Paint your garden with color: Stunning plants offer effortless beauty

(BPT) - Spring is here, making it the perfect time to dream up your vibrant garden. This year, think of your garden as a personal masterpiece, where colors blend and nature takes center stage. Just …

Divide perennials to boost health, beauty

Welcome back to a new gardening season, and a new season of City Gardener columns! As our gardens begin to wake up from their winter rest, it's a great time to think about an often-neglected …

Clever ideas for tiny yard spaces

Faux hedges If your outdoor patio or side yard is hemmed in by something like a chain-link or cinder block wall or planter box, consider installing a faux green hedge. This is the perfect …

Avoid waste by purchasing soil from Chard Your Yard, which sells it by the bucket to augment or fill garden beds you already have. The effort is run by neighborhood volunteers.

Chard Your Yard this year

Spring is calling; It’s time to think about gardening! The neighborhood volunteer-run organization, Chard Your Yard, has the garden resources to make it happen. The gardens are provided at-cost …

Sid Triantafilou of Greco Linden Hills Painting paints houses in residential neighborhoods, including East Isles, near Lake of the Isles. (Photo by Lulu Jaeckel)

Homeowners experiment with paint colors, say local painters

Whale gray, dry sage and french press are some of the popular names of interior paint colors right now at Benjamin Moore, a paint company. Sid Triantafilou, a local painter and owner of …

They wanted to save the boulevard trees along six blocks of 29th Ave. and they came together to do just that. Then they celebrated together at Arbeiter Brewing. (Photo by submitted)

Motivated by a common goal

Residents along six blocks of 29th Ave. S have banded together to save 40 ash trees. “These are public trees that the whole community benefits from,” observed Loey Colebeck. “Many …

A Breakthrough Making Grass Seed Smarter and Lawns Greener

(Family Features) In neighborhoods across the country, homeowners are getting extra help in their quest for the elusive, perfect lawn.

Windy days can mean more pollen and more sneezing.

Worsening allergies aren’t your imagination − windy days create the perfect pollen storm

From sending more pollen airborne to breaking up pollen grains, which lets them penetrate deeper into your lungs, the wind is not the allergy sufferer’s friend.

Window-box gardening has been a Philly tradition since the 1800s. Sonja Dümpelmann, CC BY-SA

The hidden history of Philadelphia’s window-box gardens and their role in urban reform

A landscape historian explains how a Victorian tradition became a tool for social change in 19th- and 20th-century Philadelphia.

Elevate outdoor entertaining with petunias and pansies

(BPT) - Love to entertain? Wave® Petunias and Pansies offer an easy and impactful way to create a welcoming, lively atmosphere for any outdoor gathering. From setting a colorful backdrop to …

5 top trends for transforming your outdoor space

(BPT) - Homeowners today are reimagining their outdoor spaces, moving beyond a basic patio and grill to create thoughtfully designed areas that blend style, comfort, and functionality. According to …

Prep your yard for spring: How to refresh your outdoor spaces and create your own oasis

(BPT) - Spring is right around the corner, making it the perfect time to start prepping your outdoor spaces for entertaining. From clearing away built-up winter grime on siding to freshening up …

Planning for spring's garden? Bees like variety and don't care about your neighbors' yards

The Conversation shares new research from University of Tennessee assistant professor Laura Russo showing that bees zero in on the flowers they like and ignore the surrounding landscape.

Transitional gardening: How to choose plants that can thrive moving from cold to warm weather

(BPT) - Keep your garden vibrant all season long with these cold weather-resistant plants.As winter continues to keep temps fluctuating, many gardeners assume their work is done until spring. …

Transform Your Garden in 2025 with These 10 Award-Winning Plants and Products

(BPT) - As winter turns into spring, it's time for gardeners to consider which plants they'll cultivate in planters, pots and gardens. If you're in the midst of planning your garden and need …

To survive Gen AI in the workplace, become a learning athlete

Cognizant reveals that most jobs will feel the impact of Gen AI and everyone from administrative assistants to CEOs will be affected.

How people with disabilities navigate voting hurdles

Votebeat relates how people with disabilities must choose between a few imperfect options in states that haven't adopted electronic absentee voting.

New research links gun violence exposure to higher rates of depression and suicidal ideation

The Trace reports on a nationally representative study deepens what we know about the intersection of mental health, gun violence, and support services.

The boom In WNBA popularity

OLBG analyzed the WNBA’s popularity in five key areas: attendance trends, franchise values, in-stadium experience, viewership, and market positioning, which underscore the league's sustainable growth and highlight its status as a leading women's sports league.

What Pope Leo XIV has said about LGBTQ+ people, immigration and abortion

The 19th reports that newly elected Pope Leo XIV, the first American to hold the papacy—as well as the first Peruvian citizen, having been naturalized after working in the country for decades—was born and raised in the Chicago area, ordained as a priest after studying in Rome, and is fluent in Spanish and Italian.