By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

The other day I was walking through the gardening center and saw a plant that brought back a found memory of children, plants and Mother’s Day.

When my daughter was about 3 years old she was asked what here favorite color was.

She replied, with her little 3-year-old voice, purple, pink and blue.

Every piece of clothing, shoes, and toys needed to be one of those colors. My son was a little easier and only liked black but he could tolerate other colors.

So during the 3rd year of being a mother, my husband took the twins to the gardening center to pick out mom’s gift. Our daughter wanted everything purple, pink or blue while our son was disappointed that flowers were not black. So Read the rest of this entry »

By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

I will admit, as a gardener, that I am obsessed with lavender.

I love how the plant looks in the garden and in my containers.

I love fresh lavender lemonade and cookies infused with lavender.

I love drying it and replenishing my linen closet every fall with fresh lavender sachets. All I can say is I love lavender.

Lavender can be a challenging plant for some gardeners. This herb does best in Read the rest of this entry »

By Cindy Naas

The sweet fragrance of lavender on a hot summer afternoon is one of my favorite scents of summer.

I have lavender plants tucked into nooks and crannies all over my garden because of the perfume this herb gives off.

Because it can be used in cooking, herbal medicine and in perfuming the home, lavender will always be a must-have in my urban garden.

Growing: Lavender requires full sun and very well drained soil. It is not a heavy feeder and will do poorly in soil which stays too damp. Mine is grown throughout my rock garden instead of with the other herbs, and it benefits from being surrounded by the warm rocks as well as from the gritty soil.

Harvesting: Lavender blooms are used in Read the rest of this entry »