Home & Garden

Tips for Vacating an Empty Nest

Details: Written by Amy Tokos Amy Tokos

Leaving the family home for good can present a real challenge for many older Americans who may still be cleaning, making repairs to, and paying for a large, aging house filled with memories.

The Beauty in Nature: Summer Birds on the Mississippi

Details: Written by Clyde McMillan-Gamber Clyde McMillan-Gamber

During summer, the many large, broad shallows and mudflats of Lake Onalaska, a large backwater of the Mississippi River in Wisconsin, are resting and feeding habitats for a variety of water-living birds.

Melinda’s Garden: Preserve Your Garden Produce for Delicious Winter Meals

Details: Written by Melinda Myers Melinda Myers

All your hard work is paying off with a bountiful harvest. Fresh produce is filling your garden, countertops, and refrigerator while the garden keeps producing more.

The Beauty in Nature: Predators on Our Lawn

Details: Written by Clyde McMillan-Gamber Clyde McMillan-Gamber

I remember at least four kinds of predatory animals having killed and eaten other, smaller creatures on our suburban lawn.

The Beauty in Nature: Mother Mink

Details: Written by Clyde McMillan-Gamber Clyde McMillan-Gamber

One sunny spring morning a few years ago, I had the thrill of seeing a beautiful, supple mink, with a mouse in its mouth, dash gracefully across a park lawn and down a woodchuck hole along the Cocalico Creek.

Melinda’s Garden: Bring in the Birds with These Winning Plant Varieties

Details: Written by Melinda Myers Melinda Myers

Fill your gardens with beautiful plants that produce an abundance of seeds the birds will love. You’ll enjoy the flowers as well as the birds that visit to dine on the seeds. Best of all, there is no feeder to refill or clean.

The Beauty in Nature: Nesting Along Woodland Streams

Details: Written by Clyde McMillan-Gamber Clyde McMillan-Gamber

At least four kinds of small birds raise young along the shores of clear-running woodland streams in southeastern Pennsylvania, as elsewhere in the eastern United States.