Alba Means More Than White

  • Post published:06/23/2011
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The word 'alba' means white, but there is a whole family of roses named alba - and not all of them are white. I'll begin with Alba semi--plena which is white.  Mine grows in a shady spot which is not ideal. It is kind of leggy, but very pretty. Mme Plantier is also white. Peter Beale says is 'capable of climbing' but definitely not in my garden. Mme Legras de St. Germain will not climb either in my…

Reinforcements on Duty

  • Post published:06/22/2011
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My eldest daughter, Diane, arrived with her middle daughter, Caitlin, and set to the clipping and weeding that Betsy couldn't finish.  Now the Peony Bed is weeded and clipped, the Cottage Bed is clipped and the front of the house is neat because my husband came home early to do a final mowing before the promised rain falls. I was forced to stand straight and supervise. I am very fortunate to have such good daughters - and granddaughter.…

Griffith Buck and His Hardy Roses

  • Post published:06/21/2011
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Applejack is the first Griffith Buck hybrid I planted and it has thrived, greeting visitors at the top of our hill as they turn  to our house. It is a large graceful shrub. Griffith Buck became a student at Iowa State College in 1946 after serving in the U.S. Army during WWII. He was in the horticulture program and after graduating with his Bachelor's degree in 1948 and his Master's in 1949, he went on to his Ph.D.…

Couldn’t Have Done It Without Them

  • Post published:06/20/2011
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On Monday I tripped over a hose and fell.  On Tuesday I hobbled to the doctor for X-rays to prove nothing was broken and that the titanium hip was hold firm. The doctor said, "No gardening - for two weeks!"  Talk about impossible. My husband has been out in  the garden every evening, and yesterday daughter Betsy arrived to put in a full day clipping the grass around the roses on the Rose Walk.  She did some other…

Franklin Land Trust Tour – Here

  • Post published:06/18/2011
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  What is a garden for? It depends on the garden, of course.Vegetable gardens are for feeding us. Herb gardens are for bringing us extra savor and health. Meditation gardens are to give us moments of serenity. Ornamental gardens are to give us pleasure. But all gardens can be shared --- doubling their pleasure and utility, of whatever sort. Sometimes sharing our gardens can also support a noble project.  That is what will be happening in Heath and…

Stop Thief!

  • Post published:06/17/2011
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Over the past couple of days three of my 6 fancy chrysanthemums and some morning glory seedlings in my  little circle garden (which guards our mower from a huge boulder) have been eaten or pulled out. At first I couldn't figure out who would pull two of the mum babies out and hide them, but we have got bunnies around this year - for the first time. I never thought bunnies liked mums.  Or morning glories. When I…

Bloom Day June 2011

The past few days have been cool (50s) and wet. Sometimes very wet. We got another 2 inches of rain. The sun came out for a few minutes last evening so just a portion of my Bloom Day photos show that summer light. This is Salvia 'May Night' in full bloom in the northern Lawn Grove. The new tree, only partially seen, is a weeping cherry. We moved the Sourwood tree that has been in that spot for…

Monday Record June 13, 2011

  • Post published:06/13/2011
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Rain. Downpours. But the intrepid Garden Club of Amherst members were undaunted. I met them for a tour of the Elsa Bakalar/Scott Prior garden. In the background you can see that the old rhododendrons in back of the house near the woodland path are still blooming. The daffodils are long gone It's iris season in the garden right now. The Siberians don't mind how much rain they get. Of course, there are other bloomers right now like these…

Plant a Row for the Hungry

  • Post published:06/11/2011
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The old joke goes that if you don’t lock your car doors in August you’ll  return and find the back seat filled with zucchini.  You might be happy about this if you don’t have a vegetable garden, after all zucchini is a versatile vegetable that can be used in a number of delicious ways, is nutritious supplying protein, vitamins A and C and numerous other good elements but no cholesterol, and contains only 20 calories per one cup…

Harrison’s Yellow Rose

  • Post published:06/10/2011
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The first time I was given this rose it came with warnings to plant it somewhere it could be mowed back and kept under control. Unfortunately, it died. I tried again and I now have two clumps, but the mower has not be necessary yet.  I love that this early bloomer reflects the June sunlight which encourages all the growth on the hill. Harrison's Yellow rose presents its small double blossoms only in June. Its small leaves and…