Nancy J. Ondra
Nan lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and gardens on four acres, with intensively planted gardens, open shrubbery areas, and managed meadows. A lifelong mid-Atlantic gardener, she started her career working in nurseries and private gardens before getting into garden publishing at Rodale Press in 1990. She then became a freelance garden writer, editor, and photographer. Nan is the author or co-author of over 15 books, including Grasses, The Perennial Care Manual, and The Perennial Matchmaker. She also keeps a blog (albeit somewhat fitfully these days) at Hayefield: A Pennsylvania Plant Geek’s Garden.
Though Nan appreciates a wide variety of plants and gardening styles, she’s especially keen on herbaceous plants in general and herbs, unusual annuals, uncommon perennials, and natives in particular. She’s also passionate about growing pretty much anything from seed, as well as collecting and sharing seeds, and she holds a Seed Dealer’s License in Pennsylvania for her small business selling seeds on Etsy.
-
Mid-Atlantic Regional ReportsNo-Fail Primroses
It’s so easy to be tempted by pots of polyanthus primroses (Primula × polyanthus, Zones 3–8) when you are craving spring color. But if you’re tired of buying them and then…
-
Mid-Atlantic Regional ReportsHow You Can Be a Pollinator Partner
As gardeners, we already know that insects play a vital role in our environment. Granted, some of them do cause damage, but even then, some chewed leaves are a small…
-
Mid-Atlantic Regional ReportsPest Alert: Spotted Lanternfly
It’s big, it’s bad, and it could well be headed your way, if it’s not there already. First identified in the United States in Berks County, Pennsylvania, in 2014, spotted…
-
Mid-Atlantic Regional ReportsMid-Atlantic: April To-Do List
By now the weather is starting to settle, but don’t be too quick to get tender plants outdoors. Parts of our region can still see frosts or even light freezes…
-
Mid-Atlantic Regional ReportsNative to Know: Seersucker Sedge
As a fashion statement, seersucker may have come and gone, but for gardeners who appreciate eye-catching foliage, seersucker sedge (Carex plantaginea, Zones 4–8) is always in style. This lovely, lime…
-
Mid-Atlantic Regional ReportsMid-Atlantic: March To-Do List
March is a fickle time of year in the Mid-Atlantic region. It can bring real spring weather or stay snowy for much of the month. Adjust your chores accordingly, so…
-
-
-
ArticleVegetables That Are Pretty
In the quest to find something new and different for your garden each spring, it’s easy to zoom right past the offerings of veggie seeds and transplants on your way…
Fine Gardening Magazine
