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The Impatient Gardener blog was started in 2009 and its library of posts includes practical how-tos, plant guides, favorite garden gear, successes and failures and much more. If you’re looking for something specific, the search function at the top of the page can help.

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Garden

UNSEASONABLE WEATHER LEADS TO GARDENER’S GUILT

I have rarely felt a case of the gardener guilts in mid-December. Gardeners are allowed to go whole hog on the holidays because, for most of us, there are few gardening tasks to be tackled at this time of year. The garden has been put to bed for the winter and it’s too early to plant seeds for next spring’s ...

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Cottage

DOWNSTAIRS BATHROOM: THE PLAN

This downstairs bathroom renovation is becoming an interesting project. Little hurdles are popping up—nothing earth-shattering or more than the usual renovation snafus, but odd—but it looks like it’s going to happen. Soonish. Since I’ve blabbed on about it for a bit now, I thought I’d share with you some of the vision for what the room looks like. You’ll notice ...

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Other

A GUIDE TO THE BEST GIFT GUIDES

Today’s post was supposed to be a big photo-filled post showing you all my outdoor Christmas decorations. But it’s not, mostly because on Sunday the dogs decided to go on an expedition down a bluff by my parents’ house. They made it down OK, but the old one got stuck down there and couldn’t get back up and the young ...

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Cottage

THE REAL-PERSON’s GUIDE TO RENOVATION

We are getting close to officially committing to redoing the downstairs bathroom. This is a big deal because (1.) this was the room we swore had to be redone immediately when we first saw the house we would buy—more than 13 years ago, and (2.) it is pretty much the last room to be renovated in this house. Everything we’ve ...

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DIYGarden

MASTER CLASS ON WINTER CONTAINER CONSTRUCTION

I’m a late Christmas decorator. At least it seems late, since I usually finish it up a couple weeks before Christmas, which is apparently late these days. But I like to take advantage of milder weather to do my outdoor containers, which is easily my favorite holiday project. I’m busy gathering materials now. I picked up some $6 wreaths at ...

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Other

3 GREAT BOOKS FOR GIVING AND GETTING

I love giving and receiving books so perhaps it’s serendipitous that it took me so long to write about this trio of books that that has inadvertently turned into a holiday shopping post. The first is Charlotte Moss’s Garden Inspirations. This oversized book is published by Rizzoli, which is known for beautiful, photo-filled books and this one is no exception. ...

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Friday Finds

FRIDAY FINDS (with a side of snowfall)

Before I get into Friday Finds, a few notes.  I have been working on a post with three book reviews in it for weeks now and still haven’t finished it. Next week. They would be excellent gift ideas too. Our first snowfall of the year is expected to come tonight and it could be anywhere from 2 to 8 inches. ...

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Garden

10 GARDENING JOBS FOR LATE FALL

As a Midwesterner, I have been raised to be excellent at complaining about the weather. It’s the No. 2 most popular hobby in these parts, bested only by something related to football. But this fall we’ve had absolutely nothing to complain about. This El Niño year has given us the most lovely weather, including the conditions we enjoyed this past ...

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