It’s Mother’s Day weekend, and my husband has recently mastered gift-giving. He knows a live tree or plant is always preferred over a bouquet of flowers. Here are some plants that would make great gifts for the mother whose thumbs may be just a little brown. Be sure to dig the holes for her! Asiatic lilies. I purchased clearance Asiatic lilies four years ago. The blossoms were already past prime and falling. Each year they come back with brilliance and…

Mornings after a good rain are always the best in spring. The air is cool, the ground is damp, and everything glistens. I poked around in the garden for a bit pulling weeds, snipping of the lowest branches of the tomatoes, and looking for yellow leaves on the potato plants. Birds were shooting like tiny rockets across the yard, and the cat perched expectantly under the empty feeder that had been raided by the squirrels. If only I’d take ten…