Cold Climate Gardening » Design

The mystery rose that came from my neighbor's garden started sending up suckers throughout the bed, threatening to take it over. What did I do? I sent it to Rose Purgatory.

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2019/07/16/rose-purgatory/

Spring is right around the corner, and I've been going through photos of the garden bed adjoining our back deck. My, has it grown up--but it also needs tinkering. If you're looking for some flowe...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2019/03/24/a-garden-bed-grows-up-the-evolution-of-a-flower-border/

I thought it was the end of the world when I discovered my daughters didn't see the colors in my garden the way I did. A garden I toured in Buffalo helped change my mind. Read the rest of my blog...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2018/02/25/lets-talk-about-color/

I love to walk the path through our woods. And maintaining them as I walk along them, I feel like I'm gardening in the depths of winter. If you have woods on your property, read how I've created ...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2018/01/04/how-to-create-and-maintain-trails-in-your-woods/

When I finally grasped the concept of placeholder plants, it changed my life. Well, what I mean is, it reduced my garden maintenance load and I enjoyed my garden more, with less work. Not precise...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2017/07/09/what-placeholder-plants-can-do-for-you/

I picked up Roy Diblik’s The Know Maintenance Perennial Garden from the library shelf because I knew the author supplied the plants for the Lurie Garden in Chicago, working closely with designe...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2015/09/29/the-know-maintenance-perennial-garden-book-review/

It is more important to have the first bloom on your block than the first tomato. The first outdoor bloom is a potent morale booster, signifying that the back of winter has been broken. However, ...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2015/03/15/how-to-have-the-first-bloom-on-your-block-garden-bloggers-bloom-day-march-2015/

We’re busy, we’re aging, but we love gardening! Are you swamped with a job and family; or an over-50 gardener that doesn’t move at the same pace; or a city dweller with a passion for plants...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2015/02/11/book-giveaway-the-right-size-flower-garden-design-solutions-for-almost-auto-pilot-gardens/

March 18th: First snowdrop sighting 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 ...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2014/03/21/make-that-lingering-snow-earn-its-keep/

Common sense + aesthetic sense = a better design 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 ho...

https://www.coldclimategardening.com/2014/03/09/how-to-analyze-an-area-of-your-yard-to-improve-it-the-parking-pad-bed/