Deb Jedynak is sharing her garden with us today.

I’ve been gardening since 1985 when my husband and I purchased our first home in Chicago. When we moved in, the garden was a mess and thoroughly neglected. It took me years to get it the way I wanted it. I studied horticulture and became a Master Gardener in the ’90s. But then my beautiful tiny garden became infested with termites and rodents, and I was forced to rip out all the vegetation, which saddened me. Living in a big city is precarious. When we bought our summer home in Holland, Michigan, I wanted enough property to recreate another garden, which I did on a third of an acre. We purchased this home in 2004, and I proceeded to fence it in and start from scratch. When I moved to Holland permanently in 2010, I really started adding more and more landscaping every year—plants and more plants. My garden is always evolving and changing, especially with the recent addition of a memorial garden for my husband, who passed in 2017 after a long illness. Following two knee replacements, I continue to move forward, making my garden a haven for animals and pollinators. My garden recently became certified as a butterfly and wildlife habitat. The hummingbirds love it too. Garden center greenhouses make me feel alive! And I get excited wondering how many plants I can stuff in my car.

A raised bed overflows with delicious fresh vegetables.

An absolutely perfect rose bloom

The beds along the fence, with rose bushes coming into bloom

This wide view of the backyard shows the various beds and the fencing to keep the rabbits at bay.

A bench for sitting and enjoying the garden

Containers and vines help add height along the fence.

Every gardener’s favorite thing: a new haul of plants from the nursery!

Have a garden you’d like to share?

Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!

To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.

Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening!

Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here.

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

Black and Decker 22-inch Cordless Hedge Trimmer

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Quick and easy to put into operation and is less noisy and lighter in weight than gas-powered hedge trimmers.
- 38 x 7 x 7 inches
- 6.9 pounds
- 1 Lithium Ion battery required (included)

Buy at Amazon

RAINPOINT Sprinkler Timer with Brass Swivel

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

- Pure brass water inlet and metal thread can withstand up to 116psi.
- Built-in metal filter gaskets can prevent sediment and other larger particles
- Through the Sprinkler Timer program, you can set the start time, watering duration, and watering frequency

Buy at Amazon

Plant Covers Freeze Protection 10 ft x 30 ft Floating Row Cover 0.9oz/yd²

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Lightweight and Breathable MATERIAL Good for protecting Plant: the plant frost cover material is 0.74 oz/sq non-woven polypropylene fabric, which is lightweight, breathable, and durable. The plant blanket frost protection allows sunlight reach the plants, perfect for protecting plants from the damage of freeze or frost. Wide Application In your Garden Work. The plant row cover not only can work as a barrier against frost, but also can be a great tool for germination and good for rapid seedling growth. By using the fabric plant covers over your plant, you can start the plant earlier in the spring and extending the growing season of your plants. How to Use the Plant Covers: you can cover the plant covers for freeze over your the plants loosely directly and then secure the plant frost blanket with soil, stones or staples. You can also support the floating row covers with a hoop, make enough room for plants to breath and grow. You could also cut the plant covers into different sizes for different purposes.

Buy at Amazon