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Trim a Tree, Train a Tree

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

This has been a great year for flowering trees and shrubs. My Merrill magnolia had many hundreds of white blossoms in late April. The crabapples everywhere put on a spectacular display. My fothergilla (a shrub with great fall leaf color) is in bloom now with its tidy white bottle-brush flowers. My “Olga Mezitt” rhododendron (one of the parents of the popular PJM rhodie) is looking great and my wild azaleas are getting ready to bloom. And now the lilacs are blooming and I am overwhelmed with the large purple, blue, white and pink panicles (clusters of flowers). Spring has definitely sprung. All these blooms this …

Cheap and Easy Closet Organizing

Sunday, May 19, 2013

There’s only one thing more satisfying than organizing your closet: Doing it on the cheap. Sure, I love those closet glamour shots as much as anyone. I’m a sucker for solid cherry shoe shelves and rows of matching canvas bins identified by adorable hang tags. I just don’t want to spend my money on them. Besides, those photographs of tricked-out closets invariably show …

Bloom Time

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Peg Davis arranges a vase of fresh-cut lilacs from her yard in Enfield on Friday. “We’ll put them on the table and take off my make-believe ones,” she said while replacing a bouquet of plastic tulips. “I like fresh flowers.” Valley News — James M. Patterson …

Time of the Year Again...

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Lyndell Perry, owner of Lyndell’s Gardens in White River Junction, trims the hedges in front of River Road Veterinary Clinic in Norwich this week. This   was Perry’s second day of trimming the hedges, and she said it’s …

Messing Around With Seeds

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

The Wind in the Willows, one of my favorite children’s books, has a great quote that came to me recently. The water rat says to his friend, the mole, “Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING — absolute nothing e_SEmD half so much worth doing as simply …

Tunbridge Spring Feeling

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Roger Welch hugs his wife, Hazel Welch, after coming in from trimming the hedges at their home in North Tunbridge, Vt. on Tuesday, April 2, 2013. Hazel and Roger have been married for 58 years. “A scrap is …

Some See  A Flower, Others A Garnish

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Emilie Perry, of Newbury, Vt., holds a collection of pansies as her boss, Bill “Frosty” Frost waters perennials at Frost Gardens in Fairlee yesterday. Perry said the pansies are edible and would make an attractive addition to her …

Splitting Time

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Alex Bryan, 16, splits wood at his home in Hartford yesterday. Bryan says he doesn’t mind the hard work, saying, “It helps me get my energy out so I can focus on my homework.” Valley News — Sarah …

Decals Can Transform Walls Cheaply, Easily

Sunday, March 31, 2013

During a recent home remodel, Diane Wright decided the stairway leading to her garage needed some perking up. So she went online and found a wall decal — roosting love birds on a branch. “I love them. It …

Homeyer: House Plants That Are Really, Really Easy

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

I recently went over to a houseplant and gave it praise. I said, “Thank you, clivia, for producing flowers for me. I know I don’t deserve them because I don’t do anything for you. I don’t even wipe the dust off your beautiful green leaves. You are so …

Casual Decor Meets ‘Downton Abbey’

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Intrigued by the drama and inspired by the sophistication of British aristocrats in Downton Abbey, some fans are plotting to bring the series’ style into their own homes, from gilded finishes to opulent upholstery to portrait paintings. “We’ve gone so casual in the last decade in terms of …

Notes From the Garden: It’s Time to Work on Those Old Apple Trees

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

I recently spent three hours in an old wild apple tree, bringing it new life. Apple trees need to be pruned from time to time, and this one had not been worked on for several years. Even wild …

Mildew Starts Small, Then Becomes Mold

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Washington — It may start with a couple of small dark spots on the grout where the shower stall meets the tiled wall. A few days later, they multiply. Mildew. “For most people it’s just kind of an …