At-Home Cafes Are the Event of the Summer—Here's How to Host One

All across the Northeast, hydrangeas are in full bloom. In fact, this year they’re having one of the most beautiful seasons we've seen in recent years—a phenomenon that’s drawing tourists, gardeners, and plant-lovers alike to visit the Northeast and New England in the hopes of seeing the photo-worthy landscapes firsthand.

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Summer might be the peak production season in your garden, but above-average temps and heat domes don’t quite make for happy horticulture. Even if you’re growing in a mild climate, plant protection throughout the summer is an important practice and can even be helpful when prepping for an out-of-town getaway that might disrupt your usual routine. From keeping an eye on the forecast so you can plot your next move, to knowing which plants need watering and those that definitely do not, we’re sharing all the tips to avoid any summer stress and keep you growing gracefully. Here’s to a resilient garden and not forgetting to protect and hydrate appropriately, yourself included.

Since 2003, the US has lost about half of its licensed dairy farms. However, the number of cows producing milk has stayed relatively steady. Take Wisconsin, for example. In 2004, the state was home to less than 16,000 dairy farms. In 2021, that number dropped in half, to less than 7,000 farms. But the number of cows in the state? That didn’t change. There are still about 1.2 million cows in Wisconsin. They’re just part of much bigger herds these days. That means that smaller farms are getting squeezed out in favor of industrial farming and Confined Animal Feeding Operations, commonly referred to as CAFOs, in which large numbers of animals are raised, generally in confinement, and feed is brought to them, rather than letting them graze.

With recreational marijuana now legal in more than a dozen states (and Washington, D.C.), legal dispensaries are common across the country.

At first glance, the offerings from the Washington, DC-based soup company Soupergirl seem pretty straightforward. The company specializes in vegan and kosher soup and gazpacho, as well as soup toppers that customers can mix and match. There’s the classic tomato soup, a beet gazpacho available in a portable container and even vegan “cheesy” croutons. 

For some, reports of a deadly new virus spreading across the planet seemingly came out of nowhere last year. But the emergence of COVID-19 didn’t shock the epidemiologists and researchers who study zoonotic diseases, the kinds of diseases that jump from animals to humans.

Much like buyers’ remorse, there is such a thing as renovation regret. It’s inevitable, too, if you decide to take a chance with a design trend that might seem “outdated” in few years. Remember when chevron was THE pattern of the moment? And how everyone was getting a sliding barn door?

IT’S ONE of the best-known naturalistic gardens anywhere, and yet it’s perched in the most unnatural spot imaginable, 30 feet high above New York City traffic on an abandoned elevated railway line. The High Line on Manhattan’s West Side is celebrating the 15th anniversary of the opening of its first section, years that have been filled with expert lessons on gardening in this looser, nature-inspired style.

SOME OF THE many unusual fruits that Allyson Levy and Scott Serrano grow in their arboretum in the Hudson Valley of New York, like goji berries or maybe Schisandra (above), are ones you’re more likely to see on ingredient labels of health food store products than for sale in nurseries or growing in gardens. But grow them you can.