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One of the holistic healing gurus—Dr. Andrew Weill, I think—has suggested that one of the keys to wellness is surrounding yourself with flowers. I like to expand that idea and surround myself with plants, particularly ones with attractive and/or sweet-smelling blossoms. At the moment, my dining room window seat contains a miniature double amaryllis with luminous white trumpets; a kalanchoe […]
Two weeks ago I went to a wonderful lecture at the New York Botanical Garden. The speaker was Barry Yinger, a well known plantsman and author who specializes in Asian flora. The topic for the day was “New Japanese Plants for the Garden. Mr. Yinger, who also owns Asiatica, a Pennsylvania retail nursery, is one of those intrepid people who […]
I used to spurn exotic plants, even those with glorious flowers. Looking back, I think the avoidance was probably yet another form of adolescent rebellion. After all, my grandmother was passionate about birds of paradise, and my mother probably bought thousands of poinsettias in her time. It makes sense, in a Freudian way, that I would emerge into adulthood with […]
When I was growing up in a rural area in western New York State, some of the farmers used to say that drought came in eleven-year cycles. This was not as bad as it sounds. To my knowledge, the area never suffered through eleven consecutive years of disastrous water shortages. The theory was simply that eleven years of relatively dry […]
In my lifelong quest for infallibility, I have come up short yet again. Last fall I predicted a long hard winter. So far winter has been the usual length and not particularly hard. Barring end-of-season snow or ice storms, we may end up with a prolonged early spring. This is both a blessing and a curse for gardeners. The mild […]
Japanese Maples Landscape Planting If your soil is heavy, it should be an amended with sand, bark, or other material to improve drainage, and the soil should be mounded above grade to assure good drainage. Maples are very adaptable to soil types, so if drainage is good, the addition of compost for nutrients and tilth is all that is needed. […]
Gardeners today with busy schedules want less work in their gardens, and thus a need is established for plants that do just that. Their focus is more on leaf texture and foliage colour, rather than blooms and pruning schedules, consequently plants that don’t require a lot of care and maintenance are sought after. Self sufficient ponds, shade gardens and woodland […]
Gardening is such an integral part of my life, that I can’t imagine not doing it. That’s why I cringe inside whenever I hear someone say, “If we have a drought and water restrictions this spring and summer, I just won’t plant my garden.” Drought and water restrictions may force us to act differently. It may even force us to […]
Whenever I am asked to disclose my principal formula for a successful garden, I will invariably return the same verdict – to evoke an atmosphere is paramount. Many of the ideas I employ in garden design originate from something I have encountered at some stage in my life. When anything appeals to me for a particular reason, and I later […]
I have a problem leaving my garden in the spring—even if the weather is chilly and rainy. At the moment a familiar scene is being reenacted in my plant holding area, where root bound potted specimens are crying out to be freed from confinement. My back porch is loaded with seedling trays full of tiny plants that have been hardened […]