Backyard Living Magazine is as welcome and satisfying as sharing a cup of tea with a friendly neighbor. The visits are infrequent (bimonthly) , but this neighbor comes bearing lots of useful news, gorgeous pictures with stunning color and clarity, and best of all doesn’t try to sell you anything. You know the type, the one with the big smile and a few “by the ways”. The by the way I have some church raffle tickets, and the by the way George’s school is having a fundraiser and the by the way I’m selling Avon and Amway products now. The ads in Backyard Living are few and far between, mostly ads for the magazine itself. Those rare ads blend perfectly with the theme and tone of the publication and are quite unobtrusive.

Backyard Living is a little magazine, normally less than 70 pages and the size of most rack magazines, 8 by 10.5 inches in size. Its single issue cover price is $3.99, and subscribers can purchase a one year subscription for 20 dollars, two years for thirty, or three years for 40 dollars. Mrs. Spudman has subscribed to this magazine for several years and often shares articles of interest with me. I’ll occasionally pick up a copy from the coffee table and browse the articles and photographs.

Backyard Living

The covers are quite eye-catching almost always featuring a garden or deck scene and plenty of beautiful flowers and foliage. On the top left corner is a small insert with photo touting the special attraction of the issue, usually a lengthy article on a specific planting topic, and sometimes a special pull-out. (Never a potato!) Titles of the most prominent articles are attractively laid out on the cover with different sized fonts and colors. Many of the article cover blurbs are even accompanied by page numbers for easy, quick access. On the back cover of the magazine is a full-page ad. The two issues before me feature ads for Stihl and Lowes.

In Every Issue

Letter from the editor
Questions answered by other readers
Mailbox
Yard Smarts – helpful advice and tips
Plant doctor
Hot, new plants
Budget makeover
Garden solutions
Top 10 special, Sensational shrubs, and the Frugal gardener (my personal favorite)
Grandma’s secrets
Veggie grow-how
Good Earth – dealing with pests without harmful chemicals
Ask Spike, Regional checklist
Zone map
Blunders ( I could fill an issue with mine)
Gardener’s Journal
Backyardlivingmagazine.com highlights

Articles

The articles are of interest to those who enjoy planting shrubs and flowers and who take pride in their back or front yards. The two recent issues I’m examining feature articles about: best perennials for small places, shade plants –13 pages of descriptions and photos), 175 tips for shade gardening, secrets for a spectacular summer garden, low maintenance plants, big color on a budget, and garden bargains.

All articles are written with a friendly, easy to read tone, and with language the average reader can understand. One doesn’t have to be a horticulturalist to enjoy this magazine.
The writers and editor make good use of bold print, captions, and numbered steps to clarify and explain. The photographs are a destination in and of themselves. The at once entertain, awe, and inspire.

Last

I opened one of the issues at random to the regularly appearing Good Earth feature. This two-page article by Joe Lamp’l details five things one can do now to do our part in protecting the environment and “going green.” The author details the positives of correct plant placement, rain barrels, compost, soil tests, and using mulch. His article is accompanied by photographs of a homemade compost bin, and a large ceramic rain barrel. It’s the kind of article readers of Backyard Living can sink their tines into.