Flipping through my garden journal this morning, I couldn't help but notice the number of circled and underlined vegetable crops with the directive "plant more next year" jotted in the margins...

Did you know holly was once more closely tied to the holiday season than the modern, coniferous Christmas tree?

We may have been gathered to celebrate the winter solstice, but last night's topic of conversation was gardening, gardening, gardening...

It will soon be the "season of the witch" - the witch hazel, that is. One of the few plants to flower in winter, the witch hazel is an often-overlooked asset to the landscape.

The tulip, in all of its glorious variety ---from blushingly shy and innocent, to formally folded and elegant, all the way to outrageously bold and flamboyant--- is the ultimate seductress...

From ancient British hedgerows to their modern American counterparts, hedges form living fences offering privacy, structure and year-round interest.

Do you long for season-spanning beauty in your garden, but struggle with design, planning and other details? You certainly aren't alone. Although garden centers stock many trees and shrubs with beautiful "bones", it's hard for the average gardener to see beyond the color and fragrance of spring flowers. Most gardens are planted with May and June in mind, and once the flowers and foliage fade in these landscapes, things start to look a bit bland and barren...

Enjoy colorful blooms all year with a subscription to a garden magazine. Order now to get ideas for your spring planting!

Sure, you can give a gardener a well-made trowel or another pair of water-proof gloves (yawn) for Christmas this year. Or, you can give your favorite green-thumb something that really fuels gardening dreams...

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other word would smell as sweet." -- William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)