Bleeding heart—Lamprocapnos spectabilis–has shed seeds, if not blood, all over my garden. Years ago, when the species was known as “Diecntra spectablilis”, I probably planted the first one, though I have no memory of doing so. Now, they are everywhere. Normally those words would constitute the start of a rant about garden thuggery, invasive tendencies, … Read more
If I were to create an alphabetical summary of my garden’s current status, I would say, “L is for leggy lilacs looking lovely.” The “lovely’ part is the abundant, perfumed blooms. I grow three lilacs, all Syringa vulgaris, the most common type. Two have pale purple flowers and one, which is the newest, features deep … Read more
If you are into wildflowers, the best place to find them is at the edge of a wooded area in early to mid spring. The first sightings of the year—at least in boggy places–are usually skunk cabbage, which are so smelly and unattractive, that many people don’t count them as “wildflowers”. Among the more typical … Read more
It is clear from even a brief tour around the garden that extensive squirrel landscaping has happened over the past half year. Little “tommie’ crocuses, or Crocus tommasinianus, sprouted weeks ago in the lawn and other areas far removed from where the bulbs were originally planted. Now, having played their role in the early spring … Read more
Spring has arrived and the winter ceasefire in my personal, perpetual war on English ivy has officially expired. A pile of the severed vines sits in the backyard, waiting to be obliterated in the mulching process. This was only the first salvo of the new growing season, but it gave me enormous satisfaction, not to … Read more
