Kathy Purdy

Duluth Trading Gave Me a Kick in the Pants

by Kathy Purdy April 16, 2014

Duluth Trading gave me a kick in the pants–metaphorically speaking. But they did give me the actual pants. About a month ago I got an email with the subject line Duluth Trading Wants to Give You a Kick in the Pants. I subscribe to their company newsletter, and at first glance I thought this was […]

1 comment Read the full article →

Mud Season Mind Games: Dear Friend and Gardener

by Kathy Purdy April 7, 2014

Dear Friend and Gardener, I have learned through my online friendships with many garden bloggers that spring comes late to my part of the world. Friends around the country (and the world) speak of snowdrops blooming when mine are buried under snow, and show off their daffodils while I am waiting for my first crocuses […]

17 comments Read the full article →

Make That Lingering Snow Earn Its Keep

by Kathy Purdy March 21, 2014

The snow is melting, but not fast enough to suit me. I’ve already taken pictures of where the snow melts first, so I know where to plant my spring-flowering bulbs this fall. In the spirit of making lemonade out of lemons, I realized this lingering snow was the perfect opportunity to outline a new garden […]

12 comments Read the full article →

How I Defeat Cabin Fever: Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day March 2014

by Kathy Purdy March 15, 2014

It doesn’t take much to give a gardener hope. Snow still blanketed the lawn, despite the warmest temperatures of the calendar year thus far. As I reached down to pick up the pot of amaryllis for its photo shoot (see below), I noticed that the snow had melted down to the ground in a strip […]

21 comments Read the full article →

How to Analyze An Area of Your Yard to Improve It: The Parking Pad Bed

by Kathy Purdy March 9, 2014

In case you are just joining in: About two-and-a-half years ago our family moved from our long-time rural home to a different 19th-century farm house about twenty-five minutes from our previous one. I have been renovating the landscape around the house in a non-systematic frenzy and writing about it as time permits. (Previous posts are […]

19 comments Read the full article →

What You Don’t Know About Bugs Could Make Your Garden Better

by Kathy Purdy February 28, 2014
Thumbnail image for What You Don’t Know About Bugs Could Make Your Garden Better

Interview with Jessica Walliser, Author of Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden Jessica Walliser’s new book,Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden: A Natural Approach to Pest Controlrecently published by Timber Press, turns the gardener’s view of insects upside down. Suddenly, they are no longer the enemy, but allies you encourage by the way that you […]

9 comments Read the full article →

A Garden of Marvels: Book Review

by Kathy Purdy February 24, 2014

I always thought my garden held marvels, but until I read A Garden of Marvels: How We Discovered that Flowers Have Sex, Leaves Eat Air, and Other Secrets of Plants by Ruth Kassinger, I didn’t realize just how marvelous it was. And if you told me I was going to find a book on the […]

3 comments Read the full article →

Why You Need to Get Outside During the Next Thaw

by Kathy Purdy February 20, 2014

Have you, like us, had more snow this winter than in the last twenty years?Perhaps, like us, you are getting a thaw? The temperature is well above freezing during the day, with intermittent rain? You need to get out! Take a walk through your garden–wear rubber boots and carry an umbrella if you must–but get […]

15 comments Read the full article →

Spring Inside: Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day February 2014

by Kathy Purdy February 15, 2014

I have Matt Mattus to blame (and thank) for these primulas. I never would have looked for them at my local Wegmans if he hadn’t mentioned that’s where he found his. (Wegmans in Massachusetts? Who knew?) Since he brought it to my attention, when I saw them for 99 cents each I grabbed two. Finally, […]

18 comments Read the full article →

Some Things You Should Know About Bird Feeding in Cold Climates

by Kathy Purdy February 13, 2014

The simplest of chores can get really complicated . . . Feeding the birds is one of the most delightful things a cold climate gardener can do while she is waiting for the snow to melt and the snowdrops to bloom. No, wait–I take that back. Watching the birds flutter and feed and jockey for […]

10 comments Read the full article →

← Previous Entries