Back in the Garden with Dulcy: The Best of The Oregonian Garden Writer Dulcy Mahar

How did Dulcy Mahar become a rock star of the Northwest gardening community? By writing a column for The Oregonian that didn’t preach slavish imitation to your next-door neighbor’s immaculately mowed lawn and trimmed hedges. Using humor and charm as she shared her weekly triumphs and humiliating mistakes, Dulcy always reassured her readers that it was okay. “As a gardener, I learn by trial and error, and error, and error,” she blithely confessed. Dulcy’s column ran for more than twenty-two years, showing her readers there was adventure and beauty in their own backyards. Her columns were packed with solidly researched direction and knowledge sprinkled with wit. Her fan base ranged from beginners to master gardeners. When Dulcy died of ovarian cancer in July 2011, devoted readers begged for her columns to be reprinted. Through Dulcy’s editor, they urged her husband, Ted, to write a book. In BACK IN THE GARDEN WITH DULCY, Ted reflects on their nearly fifty-year marriage, surrounded by bel