My Amaryllis Mystery

  • Post published:01/19/2015
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I suppose my amaryllis mystery began on December 11, 2014 when I rather belatedly bought boxed amaryllis bulbs ready for planting and blooming. I knew they would not bloom in time for Christmas, but glamorous amaryllis flowers  are welcome in January and February as well. I potted all three bulbs up as directed. I did notice that the Athene white amaryllis seemed to have been pruned back more severely or more  recently than the other two. I kept…

Is Your Poinsettia an Annual or Perennial?

  • Post published:01/13/2015
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Do you treat your Christmas Poinsettia as an annual, and throw it way when it finally loses all those beautiful bracts, or do you care for it, baby it, and suffer its dormancy in order to bring it back into glorious bloom next December? Can you guess which approach I take with a Christmas poinsettia? I'll give you a hint. This is my second poinsettia, a gift from my husband. I left my first one in the car.…

Gifts for the Gardener – still time to shop

  • Post published:12/20/2014
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I have never thought it very hard to find gifts for the gardener. After all, what does a gift say? I love you? I understand you? I want you to enjoy your days? I want your dreams to come true? I share your passion and I know just what you need? No matter what your message there are garden centers and other kinds of shops that have just the gifts to convey these messages to the gardener in…

Good Reading Roundup for 2013 – Part One

  • Post published:12/20/2013
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This is my first Reading Roundup. Over the year I have 'reviewed' a number of books, any of which would make an excellent holiday gift. Good reading is one of my favorites gifts to give, and to receive.  Over the next couple of days I'll be giving a note about each of them again, with a link to the original post. All but one of the books were sent to me by the publisher and you may note…

Christmas Trees Thirty Times Over

  • Post published:12/18/2013
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Christmas trees were the hit of the Christmas party held by the Greenfield Garden Club.  We have the best meetings and parties! Our hostess has dozens (I lost track) of themed Christmas trees as well as the big gorgeous fabulously ornamented tree in the living room. I cannot show them all here. A shoe tree! Our hostess is a mistress of every type of needlework including quilting. Admittedly a faux feather tree, but a style all its own.…

Houseplants for Christmas

  • Post published:12/14/2013
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  Plants, one way or another, play a big part in our Christmas festivities and gift giving. I can’t think of any other holiday when plants are so important. We decorate our houses with evergreen wreaths, and deck our halls with holly. Or at least with laurel ropes, evergreen boughs and swags, and forced bulbs on the festive table. We also give plants as gifts, and may also receive a potted plant. The question is how can we…

We Have a Winner! And a Continuing Sale

  • Post published:12/13/2013
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Betsy Johnson is our winner! Practically a neighbor over there in Williamstown.  Timber Press will send Seeing Flowers directly after I have her address, and I'll be sending her The Roses at the End of the Road. Everyone can order their own copy of The Roses at the End of the Road, or a copy to give as a gift to anyone who loves  roses or tales of life in the country by emailing me at commonweeder@gmail.com or…

Gifts of Christmas

  • Post published:12/28/2012
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As we race around shopping and buying Christmas gifts for the people we love, the Salvation Army bell-ringers seem an appropriate accompaniment. The Holy Family was poor, and enduring so much bad luck, that they had to find shelter in a stable for the birth of the Christ Child. It is not hard to imagine the fear that Mary must have felt as she labored to bring this baby into the world. Where were they to go from…

The First Snowfall of the Year

  • Post published:12/27/2012
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I am counting this as the first  snowfall of the year, although there was a couple of inches of snow on the ground on Christmas so we  could all have a white Christmas and get an extra helping of Christmas spirit. Now we can enjoy the post-Christmas tranquillity, sitting by the fire, watching the snow snowing and the wind blowing. This photo was taken at 7 a.m. More Christmas is coming with further gatherings with family and friends.…

Garden Books for the Young

  • Post published:12/21/2012
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I've written  about a number of garden books for  the young over the past year. They are not how-to books although there are books that do lead a child  into  the garden with real instructions. My friend Kathryn Galbraith wrote Planting the Wild Garden and turned science into poetry. She reveals all the ways that Mother Nature spreads seeds over the landscape using the wind and rain, and hot sun that makes seed pods burst. The rivers and…