Welcome to our chat from the screen porch about garden and nature stories that help heal and grow our lives.This episode starts with Forest Bathing, a topic not new to me, though the label is. Forest Bathing or Forest Therapy is not about hiking; it&apos;s about Being in the woods. Not only does it feel good, but it&apos;s also scientifically proven to help heal the body and soul. https://askmarystone.com/forest-bathing/·         A book I favor on the subject -- Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness by Dr. Qing LiThen, we wander through Willowwood Arboretum - Home of 13 Champion Trees, though labeling them as such seems partial. Trees need each other, as Peter Wohlleben writes in the Hidden Life of Trees. So, the whole forest is the champion. Better yet, let&apos;s not label them at all, and let&apos;s embrace the miracle and grandness of all trees.https://askmarystone.com/wandering-willowwood-arboretum/ Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com I invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStoneEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries

Episode 34 - Forest Bathing, Willowwood Champion Trees

Welcome to our chat from the screen porch about garden and nature stories that help heal and grow our lives.This episode starts with a story of a lifelong friend’s adventure of growing ungodly HOT Peppers in pots that turns into a gift of delicious jelly.https://askmarystone.com/growing-hot-peppers-into-jelly/Then there’s a tidbit on the outcomes of the anticipated Brood-X invasion you can read more about in the link below.https://askmarystone.com/brood-x-cicada-2021-recap/Plus, we talk about how Russ and Sara use worm castings in their hot pepper potting mix. Answering the question, “What are worm castings anyway?” And how you can make your very own.  https://askmarystone.com/what-are-worm-castings/ Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com I invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStoneEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Episode 33 - Hot Peppers Into Cool Jelly, DIY Worm Castings

Thank you for being part of our community, sharing how gardens and nature heal and grow our lives.Shagbark hickory produces Juglone, a natural herbicide, but in far less concentration than the Eastern Black Walnut, famous for being allelopathic – a fancy word for emitting chemicals that harm other plants. Thankfully many plants will thrive around Juglone. I share a story of Elisabeth who bought an 1800’s farmhouse graced with Black Walnut trees and her desire for fruit trees and a vegetable garden. https://askmarystone.com/juglone-companion-plants/ https://askmarystone.com/fruits-and-veggies-near-black-walnut/ Then we chat about an artful, slightly freaky, and fun anomaly most don’t know about. Dorrie sent photos of her Black-eyed Susan and Coneflowers with extended centers, concerned it was a disease. It turns out to be the fascinating anomaly of fasciation. Mother Nature can be so clever. https://askmarystone.com/fascinating-anomaly-of-fasciation/ https://askmarystone.com/deformed-flowers-on-black-eyed-susan/ Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com I invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStoneEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Episode 32 - Juglone Companions, Fascinating Fasciation

Thank you for being part of our community, sharing how gardens and nature heal and grow our lives.In this episode, I share the story of our rescue pup coming upon an American toad. Gratefully Jolee didn’t pounce for the kill, the fate of cave crickets, though we’re grateful for her finesse. Bringing a curiosity— do cave crickets benefit the garden?https://askmarystone.com/do-cave-crickets-benefit-the-garden/Then we chat about Mayapple, a desirable native perennial, unbeknownst to me while planting my first perennial garden two decades ago. The charming plants look like a swath of glistening umbrellas or large shiny shamrocks—maybe why this ‘big kid’ adores them, imagining woodland fairies hiding below.There’s a poem that shares the sentiment written by Minnie Curtis Wait in 1901. And Ken Robert’s, a dear friend and volunteer singing partner for Karen Ann Quinlan Home for Hospice, turned into a magical song you’ll enjoy called Mandrakes, another name for Mayapple and the poem title given by Minnie Curtis Wait. https://askmarystone.com/mayapple-of-my-eye/Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.comI invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStone

Episode 31 - Comedy of Crickets, Mayapple of my Eye

Thank you for being part of our community, sharing how gardens and nature heal and grow our lives.In this episode, columnist and designer Mary Stone shares why and how to attract toads to your garden. Plus a heartfelt story of an American toads’ visit during her mother’s decline -- when the garden became sorely ignored. https://askmarystone.com/attracting-toads-to-your-garden/https://askmarystone.com/healing-in-the-garden-of-life/Did you know there’s a considerable decline in amphibians in the last 20 years? And that changes in frog and toad populations are one of the first signs of environmental concerns. We talk about Frog Watch USA, a citizen science program that’s organized volunteers to monitor frog populations since 1998. That way, we can identify environmental problems and address them. All it takes is a few hours of training, learning their mating sounds, and a few minutes four times a year. It’s simple, it’s fun, and you can make a difference.https://askmarystone.com/frog-watch-usa/Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.comI invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStoneEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Episode 30 - Attracting Toads, Frog Watch USA

Castor beans, ladybugs, and bloody aphids.  Life is full of garden pests like aphids who once again have wreaked havoc on the leather leaf viburnum gracing the garden outside the screened porch. This episode talks about the desperate measures of rejuvenation pruning a few years back and other reasons to prune which mirrors how we take care of our families and ourselves.  https://askmarystone.com/reasons-to-prune/ Then there’s a tidbit on castor beans used to camouflage the uglies as the viburnum grew back. Yes, they are poisonous, but don’t pose a threat in the garden yet provide a dramatic annual effect. You’ll hear about Thomas Jefferson’s, a collector of plants,  giant castor bean plants and his intended purpose in his Monticello estate.   https://askmarystone.com/castor-beans-plants-hide-uglies/ Well, the aphids are back on the viburnum once again wreaking havoc. And so we chat about a plan B. Organic insecticides or perhaps a fleet of beneficial ladybugs, not to be confused with the Asian lady beetles brought in years ago for biological controls that are known to invade homes.  Speaking of aphids, by kind neighbor came to the rescue with twelve lovely ladies as part of a science experiment— ladybugs that is that feed on the suckers by the hundreds. https://askmarystone.com/beneficial-ladybugs/Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com I invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStoneEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page 

