Books and Tools

Succulents Simplified by Debra Lee Baldwin: Designer DIY With the Succulent Queen

May 24, 2013 1 comment
Thumbnail image for Succulents Simplified by Debra Lee Baldwin: Designer DIY With the Succulent Queen

If you’ve been around the world of horticulture for any time, you’re probably familiar with Debra Lee Baldwin’s work with succulents. Her first two books, Designing with Succulents and Succulent Container Gardens, are still the most thoughtful, in-depth guides to those topics available. However, both of those books have so much information that you could [...]

Click here to continue reading →

The Latest Gardening Apps for iPhone and Android

May 8, 2013 10 comments
Thumbnail image for The Latest Gardening Apps for iPhone and Android

Since I joined the modern world in getting a smart phone last year, I’ve been on the lookout for great gardening apps that can help me explain landscape design ideas to clients, get plant ideas on the go, or just give me a productive way of killing time when I’m stuck in line at the [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Book Review of Lawn Gone: Attractive Alternatives to Lawn

March 4, 2013 187 comments
Thumbnail image for Book Review of Lawn Gone: Attractive Alternatives to Lawn

While I love having a minimalist patch of organic lawn in my backyard for the cats and chickens to run around on, as a landscape designer I am thoroughly “over” using lawn as the default option. It takes more maintenance, fertilizer, and water than just about anything else in the landscape, yet it gives nothing [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Why Grow That When You Can Grow This?: The Book

December 8, 2012 46 comments
Thumbnail image for Why Grow That When You Can Grow This?: The Book

 “Let’s face it: the garden is a popularity contest. High school is a metaphor for life, and gardening is no exception. Step into our gardens and we find the prom queen and the star quarterback, the cheerleader and the rebel who cut class. Popular plants rule today’s landscapes the same way popular kids rule the [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Cool Fall Reads: New Books, Old Faves, And Some Great Deals

November 12, 2012 1 comment
Thumbnail image for Cool Fall Reads: New Books, Old Faves, And Some Great Deals

The chilly air, fall wind, and damp everything have harshed my gardening mellow over the last few weeks. Luckily, the downturn in weather has coincided with a rush of new books and some great deals on old favorites, so I can enjoy a connection with the outdoors without actually having to, you know, go outside. [...]

Click here to continue reading →

The Bottomless Planter Box from Outerior Decor

October 31, 2012 82 comments
Thumbnail image for The Bottomless Planter Box from Outerior Decor

I’ve been lucky enough over the previous months to get an inside peek into the making of Amy Stewart’s cocktail garden to celebrate her new Drunken Botanist book, and have gotten to look at a number of clever products and construction techniques along the way. One of those clever products is the Outerior Décor series [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Garrett Wade Professional Gardener’s Digging Tool

October 25, 2012 99 comments
Thumbnail image for Garrett Wade Professional Gardener’s Digging Tool

I’ve written a lot in the past about soil knives, because, well, they’re awesome. If you’re still gardening with a trowel or a dandelion fork, for goodness’ sake stop reading this post right now and go buy a soil knife. (Oh, wait – don’t stop reading yet, this is actually kind of relevant.) Soil knives [...]

Click here to continue reading →

The Clarington Forge Rubber Rake: The Coolest Tool You Never Knew You Needed

October 17, 2012 55 comments
Thumbnail image for The Clarington Forge Rubber Rake: The Coolest Tool You Never Knew You Needed

Sometimes you come across a tool that solves so many problems you wonder how you went so long without hearing about it. The Clarington Forge rubber rake is one of those tools. “A rubber rake?” I hear you asking incredulously. “Really? WTF?” I’ll forgive you for asking, because if you remember our review of the [...]

Click here to continue reading →

The Clarington Forge Rubber Rake: How To Change The Tines

October 17, 2012 4 comments
Thumbnail image for The Clarington Forge Rubber Rake: How To Change The Tines

This doesn’t need a lot of explanation, so I’ll get right to it: Here’s how to change the tines on your Clarington Forge Wizard or Merlin rubber rake.

Click here to continue reading →

The Roo Weeding and Harvesting Apron

October 15, 2012 55 comments
Thumbnail image for The Roo Weeding and Harvesting Apron

While I’m usually kind of a minimalist when it comes to new tools, I have to admit that my previous strategy for harvesting eggs, berries, squash, and apples wasn’t really working. For eggs, I would stick as many as I could into my pockets and my hands and try very hard not to smash or [...]

Click here to continue reading →

← Previous Entries