when they were young. In the garden, my plants […]

A Word on Weeding By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert In the perennial garden, this is the time of summer to rest on your laurels and enjoy looking at your garden. It\’s too hot to plant anything. But we still must weed. When I was a little girl, my mother used to encourage me to […]

Imagine Yourself Enjoying a Perennial Cutting Garden By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert Mostly people think of annuals for cutting because of their continuous bloom over a long period.  But carefully selected perennials can also be used. I especially like the appeal of a garden that keeps coming back and has interest through the seasons. […]

Now\’s the Time to be Preparing Your Perennial Beds By Deborah Clark NABBW’s Gardening Expert A Chinese proverb says, “To be happy for a year, get married. To be happy for a lifetime, grow a garden.” Is that a gloomy thought about marriage? Perhaps, though we know the Chinese still do it. But who\’d have […]