Episode 29 - Aphid Invasion, Beneficial Ladybugs

Thank you for being part of our community, spreading the word about how gardens and nature can heal and grow our lives.This episode starts with an overview of Three Sister’s Gardening that leads to a story of stumbling upon a baby porcupine and the angels that helped. Plus, a question posed to all: What makes great companions in the garden and the garden of life?https://askmarystone.com/three-sisters-gardening/Then we learn about No-Till Gardening thanks to an interview with Patti Doell, owner of a Little Big Farm, a cut flower farm in Blairstown, NJ—Wait until you hear how it can take less work to have better soil and more flowers and veggies!https://askmarystone.com/no-till-gardening/https://askmarystone.com/starting-a-no-till-garden/More about Patti Doell - https://littlebigfarm.com/ Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com I invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStoneEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Episode 28 - Three Sisters, No-Till Gardening

Thank you for being part of our community, spreading the word about how gardens and nature can heal and grow our lives. The episode starts with the fascinating chemistry of skunk cabbage, its attractive appearance, and its appeal to pollinators despite its foul smell. Can it be used in your garden? Indeed, in a boggy spot, it can, but there&apos;s more to consider…https://askmarystone.com/skunk-cabbage-appeal/Then we chat about a Rhubarb which shares similar chemistry to Skunk Cabbage. And the prehistoric look of Ornamental Rhubarb compared to the edible kind.https://askmarystone.com/rhubarb-edible-vs-ornamental/It&apos;s fascinating how plants and animals have protective mechanisms to deter predators and pests.The episode wraps up with an incident with a baby porcupine and Mary&apos;s new rescue dog Jolee. Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.comI invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStone Episode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Episode 27 - Skunk Cabbage Appeal, Rhubarb Review

Thank you for being part of our community, spreading the word about how gardens and nature can heal and grow our lives.This episode starts with a chat about an old-time saying, “March Comes in Like a Lion and Out Like a Lamb.” Or is it “In Like a Lamb and Out Like a Lion?” They imply a balance in weather, a balance in life. While the old sayings are fun to consider, we have no control over nature or the cycles of life.  We can, however, control our ability to spread love to grow feelings of hope.After something sad, like the pandemic, can come something good—there is love opposing fear. There is hope in the promise of new beginnings. https://askmarystone.com/march-folklore-of-hope/Next, we chat about planting following the cycles of nature called phenology, planting by the moon, and why taking clues from Mother Nature, and taking soil temperature, makes so much sense. https://askmarystone.com/planting-following-nature/ The episode wraps up with a fun little ditty about a lineman who used a garden rake to reset power lines counting Mississippi’s between thunder and lightning, leading to the benefits of grounding — gardening in your bare feet.  https://askmarystone.com/counting-mississippi-grounding/Thank you for sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.comI invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStone

Episode 26 - Folklore of Hope, Planting Following Nature

Thank you for being part of spreading the word about how gardens and nature can heal and grow our lives.This episode starts with The Little Prince&apos;s view that it&apos;s critical to rid the little planets he visits of all the bad seeds that turn into bad plants. Specifically, the Baobab—ironically, an ancient tree adored here on earth—leading to a lesson of clearing resentments and growing in kindness (before it destroys our world.)Then there are highlights of a Woody Plant Conference hosted by the PA Horticultural Society, including a report of Baobabs&apos; decline in Africa known as the Tree of Life. Plus a tidbit about Wakehurst&apos;s Millennium Seed Bank initiatives and a Plant Exploration with a Purpose. https://askmarystone.com/baobab-tree-of-life/The episode wraps up with a heartfelt story of three young philanthropists taking it upon themselves to help Rivers Edge Horse Rescue and Sanctuary, showing us that something little can grow into something big. https://askmarystone.com/helping-rivers-edge-horse-rescue/Thank you for being part of our community sharing the garden of life,Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden DesignerGarden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com I invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comAnd Follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStone Episode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast Page

Episode 25 - Baobab Tree of Life, Growing Kindness

Thank you for being part of a community spreading the word about how gardens and nature can heal and grow our lives. This episode starts with an update on Ellie&apos;s Living Christmas Tree and the arrival of a new rescue adopted from a kindhearted shelter featured in the story of Father John&apos;s Animal House Garden.  Did you know 20-20 Vision not perfect vision? I share lessons of recovery inspired by Comfort Zone Camp&apos;s founder Lynne Hughes and the hope of Better than Twenty-Twenty vision for a bright future ahead in this garden of life.  In thinking about the next season of growth, I share the story of frolicking foxes in front of her future vegetable garden and the lessons of a fox featured in the classic tale The Little Prince. We chat about how to keep the mischievous yet beneficial furry friend from eating your veggies. You&apos;ll giggle over an overnight visit of two young fox one winter&apos;s night—here&apos;s the link to related column Foxes in the garden.Thank you for being part of our community sharing the garden of life, Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden Designer Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.comI invite you to email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.comEpisode web page — Garden Dilemmas Podcast PageFollow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook and Instagram #MaryElaineStone

Episode 24 - Better than 2020 Vision, Garden Foxes

Episode 23 - Season of Love, All About Poinsettias

Episode 22 - Lessons from Frosty, Thanks for Giving Thanks

Episode 21 - Lessons from Spruce, Forest Pansy of Hope

Episode 20 - Unexpected Furry Messenger, Father John's Memorial Garden

Join columnist and garden designer Mary Stone in sharing dilemmas, delights, & discoveries in the garden of life.

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Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries

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