Mulch can be an unsung garden hero; it helps soil retain moisture, regulates temperature, reduces weeds, and prevents erosion.

I recommend filling bare soil in garden beds with plants or leaf piles, but in the meantime, mulch provides a fresh look and a boost to soil health during the first several years of a new garden’s life.

Each year, our summers become hotter and drier—changing how our gardens grow and how we care for them. But plants don’t have to suffer. With a shift in approach, summer gardens can remain beautiful, healthy spaces.

Deer, especially in our Virginia forests, are ever-present foes. With hunting decreasing and natural predators extinct, this overpopulated four-legged animal has overtaken suburban areas with growing boldness. I've gardened for nearly a decade on a mountainside where a mother beds her fawn in my front garden year after year. I've managed to maintain lush spaces through years of trial and error. Here are my top 8 ways to keep deer at bay—some based on research, others on my own experience.

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