Sastrugi is the word for the snow waves and caves. It comes from the Russian. Sometimes it makes very large, much larger than here, waves. I think it has been too cold and the snow has been too dry for that to happen with our latest snow fall. Sometimes the sastrugi takes the form of gentle ripples. For more (almost) Wordlessness this Wednesday click here
The noted essayist and poet Charles Lamb (1775-1834) said “New Year’s Day is everyman’s birthday.” As I look at the snow covered mowing near the center of Heath, I cannot help thinking that the mowing is like the first day of the year. It is perfect and flawless as the new year begins. It seems filled with opportunity and the promise of a good harvest. There may be only sunny days and gentle rains. And yet we…
Merry Christmas! This is the gift giving season. The season inevitably leads to lots of shopping. This past Monday I had a morning appointment in Northampton and I thought I would take the opportunity to shop along the way home. I didn’t have much shopping left because, of course, I had already done most of my shopping in Shelburne Falls and Greenfield. Still a few things were needed. I like lively Christmas…
My Reading Roundup Continues. Books make up a good part of my pleasure in gardening. I get information during the growing season and varied pleasures in growing season - and all the rest of the year. Clink on the link for full information about each book. The Speedy Vegetable Garden by Mark Diacono and Lia Leendertz (Timber Press) is not necessarily for impatient gardeners, but gardeners who want to extend the growing season into the depths of winter.…
It's almost 2 pm EST which means only 10 more hours to leave a comment here. You might win this beautiful book, Seeing Flowers, from Timber Press PLUS my own charming book of essays about life among the roses, Roses at the End of the Road. I'll announce the winner tomorrow morning.
After heavy rain enough puddles on my path to flash back at me all the faces I might choose to wear. In her newest book of Tanka, Faces I Might Wear, Carol Purington opens with a poem that most of us can identify with. How often do we arrange our face based on the action or emotion of…
This year 2004, just after Thanksgiving, we will celebrate our 25th anniversary of living at End of the Road Farm. Twenty-five years ago we emptied our apartment over a greengrocer and two doors down from a supermarket into a U-Haul truck; then my husband Henry took off in the truck and I took off in the car with our three teenage girls for an old farmhouse in Heath where the nearest groceries, at Peter’s General Store, were…
Recently my gardening chats with friends all begin with “Have you put your garden to bed yet?" The answer usually comes with a groan, or a non-committal Mmmmmm, letting you think they might actually have done all the jobs on the fall clean up list. I certainly have not. Cleaning up in my garden begins with cutting back. I’ve cut back the astilbes, veronicas, delphiniums, Artemesia lactiflora, lilies, Achillea ‘The Pearl’, various other yarrows, and I’m almost done…
I first saw Sheffield daisies at the Smith College perennial garden. It was late in the fall and I was amazed and delighted by this large clump of gloriously blooming pink flowers. I had no idea what they were, and posted the picture with a query to my readers. The answer was quick in coming - Sheffield daisies, also called Sheffies. They are strong growers and very hardy. They came through last week's frost untouched. I have grown…
On this Garden Bloggers Bloom day there are some surprises. The weather should not surprise anymore, but it does, and often causes gnashing of teeth. In June we had a glorious 12 inches of rain. In July there was no rain! It was hot! An official heat wave. In August it has been much cooler and we had 4 inches of rain so far. Still there are lots of blooms in the un-irrigated flower gardens. The Daylily Bank…