New Year’s resolutions. No matter how dismissive we try to be, no matter how skeptical we become, there is something seductive and promising about the date of January 1, the beginning of a brand new year. I look at the blankness of the calendar’s pages, matching the blankness of the winter landscape and think about the ways I will fill the days of the new year, fill my days in the garden. The older I get the unhappier…
When Doug moved to Heath his property came with a big barn, but the only livestock he planned on was chickens. When he moved his office into the barn he had that space insulated. He also insulated the area where the chickens lived. Only in the ceiling can you see the insulation but it is also behind the wooden walls. Chickens don't need this kind of comfort, but I'm sure they appreciate it. Even the door to the…
It wouldn't be snowy winter unless I was writing about sastrugi, the snow waves and caves created by the wind. This is what the western edge of the Sunken Garden looked like at early this morning. The snow storm has passed but the snow is cold and dry and the wind blows right across the field to the west. You can see how the shape of the snow has changed, especially where the sun is hitting in the…
It's been cold and we have had dustings of snow here in Heath, but our first snow storm arrived Sunday. Flurries on and off all day, but coming down hard by 9 pm. On Monday morning when I took this photo it was still flurrying but the wind was blowing so it was hard to say how much snow we had altogether. The governor declared a State of Emergency so Henry got to stay home. By evening the…
It was a surprise to see Salvia on the front page of the NYTimes Sunday Styles section. Salvia has become stylish? However it was not Salvia officinalis, culinary sage, which is important in many holiday dressings and dishes at this time of the year that was getting this publicity, nor even the Christmasy red annual salvia (Salvia splendens) that is so common in many bedding plant projects. Unbeknownst to me, who does not keep up with Miley Cyrus…
The need to find symbols for eternal mysteries lies deep in the human family. At this time of the year the landscape is bare and frozen. All the life of nature seems to be frozen and dead. Gone is the verdant green, brilliantly colored flowers, rushing waters. The days grow ever shorter; even the sun seems to be failing. Ever since the beginning of time humans have faced the terror of this seeming death and looked for hope.…
The tree is up and decorated. Each year I get so much pleasure and I add each ornament. The tree contains memories that go back more than 60 years. After my mother's death my brothers and I had to empty her condo and split up her belongings. There were no surprises until we got to a big storage closet in the garage that, among other things, held boxes and boxes of Christmas tree ornaments dating back to the…
I have never used a hose guard, and I have certainly damaged plants as I have pulled the hose around the different beds. Hozearound sent me a sample of their product and I am looking forward to trying it out in the spring. It is made of really sturdy steel and the stake that goes into the ground is long. It can go 18 inches or a little more into the ground - assuming you don't hit any…
Thinking that they were too tender I avoided hollies for many years, but I finally decided to give them a try. I planted "Blue Princess" and "Blue Prince" about ten years ago. They are said to grow slowly, so I don't know if I am too impatient, but they have grown very slowly. They are growing in full sun, and there is no question that they are in acid soil. No need for Holly Tone fertilizer here. The…
Henry and I set out Saturday morning to cut our Christmas tree. Unfortunately, this photo does not capture the field of diamonds that surround our house, but it does capture our cat Holly who likes to hike with us. This time we had to stop and put her back in the house. We saw lots of animal tracks as we walked down the Rose Walk. I thought these were deer tracks, but Henry wasn't so sure. A fair amount of…