Giving thanks for happenstance

Bee on sunflower

Sometimes, planning is overrated. If it weren’t for happy accidents, there’d be no Post-Its or penicillin. Strangers sat down randomly at conference lunch table, sowing the magic beans for Savvy Gardening. A young guy in university  residence spotted a girl drying her hair by their common-room radiator and offered his hair dryer. Reader, I married him. And, thanks to friendship, my sister and I became […]

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Love She Sheds? Win the book

We fell in love with she sheds before we knew she sheds were she sheds! That’s the term for the distaff version of a man cave, but in outdoor shed. In 2012, for instance, we showed you Beacher Michelle Blais’ hand-built creation. In 2015, we peeked into an artsy bunkhouse in Port Hope. And, last August, I mused about […]

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Book review: Rooted in Design

It may sound hyperbolic, but it’s true. This book has changed my interior landscape. For the better. Since getting my review copy of Tara Heibel and Tassy de Give’s book Rooted in Design last spring, houseplants have been popping up at home all over the place. And, if you read this blog, you know how bad […]

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Book review: High-Value Veggies

Whether you’re a bona fide homegrown vegetable gardener or, like me, simply grow veggies on a small scale, right now you’re probably taking stock of what worked this year and what didn’t. You probably roughly know your yields. Perhaps, like Margaret at Homegrown, you’re fairly rigorous about it. But have you calculated your return on investment (ROI) […]

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Bargain Books: Two great finds

I’m trying to control my addiction to books. Especially garden books. There’s only so much space on the shelves. Plus, with an astounding wealth of info on the Internet at the end of a few keystrokes, I try to buy only those books I’ll refer to again and again. Yet, sometimes I’m faced with an offer […]

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