Yesterday, I joined the hoards of women fighting for the perfect pair of kicky heels at the infamous Army and Navy shoe sale (I restrained myself to three pairs). This is a legendary event, in which women (and a few really brave men) line up for hours to score discount shoes. When the doors open, […]
A truly portable garden
Found growing in the bed of our much-maligned but never-fail ’89 Nissan pick-up: one seedling of unknown creed, enjoying the leaf mulch being created as last fall’s leaves break down. Nature makes neglect a beautiful thing, no? If we didn’t use the truck for hauling manure and moving friends’ boxes, I might consider helping nature […]
Kale blossoms are just about the greatest thing
Kale makes a great crop for overwintering in the veggie garden. But if you’re hoping to harvest an early spring crop of your overwintered kale greens, be warned: it may just bolt (flower and set seed) as soon as the weather starts to warm in late winter or spring. Kale flowers taste like a cross […]
Garden Tour: Syd’s powerful plant palette
The basics Name of gardener: Syd Carpenter Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Hardiness zone: 6 Size: Small city garden; 100 ft. long by 25 ft. wide; three garden rooms Orientation: South facing front garden Years gardened: 15 years Heavy Petal says: Quite simply, wow. Syd has done an amazing job of creating a garden using a […]
Week Two on the Cure: Landing strip reveal
In Week Two of the Apartment Therapy Cure, participants are asked to create a “landing strip” (nope, it’s not what you think). In Cure lingo, a landing strip is the place you “land” when you get home. Where you drop your keys and coat, and file through your mail. Ben and I started the Cure […]
Using common ground to create a new garden space
Last fall, Ben and I built three raised beds and installed them in a small grassy area above the parking garage for our townhouse complex. The area was rarely used, so we decided to build a mini community garden to be shared by interested residents. (We also photographed the making of these beds for my […]
Postcarden
Tag this one Clever and Cute. Postcarden is a fun and simple pop-out postcard that transforms into a mini living garden. It unfolds into a little diorama, in one of three designs: Allotment (pictured above), Botanical (shown below) or City. The front of each postcarden has a garden scene contributed by a UK artist. (Unfortunately, […]
Spring gardening kick-off
My community garden plot. Broccoli, garlic, cabbage, leeks, kale, and a heavy rye/clover cover crop make for a lush-looking garden — even in February. While much of North America is having an unusually harsh winter, here in Vancouver, it’s downright balmy — much to the chagrin of the organizers of the Olympic Winter Games! The […]