Welcome to The Small Town Gardener, a collection of articles filled with humor and gentle gardening advice; published in The Citizen Newspapers of Brunswick and Middletown Valley,  The Frederick News Post, The Emmitsburg News-Journal, and on this website and other websites dedicated to the joys of gardening.   It is my fond hope that you will find an inspiring word or two within these pages that keeps you planting and planning, but you should always find something to make you smile as we battle pests, disease, weather and the whims of Mother Nature together.

You can read or listen to my latest published article from the list on the left, and if these only serve to pique your curiosity, check out what I’m doing in the garden right now in This Month’s Garden, where every few days I’ll try to keep you informed about the current state of my real-life small town garden…without the sugar-coating.

So please, take some time to potter around my garden just as you might potter through your own.  Learn to think outside the box in Garden Projects, Recession Style; battle swarming hoards in The Gnat Hat; or free yourself from unrealistic expectations in Magazine Madness.  If you find yourself at odds with the wildlife in your garden, stop crying and laugh about it instead with Miss Potter Doesn’t Live Here.  A garden doesn’t have to be perfect.  It doesn’t have to be large.  And in the middle of August, it doesn’t even have to be green.

Join me as we plunge our hands in the earth and begin to reconnect.

– Marianne Willburn