During our most recent trip to Harvard Square we admired the living walls at the Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Campus Center. There we were introduced to Harvard’s Sustainability Plan which includes buildings and open areas for a healthier and more sustainable campus community.
The 24th Annual Franklin County Cider Days came with splashes and torrents of rain, but those who love hard cider, and sweet cider and apples too, drew visitors from far and wide.
Professor Steve Schreiber, Jane Thurber, Lecturer, and Michael Davidsohn, Senior Lecturer, from the University of Massachusetts Architecture and Landscape Design Programs gave me a lesson in design.
Who chose the names of flowers in my garden? I have found they often have an old and interesting history. The names of the roses I have grown remind us of the person who did the naming - or at least of memorable people. In my Heath rose garden I grew Madame Hardy, a rose bred in 1832 by Alexandre Hardy who named it for his wife. The first rose I planted in Heath was named Passionate Nymphs…
This is the season when we begin the autumn assessment of our garden season – the weather, our schedules, our successes, the failures and the not-quite-what-I- expecteds. I went into spring chores with joy and high expectations, but there was a disaster – the weather. Spring took a long time coming but by April 1 there were primroses budding. There were occasional snowfalls, but we did not have as wet a garden as we had had the past…
Every year the UMass Extension creates a beautiful and useful calendar to teach, advise and remind us of our duties and opportunities all year long. COST: $14, bulk pricing is available on orders of 10 copies or more. Shipping is FREE on orders of 9 or fewer calendars - FREE SHIPPING ENDS NOV 1! FOR IMAGES IN THE CALENDAR, details, and ordering info, go to umassgardencalendar.org. The 2019 UMass Garden Calendar features the use of tomography to identify internal decay in trees. Many people also…
She Sheds like this one exhibit a very individual style. Two books, She Sheds Style and Upcycling Outdoors, have very different takes on creating stylish garden sheds and launching other projects for the garden. Every garden is unique because every gardener has different desires. Some gardeners want vegetable gardens, some want lots of flowers, some want art and glamour, and some want a practical fixture. Max Murdo is a gardener, and a thrifty handy man. He likes taking…
On this Garden Bloggers Bloom Day here in western Massachusetts I am ready to celebrate annuals - and others - who have survived the rains of this summer. Look at this sunny nasturtium - a volunteer from last year who swam happily this year through the summer. are always stalwart and shining. The bees love them and are grateful for their long season. There are a couple of other other potted (nameless) annuals that also keep us cheerful.…
“Inch by inch, row by row Gonna make this garden grow Gonna mulch it deep and low Gonna make it fertile ground” By David Mallett School gardens can be classed as one of the special classrooms in a school, offering fertile ground for children’s learning. In a school garden students of every age can learn to observe, learn about plant growth, about insects, about the life to be found in healthy soil, and much more. A school garden…
I missed Garden Bloggers Bloom Day in September because we were out of town for a few days. So now I am posting an early view of my garden - or perhaps I am just later. Either way, there was and is, still color as long as my 'Alma Potchke' aster is in bloom. No frost yet. Boltonia is a wonderful perennial blooming lushly and late in the season. Usually it doesn't need propping, but with all the…