Lilacs seem to know nothing of winterkill. This long harsh winter was as nothing to these ancient lilacs. The same cannot be said for the wisteria. Winterkill in its most serious form has hit here. There is always a little winterkill, but there should be some sign of life by this time in the spring. No such luck. This might very well be the end of the wisteria as the provider of shade on the piazza. The Thomas…
The Bridge of Flowers taught me that annuals are the easiest and most dependable way of insuring a flowery garden all season long. This spring I am concentrating on adding annuals that will be in full bloom for the Annual Rose Viewing. Of course, I do have perennials in bloom at that time, but this year I am determined to have a very flowery garden at the end of June, and then for the rest of the summer.…
The Bridge of Flowers Plant Sale is Today, Saturday, May 17, 9 am - noon. Don't Be Late. Plant sales are a sure sign that spring is here. When spring arrives plans and projects to spruce up our outdoor spaces, in our yards and in our towns, are set in motion. The Bridge of Flowers is a big beautiful public space, but other public spaces are getting their spruce up, too. The Bridge of Flowers is one of…
I begin this Garden Blogger's Bloom Day post with a blooming mistake. Maybe three years ago I thought coltsfoot might be a good groundcover on the Rose Bank. I was only thinking of the flowers and the size of the early spring foliage - not what it would look like in June, July, August, September and October. Or how very rapidly and strongly it would spread. I don't mind the violet which are everywhere here, and in the…
Dear Friend and Gardener: Even though I have planted seeds in the vegetable garden, and a few seedlings that I started in the guestroom a few weeks ago, I can never resist buying a few starts at the garden center. I can never have enough parsley in the summer, and I don't need very much chard, and I just want a headstart on the tender basil - so purchased starts are needed. Tomorrow should be perfect planting weather…
March's snow and frigid temperatures (the coldest March in year) are ALMOST gone. The view from the bedroom window has really changed. April 6 was the first day we were able to go out in the garden - for a while. 30 degrees at 7 am with a high of 50 degrees. Oh no! After days of frosty temperatures, and some rain - Snow! Two inches. But it warmed up and was mostly gone by evening. And this…
I went to New Jersey, the Garden State, to search for spring and found it at the Leonard J. Buck Garden in Far Hills. My brother Tony and his wife Joan took us to the 29 acre garden which was originally part of Mr. Buck’s estate. In the 1930s Buck began working with Zenon Schreiber, a well-known landscape architect, to create a naturalistic garden that incorporated the various rock outcroppings, the sinuous Moggy Brook and two ponds.…
These Van Sion antique daffodils are strong growers. So strong that they persist in blooming in a rose bush no matter how many time I try to dig them out. No matter. I am glad to see them blooming. They are the earliest of my daffs, but a few others are coming into bloom. And if daffodils are blooming in Heath it must be time for plant sales. The first plant sale is organized by The Greenfield Garden…
Groundbreaking Food Gardens is a great book to take new vegetable gardeners into an exciting and varied garden world this very long slow cold spring. The snow is finally gone, even here in Heath, and bulbs are blooming and tender shoots are evident all through the perennial beds. I can finally think about the vegetable garden. I actually have two vegetable gardens. One is very small. The Front Garden, or Early Garden, as I sometime call it, is…
I'm a person who enjoys talking about plants anytime, but sometimes I do it officially. Last weekend I spoke about Sustainable Roses at the little e. I was able to explain that you could grow roses without poisons and fungicides. Hybridizers have created many rugosas that are just naturally sustainable. Texas A&M declared a whole group of roses to be sustainable and calls them Earth Kind. Look for that label when you go rose shopping. I'll be writing…