My friend Peter who reads this blog, and others, responded to the review of Covering Ground by Barbara Ellis with the following post and request. "I need some gardeners' advice. The two photos show the side area of our house. It was cleared and a lawn (of sorts) planted before we bought the place. We do not use the area, and our dogs don't go down there either. Its value is in providing a respite with open space…
Things are blooming here at End of the Road Farm. The Sargent crab in the Sunken Garden is magnificent. So are the dandelions. It is so wet we haven't been able to mow here yet. The lilacs are also in full fragrant bloom. On Saturday I worked at the Shelburne Falls Area Women's Club plant sale, which includes many many divisions from our famous Bridge of Flowers. Now it is time to plants my new beds. I also got…
When I woke up on the first Earth Day, nearly 40 years ago, gas for my old car cost about 29 cents a gallon, I had never heard of recycling, and I didn’t worry much about lights left on, or watering my lawn. Things have changed since then. Gas prices got up to over $4 a gallon and struck terror into all our hearts. Recycling is an everyday habit for many of us. I not…
If any edible garden is going to be a cost saving endeavor, thought has to be given to preserving the harvest. The labor in harvesting and preserving herbs is not onerous, but it must be done in a timely fashion. Timeliness is essential. Harvest your herbs before they bloom, while they are at their most flavorful. Cut them in the morning, after the dew has dried, but before the heat of the day. For hundreds…
Dandelions and violets in the flowery mead are still blooming. Johnny jump ups are scattered everywhere. Where do they all come from? I wonder what a johnny jump up seed looks like flying on the wind. I'm not sounding like much of a gardener so far. Many of the daffodils are starting to wind down, but others like this pheasant eye daff (Poeticus) bloom late. When I visited the daffodils at Tower Hill Botanic Garden last year I…
“Green your garden” sounds like an unnecessary admonition, but as the discussion about global warming heats up (pun intended) gardeners are looking at ways to lower their gardens’ carbon footprint. Because digging the soil releases carbon into the atmosphere no-till cultivation methods have gained new advocates. In addition to saving human energy, sheet composting/lasagna gardening has become more popular. Another way of reducing the carbon footprint of the garden is to reduce the size of the…
Rose season has begun. My purchases from the Antique Rose Emporium in Texas arrived in good shape. The Double Red Knock-Out will join two others on the bank at the end of the house where I hope they will grow into a large clump. Pink Grootendorst which is billed as a large moundy rugosa will also go on the bank. I also shopped in my own garden and dug up some roots from my Dart's Dash, a low rugosa…
Even though snow has been recorded in Heath in every month of the year, including August at the Annual Heath Fair, this 'snowy' lawn is actually comprised of drifts of mayflowers. At least I thought they were mayflowers, but when I looked them up to find the botanical name I found that the name mayflowers refers to trailing arbutus, Epigaea repens. When I asked my husband what he called those tiny blue and white flowers with a golden…
I never knew there was an American Public Gardens Association, or a National Public Gardens Day, but I certainly appreciate and applaud the many public gardens, large and small, in my area for the information and inspiration I gain from each one of them. The term public garden seems to cover many types of garden, so I'd like to mention a few that I have enjoyed. Closest to home is The Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls which…
“Grow Food Everywhere!” is Ricky Baruc’s enthusiastic motto. It doesn’t matter if the soil is bad, or if you have a bad back. At Seeds of Solidarity Farm in Orange Baruc and his wife Deb Habib have proved that food can be grown anywhere, by anyone. He said his secret is cardboard and worms. I will add he gets some aid from the beautiful Diemand Farm compost. His technique is simple. He clears the garden spot then lays…