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Dear Helen: A while back, you wrote about a new kind of clover that is suitable as a lawn-grass replacement in our climate. We are looking for something that is more environmentally friendly and less needy of water and fertilizer.

Happily pared-down and simple, environmentally conscious and generous are terms that, in my view, describe the lives of my friends Heather and Gary.

A window seat built into an alcove has always been a place to dream, at least for heroines in classic novels. Steve and Carole Hutchinson are relishing their own window seat perch in their 1913-vintage suite overlooking Beacon Hill Park.

Dear Reena: How can I remove the white adhesive that is stuck on our cherry-wood table without damaging the wood.

We hear a lot about what’s going to be, or is, the colour of the year. It becomes a guide to choosing a fresh decorating palette. Paint colours, popular fabric shades, even furnishings follow what’s hot on the fashion runways.

Dear Helen: I’m about to take an inventory of seeds left over from previous years’ plantings. Seed packets almost always hold more than I can use in a growing season.

Despite overstuffed schedules last month, Vancouver Island gardeners wrote with comments on columns and to offer ideas.

Transforming a classic 1904 home on Quamichan Lake into a modern manor house required a massive renovation that lasted almost a year and took a lot of elbow grease and vision.

When you have a wonderful collection of contemporary art and classic furniture, chosen and purchased with great care and love over more than five decades with your wife, it’s not easy to downsize.

How’s the month going? Are we having fun yet? Such questions have been much in mind this month as I have listened to friends voicing exasperation over burdensome lists of things to do leading up to this major “holiday.