As I write this morning (Saturday, October 17) I am in my so-called office enjoying the view of my garden from the western window, and the lush asparagus fern hanging in the sunny southern window. In this part of the week I am usually trying to make sense of any notes I have written, or finding a whole new topic. Time is running out and I have a deadline. However, today I have a topic but having trouble…

Over the years I occasionally thought about all the columns I had written since 1980. I enjoyed writing all those columns, but columns are so ephemeral. Here today, gone tomorrow. A friend suggested I write a book. After all, I had all that material. Writing a book is different from writing a column, but the idea appealed more every day. And one day I sat down and began to write. Every week I’d hand in my column, and…

Over the years I have been honored to be invited into many gardens. Sometimes gardeners are organizing a garden tour and want publicity. This is always a great opportunity for a columnist. Tour gardeners are always articulate and knowledgeable about their gardens. They are willing to share plant names, advice about care and design thoughts. It was not long before I created my own annual garden tour. Over the years it gave me substantial material. It was named…

The day after Thanksgiving in 1979 Henry and I packed a big U-Haul truck with all our New York belongings, and the three daughters, Diane, Betsy and Kate. The day was balmy and warm, the perfect day for moving. We stopped in Greenfield for supper and groceries, then onward to Heath. It was no longer balmy. Temperatures had plummeted. It was dark and we had to unload the truck or we would have no place to sleep. The…

In these treacherous days of the coronovirus when many of us been laid off, children have been sent home from school, and no one can even remember what day of the week it is because we no longer have schedules, we should stop and take a deep breath. What can we do when so many must-dos no longer exist? First, we have to remember it is spring! The world is changing all around us. Birds are returning and…

New adventures are beginning. Last Thursday four new roses were delivered from the Antique Rose Emporium (ARE). And then it snowed. Well, only a little bit of snow, and the roses are resting in our side porch, gathering strength after the trip from Texas. Three hellebores and two primroses from the Greenfield Farmers Coop joined them, all waiting to get their feet into the soil. New Roses for  the New Rose Walk Quietness and Carefree Beauty are pink…

Fifty years ago I was cheering and celebrating the First Earth Day with hundreds of other people in the center of West Hartford, Connecticut. My five children, ages 11 to 4, were with me. I don’t know what they took in and what they made of all the excitement, but it was exciting. And I can report that Betsy, age 6 was already beginning her career as an activist. Betsy was in kindergarten at the time and she…

April is National Garden Month, and National Gardening Day is April 14. There is also a National Garden Week founded by National Garden Clubs but we will have to wait for June 7-13 to celebrate. We have lots of time and many occasions to celebrate our gardens, and get busy! There have not been too many glorious spring days, but the weather has been sufficiently cooperative that we have gotten out to do some spring cleaning. We do…

This is the time of year when we can’t wait to start planting seeds. Unfortunately it is not the time of year when we can put vegetable or flower seeds in the ground. Fortunately for those of us who want a jump on the season we can start seeds indoors without too much trouble or expense. It is helpful to know the date of the last frost in your area. It is also important to know the temperature…

In the olden days we gardeners would take a deep breath and go out to clean up the fall garden. There were dead annuals, and dead perennials gone to seed. There were dead leaves everywhere. The garden is a mess in the fall. That view of the fall garden has changed. Last month I attended Lorri Cochran’s talk, courtesy of Greening Greenfield, about how to create a habitat garden that will support birds, and bees and during the…