The Bridge of Flowers is blooming and blooming, ready for admiration, but you can see that greens are important too. Azaleas are just beginning to blossom, and Solomon's seal is still blooming. Iris season is just beginning. That's a dramatic combo with a yellow iris and orange azalea. The Bridge of Flowers loves azaleas. Surely it is clear by now that the Bridge of Flowers does not depend on a single type of flower. The bulb season is…
The garden centers are putting out their trays of blooming annuals, many of which will find their way into planters and containers of all sizes and shapes. They’ll be hung on porches, set out on decks and placed by doorways. It is hard to resist all that color and frilly form. Fortunately for us we don’t have to resist because those familiar annuals, impatiens, petunias, begonias and geraniums are inexpensive and put on a good and cheerful show…
The Bridge of Flowers is a blooming wonder. Starting in April and through October it is in flower from the bright crocus and daffodils of early spring, through rose season and then dahlia season. I could not possibly give you a list of all the flowers that take their turn on the Bridge, bulbs, annuals, perennials, blooming shrubs and trees, all making life in Shelburne Falls a delight and attracting over 35,000 visitors from across the country and…
Yesterday I had the pleasure of trekking to LaSalle's in Whately to help pick out a selection of the annuals that will be sold at the Bridge of Flowers Plant Sale on Saturday, May 14. This is the geranium that was sold out last year when I went to buy mine. This is the geranium I bought instead. It just bloomed and bloomed into the fall. Both geraniums plus scarlelet and white varieties will be available at the…
The Bridge of Flowers, an old trolley bridge, that now floriferously joins the towns of Shelburne and Buckland opened officially on April 1. On that day this year there was snow on the Bridge, but you can see we are no longer worrying about snow. At this time of the year people begin asking me about the best season to view the Bridge. I answer there is no Best Season. The Bridge has been designed to be in…
In spite of Saturday's snow and sleet which continued most of the day, after a warm night with temperatures constantly increasing, Easter Sunday dawned warm and sunny and blissful. This is all that was left of the snow. The breeze was gentle and it was a perfect Easter Sunday. One of the first fences we removed over the past months was the wire fence that formed the 'fourth wall' of the Sunken Garden. These dayliles grew along the…
The sun was shining when I walked across the Bridge of Flowers last Friday. The Flower Brigade, those devoted volunteers, were raking and weeding. They were nearly done when I arrived and the Bridge looked terrific. Gone were all the wisteria seed pods, and the crocuses were in their glory. The Bridge of Flowers Committee is very busy right now planning the Annual Plant Sale, the season's big fund raiser, and a great opportunity to buy some modestly…
Temperatures soared above 60 degrees and this was the first weekend we could actually work outside, so let me give you a brief tour to set the scene. The snow is still melting and revealing that the winter has been kind to the rhodies. No breakage. Lots of buds. The "Limelight" hydrangea was not so lucky. The snow plow dumped a lot of our enormous snowfall at the edge of the lawn and broke more than half this…
As a Leo, born in August, it is no wonder that I love sunny colors. As a gardener I know how useful annuals can be in the garden, and in the vase. As a gardener who likes sure results I loves the All America Selections, tested flowers and vegetables that are all but guaranteed to succeed all across the nation. I find one of this year's All America Selections winners, Gaillardia 'Arizona Apricot' especially appealing. It looks to…
It was a surprise to see Salvia on the front page of the NYTimes Sunday Styles section. Salvia has become stylish? However it was not Salvia officinalis, culinary sage, which is important in many holiday dressings and dishes at this time of the year that was getting this publicity, nor even the Christmasy red annual salvia (Salvia splendens) that is so common in many bedding plant projects. Unbeknownst to me, who does not keep up with Miley Cyrus…