from online editor

 

I've spent many pleasant days and early evenings on a Whitby, Ont., patio soaking up the beauty of my mom's backyard. Perfectly trimmed shrubs and bushes (courtesy of my stepdad), from snowball to weeping mulberry, pretty perennials in vibrant pinks and purples, and day lilies and black-eyed Susans wildly tamed all contributed to the pleasing setting (I say "contributed" because Mom has since moved on to another gardening challenge). In fact, I adored her yard so much, I got married there three years ago, right beneath the boughs of a lilac bush and a Norwegian maple.

If you're equally mesmerized by pretty yards and garden plots, Your complete gardening guide can help you create your own. Pick and choose from articles packed with green thumb tips to suit your space, whether it's a sprawling wilderness or a tiny patio. This month, we've grown the guide to include pointers on choosing pretty planters and growing your own herbs. Our Yard workout shows you how digging in the dirt counts as exercise. And Grow-how features added tips from gardening expert and author of Clueless in the Garden Yvonne Cunnington.

Plus, because we know your garden may have its own particular challenges, we've asked Yvonne to answer your specific questions in our Home + garden forum April 14 to 18. I know I'll be asking her where I should start in my brand new yard (the grass arrives in June). I'll need some advice on how to make my garden oasis worthy of Mom.

Cheers,

 

Denise Foote
Online editor
Chatelaine.com