When my husband and I moved into our new home last month, the first thing we did was hang bird feeders from our deck. Birding is one of my favorite pastimes (bonus: it’s good for you,) and while getting out into nature and seeing birds on the trail is fun, there’s nothing like watching birds flock to your feeders as you nurse a mug of tea or sit down for dinner with the family.
With the turn of spring, the desire to garden increases—at least for me. For those living in cooler areas of the country, rainy days and fall’s leftover leaves might be reason enough to ditch the garden and stay indoors, but taking care of your garden now means bright, vibrant blooms all summer long. Fertilizing your plants is necessary to boost growth or blooms, specifically because most soil is severely depleted of nutrients following years of pesticides, toxins, and overuse.
We may not be deer or giraffes, but there are plenty of leaves out there that are edible but slip our notice. If you are trying to be an eco-conscious grower, a forager with a healthy larder, here’s some knowhow.
Your garden doesn’t have to be perfectly manicured to look nice—the one thing that makes a garden really stand out is using little quirks of your own to give it personality. Likewise, your garden should not look like your neighbor's garden—so it needs to carry forward your personality and its own quirk within the green.
Succulents have received a lot of attention lately, and with good reason—they can be easy to grow, bloom beautifully, and come in a variety of shapes and sizes. They’re also infinitely Instagrammable. If you’re looking to try your hand at succulents but aren’t sure where to start, consider these three. They’re three easy-to-grow succulents, sure to make even the laziest gardener or
I am making my way through my mid-40s and live in a dry, intensely sunny mountain town. This has been a wakeup call to start caring more for my face. I wasn’t bad before. After a couple of awkward teenage years, I’ve generally not used unhealthy cosmetics, harsh cleansers, or even soap on my face. But at a certain point, it may be good to put in a bit more effort. Not just for those of us of a certain age who’ve suddenly become vainer, but also to prevent cancer-promoting changes in the skin.
March 17 is St. Patrick’s Day, and while it’s true you can dye all your food and beverages green and call it a day, we’ve got some other ideas for how to celebrate the Irish-turned-American holiday. Some of them involve food of course, but others focus on enjoying the fun festivities of the day!
The morning glory belongs to the family Convolvulaceae and is native to the tropical regions of America. It was a sacred plant to the Mayan, Aztec, and other native tribes who used the seeds in ceremonies because of its hallucinogenic properties. They believed that the plant had a spirit that could allow men to speak with the gods. There has been found a recipe written by shamans that specifically had to be prepared by a virgin.
Four o’clocks are of the genus Mirabilis L., species Mirabilis jalapa L. and are also known as Marvel of Peru, where it originated. The Spaniards discovered the plant in the Peruvian Andes in 1540 and exported it to Europe where it became a popular decorative addition in gardens throughout the continent. In warmer climates the four o’clock is a perennial but in cooler climates it is an annual.
Sweet peas belong to the genus Lathyrus, having as many as 160 species. They are climbing annuals native to the Mediterranean basin and are found in a diverse selection of colors. The first recorded mention of the sweet pea flower was written in 1695 by Francisco Cupani, a gardener in the order of St.