It may be time to say goodbye to Pete in the garden. Peat Moss, that is. Peat has been a great helper for years, especially with seedlings. It’s made our potting mixes better able to hold both water and air, so important for confined roots, and it’s helped grab onto some nutrients that ...

As we steadily creep through winter and into the new year, the focus will eventually begin to move from the calm of night toward a season of increased light and activity. Every day we gain a couple more minutes of light in the evening and eventually more motivation and activity. As those longer ...

Every December, readers make two requests: please reprint your Christmas poem and your suet recipe. I’m happy to oblige. First published in 1988, the poem is an attempt to instill in younger family members a sense of the wonder and fun that backyard feeder birds provide. My hope is that ...

There is something about the solstice that captures my imagination. The winter solstice is the longest night of the year and the official beginning of winter and generally occurs on or around Dec. 21. From that day forward, the days will get longer and the nights shorter. Even as winter is ...

It was the night before Christmas, 1993. Nora was barely 10 years old, and Emma would not start kindergarten for another eight months. We had just gotten home from an early Christmas Eve church service. About two inches of snow had fallen the day before, and it was about 25 degrees, so a ...

Years ago, I had one of those spineless cacti that once a year splash colorful flowers out the ends of their flat, arching stems. Such plants are usually named for when they are supposed to bloom: Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter cactii. I just call them “holiday” cacti because they ...