"It is very hard to get rid of an established comfrey plant," says Marie Iannotti, and one of my readers confirms this observation. I had asked readers to report their worst landscaping mistakes, and someone nominated comfrey plants! More specifically, this reader made two mistakes:

1. Underestimating how high comfrey plants can grow (5 feet)
2. Not realizing how difficult comfrey plants are to get rid of

Of course, neither the size nor the tenacity of comfrey plants necessarily makes them undesirable. In fact, under the right circumstances, both could be selling points for growing comfrey plants. About's Gardening Guide makes a good suggestion for using comfrey plants in a landscape design, noting that "the dark green leaves are set off nicely by chartreuse" foliage specimens, such as Cripps or Gold Mops falsecypress.

A shade-loving ground cover, pachysandra can also tolerate dry shade. This means pachysandra can be used in an area highly problematic for many plants: namely, under trees.

Pachysandra is also a deer-resistant plant. That's probably why I see a lot of pachysandra when I travel in and around Lyme, Connecticut (U.S.), the town for which Lyme disease was named. As you probably know, deer ticks carry Lyme disease, and the Lyme area is overrun by deer! But many of the yards in the area boast a look I adore, surrounded by stone walls and carpeted with pachysandra.

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If you love summer, then you may abhor the very thought of autumn's approach. But if you love saving money, then you'd better start planning for fall flowers now. Remember, planning before planting is the hallmark of effective landscaping. And planning is especially important for those who are landscaping on a budget. This article on fall flowers discusses the frugal approach to achieving an autumn landscape that looks like a million bucks!

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Al fresco dining really revolves around the outdoor grill -- unless your "dining" focuses more on liquids than on solids, in which case the outdoor bar assumes prominence! "Designers offer many plans as to how homeowners can encase their outdoor grills or other cooking related appliances with decorative stone," says David Gatti, whom I interviewed on the subject of outdoor grills.

Gatti prefers stainless steel as a material for outdoor grills, "because they don’t rust and will last much longer than powder coated metal." But while appliances such as outdoor grills form the nucleus of an outdoor kitchen, the proper deployment of outdoor kitchen accessories is critical in creating outdoor spaces that are truly livable. Consequently, you'll find plenty of discussion of such accessories in this interview, too, from countertops to cabinets. Click the link below to access the interview to learn more about outdoor grills and accessories.

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