To Karin With Love
When I first met Karin, she was not in the room. I stood in her kitchen with my realtor, getting to know the woman...
A Garden Fountain That Whispers Water
As a card-carrying Aquarian (a.k.a. the water bearer), I take my garden fountain seriously, always fine-tuning and perfecting its placement and performance for both the...
Growing Peach Trees in the Pacific Northwest: It’s the Pits
Growing peach trees in the maritime Pacific Northwest is the pits. There I said it, because for thirteen long, relatively futile and fruitless years,...
Bulb Auger: Easy Way to Plant Bulbs
If my garden were a banquet table, I would concede that sometimes I bite off more than I can chew. I dine and garden...
How to Make Pie Dough Shine
Pie is my spirit animal. Okay, that's a bit much, how about pie is a smile on my plate. (Hmmm, me thinks I'm trying...
Ordering Bareroot Trees: What to Expect
Mail-Order Trees: Who Would Have Thunk?
Ordering bareroot trees is to Tom as ordering books is to Oprah. I love trees, especially unusual fruit trees, sometimes forgotten...
Making Sense of 60
I remember the day my second grade teacher (and my not-so-secret crush) Miss Hilliard introduced the class to a real-life story problem. Her beguiling southern lilt...
French Coconut Pie: Heaven in a Crust
I'm a loyal pie guy. If you're a pie or tart recipe and you do me right—that is, bake up nicely, remain flakey, speak...