A coastal cottage garden, edited with a city girl’s eye
Gardening, design, and seasonal living in real time, mistakes and all
I grew up in coastal New England and spent years in the fashion closets of New York working in visual storytelling, learning how proportion, restraint, and seasonal rhythm shape everything we love.
Parsley & Petal is where that sensibility meets the garden.
Not sure where to start right now?Start with The Seasonal Edit
a garden checklist
The Seasonal Edit is a recurring garden checklist of what’s emerging, what can wait, and what deserves attention now.
Practical tasks. Clear structure.
Timed to the season as it unfolds.
Enter your email below to receive the latest Seasonal Edit
Plant Spotlight
Closely observed plant profiles, growing notes, and seasonal favorites.
Tools I Reach For
These aren’t pristine. They’re the ones I reach for.
A short list of what I actually use, with notes.
Some links may be affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Popular in the Garden
From the Garden
Practical guidance, garden lessons and seasonal decisions from life in the garden.
From the Journal
Observations, stories, and the quieter rituals that make the garden a home. A collection of family traditions, unexpected connections, and the stories that grow alongside the garden.
About the GardenParsley & Petal follows the evolution of a coastal New England garden — sharing what works, what doesn’t, and what quietly takes root.
Explore the Garden
Looking for a specific plant, seasonal task, or garden story?
Wander by Category:
Early March in the Garden
Today is noticeably warmer, and early daffodils are beginning to emerge in the beds, the first real sign of spring.
Hellebores (Helleborus orientalis)
One of the earliest and most reliable flowers in a Northeast garden.
What Deer and Rabbits Eat First (and What They Leave Alone)
These are the plants that have actually survived deer and rabbits, and how I manage stubborn wildlife in my garden.
The Seasonal Edit: March/April — Early Spring Garden Checklist
Early spring is the time to address garden cleanup and minor lawn repair, before growth accelerates.
The Spring Reset: Lawn and Garden
Mid-March in the Northeast. While the stylist in me wants to edge the beds immediately, the gardener in me says, “Wait. It’s still too wet.”
The Seasonal Edit: A Blizzard Garden Checklist
Heavy snow and blizzard conditions can cause snow damage to shrubs, boxwoods, arborvitae, and other evergreens, but knowing when to intervene can prevent long-term harm.
A Home Run with Color: Designing a Cohesive Garden Palette
I used to be drawn to everything at the nurseries. Whatever caught my eye came home with me. But a garden begins to feel cohesive when you choose a few colors and let them repeat.
The Seasonal Edit: February—Late Winter Garden Checklist
This is not a month for dramatic changes. It’s a month for structure, maintenance, and preparation. What you do now determines how smooth spring will feel.
My Essential Garden Tool Kit: The Tools I Actually Use
A good garden, like a good wardrobe, is built around a few pieces that do their job beautifully.
What I’m Learning by Not Overplanting: A Lesson in Garden Structure
When we first moved into our house, every bare patch of soil looked like a problem to solve. I was a city girl who knew nothing about growing grass, much less a garden.