Is it just me or was this the fastest gardening season ever? The late burst of wintry conditions we experienced from February to April prevented us from getting an early start. But the fact is fall is here, and it’s time to wrap things up.

I want to build a deluxe shed. I’ve just retired and have plenty of time on my hands. I want to stop paying the outrageous offsite storage fees. First and foremost, what do you think of my shed matching my house? Is this a good idea or a waste of time?

When fall arrives, gardeners transition from outdoor gardening to indoor activities. Yet they miss the connection they had with living plants. Tending houseplants is the perfect cure to this problem and can be just as enjoyable.

I’ve noticed that even when people feel motivated to purge, they still have a tough time parting with clothes.

This will not be a usual column. I’m sitting in my man cave writing it several hours before I talk to a reader named Amanda on the phone. She lives in Oklahoma in a new home covered with artificial stone made from colored and textured concrete.

This summer, my husband, Bill, and I have been treated to some delightful interactions with the birds in our garden. We’ve enticed hummingbirds to sit on our fingers while they sipped from tiny feeders and watched baby quail blissfully napping in the shade of the daylily patch.

A benefit (and hazard) of my job as a design writer is spending chunks of time with decorating experts in beautiful homes. I always learn something from pros who have a refined eye for detail.

I’ve got a mess at my home that’s driving me crazy. My 3-foot tall concrete block foundation was coated years ago with a thin coat of cement stucco. There are countless cracks in the stucco coating that outline many of the blocks.

We all know her as the Tomato Lady who sells tomato starts at Garden Expo each spring. She is also a master at growing peppers.

Dahlias are one of the most prized late-summer bloomers. With their incredible array of colors and types, it’s every gardener’s dream to have a garden filled with these lovely flowers.

It’s impossible to list all the vinyl siding accessories and options that are available. For starters, don’t think that you have to use just one color and siding style on your home. Quite a few homes I see are incorporating white trim with two complementary colors and siding profiles.

For this year’s fall banquet, the Spokane County Master Gardeners is bringing in Joe Lamp’l, host and executive producer of the Emmy Award-winning PBS program “Growing a Greener World.”

Capture a little bit of summer and bring it indoors before the cool weather hits. These adorable little gardens sit nicely on a desk or shelf, but how you choose to decorate the tin is the best part. Make one for yourself and a friend.

I’m building a new home. Because of the booming economy and shortage of great help, I might be forced to hang and finish the drywall myself. I’ve done a few repairs here and there and wonder if it’s possible to pull off DIY drywall work on a larger scale. Don’t sugarcoat it.

It is true what they say: If you wait long enough, old trends will make their way back into fashion (unless we are talking about shag carpet, in which case that can stay in the past!). One of my favorite comebacks of the last few years is wallpaper. Wallpaper is a style destined to come around again and again. Not only is it functional and beautiful, it also has a certain nostalgia that keeps us coming back to it. I love hearing about renovations where homeowners find layer after layer of wallpaper when working on the walls. They help tell the story of the home in a way few other elements can. Wallpaper and wall coverings in general are back in full force and are still a versatile, impactful way to dress up your home.

I hate to say this, but I’m not getting any younger. And chances are I’ve got plenty of company. As we gardeners age, our favorite pastime can start to feel overwhelming. While my love for gardening hasn’t waned over the years, I’m looking for ways to make certain aspects of it easier and less time-consuming.

Every tool kit has a hammer. Every utility room a plunger. Every junk drawer a measuring tape. If you’ve ever wondered, however, how the experts get homes looking and working right, it’s often because they have another set of tools that we don’t.

A few months ago, I wrote a column about how “flushable” wipes clog sewers. I received hundreds of responses from readers who shared their expensive horror stories about how flushable wipes had caused clogs in their homes.

I recently asked my Facebook page followers what they do to garden economically. I wanted to share their wonderful responses with you today.