T.A.E.’s Book Review – The Craft & Art of Bamboo: 30 Eco-Friendly Projects to Make for Home & Garden by Carol Stangler

Carol Stangler’s The Craft & Art of Bamboo: 30 Eco-Friendly Projects to Make for Home & Garden is, at heart, a book about persuasion: it asks the reader to see bamboo not as a decorative novelty, but as a living medium with history, utility, and aesthetic dignity. The revised and updated 2009 edition presents itself … Continue reading T.A.E.’s Book Review – The Craft & Art of Bamboo: 30 Eco-Friendly Projects to Make for Home & Garden by Carol Stangler

T.A.E.’s Book Review – Easy Concrete: 43 DIY Projects for Home & Garden by Malena Skote

Malena Skote’s Easy Concrete: 43 DIY Projects for Home & Garden is a surprisingly graceful book for a material so often associated with heaviness. Published in 2010 and circulated in English-language editions under both Lark Books and New Holland, it presents concrete not as brute substance but as a medium for domestic invention. Library and … Continue reading T.A.E.’s Book Review – Easy Concrete: 43 DIY Projects for Home & Garden by Malena Skote

The Adaptable Educator’s Book Review – Creative Concrete Ornaments for the Garden: Making Pots, Planters, Birdbaths, Sculpture More by Sherri Warner Hunter

Sherri Warner Hunter’s Creative Concrete Ornaments for the Garden invites readers into a world where the utilitarian meets the poetic, transforming raw cement into vessels of whimsy and wonder. Hunter, a seasoned artisan and educator, structures the book as both a technical manual and a meditation on the sculptural possibilities of a humble medium. At once precise … Continue reading The Adaptable Educator’s Book Review – Creative Concrete Ornaments for the Garden: Making Pots, Planters, Birdbaths, Sculpture More by Sherri Warner Hunter

The Adaptable Educator’s Book Review – Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard

In Finding the Mother Tree, ecologist Suzanne Simard invites readers into the hidden, exquisite communication network of forests, weaving together rigorous science, personal memoir, and a call to 're-conceive' humanity’s relationship with the natural world. The result is neither dry technical treatise nor sentimental nature writing, but a compelling hybrid that marries empirical inquiry with a … Continue reading The Adaptable Educator’s Book Review – Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard

The Adaptable Educator’s Book Review: Our Green Heart – The Soul and Science of Forests by Diana Beresford-Kroeger

In Our Green Heart - The Soul and Science of Forests, Diana Beresford-Kroeger masterfully intertwines the poetic reverence of a naturalist with the analytical rigour of a scientist. The result is a work that not only illuminates the ecological intricacies of forests but also ignites a profound moral and spiritual call to action. This book is … Continue reading The Adaptable Educator’s Book Review: Our Green Heart – The Soul and Science of Forests by Diana Beresford-Kroeger

Weekend Book Reviews: Concrete Garden Projects: Easy & Inexpensive Containers, Furniture, Water Features & More by Camilla Arvidsson and Malin Nilsson

Camilla Arvidsson and Malin Nilsson's Concrete Garden Projects offers a fresh and surprisingly artistic approach to DIY gardening and outdoor design, elevating concrete from its utilitarian associations to a medium of creative expression. In a world where sustainability and self-reliance are ever more valued, this book captures the zeitgeist of modern gardening by merging practicality with the … Continue reading Weekend Book Reviews: Concrete Garden Projects: Easy & Inexpensive Containers, Furniture, Water Features & More by Camilla Arvidsson and Malin Nilsson

Pink Intensities

One of the benefits of having a terrace overlooking the water is the expansive view of the sky. It's been a particularly sunny summer (2022) and some of our potted flowers are loving it. As is my usual practice, I like to get in close to my subjects and try to look at them from … Continue reading Pink Intensities

The terrace garden: a snapshot

Having moved into a waterside condo this past year was a big decision… where do I put my summer energy if I have no garden to play in? We’ve planted a few small things this year: tomatoes, eggplants, kale, peppers, herbs… they are growing slowly.

Micro-Transformations of Space Over Time

The Video - My actual artwork in video form Imagine yourself in a museum’s viewing room. It’s claustrophobically dark and there is an ambient hum that indicates the volumes might get loudly disorienting. You are geared up with tense anticipation for the video to walk your through a sensory experience. You watch as the space … Continue reading Micro-Transformations of Space Over Time

Baby Buddha in the Wabi Sabi Garden

Last summer I completed the infrastructure for a zen garden for my wife. This little Buddha found itself well placed under my dwarf Japanese maple tree. It got quickly enveloped by some ground hostas, so I moved it this year to sit on a rock near the water fountain I rigged from a reclaimed cement … Continue reading Baby Buddha in the Wabi Sabi Garden