The Gardeners' Apprentice Butterflies delineate the transition from early to late fall. Choice food plants–asters and butterfly bushes—are in bloom in my garden now, in mid September, and Monarchs and skippers dance among the flowerheads. Summer’s swallowtails are mostly gone, but the ubiquitous Cabbage Whites persist. A few stragglers remain from the horde of Painted Ladies that descended … Read more
There is something very valuable in getting down on your knees and weeding or planting bulbs. Today when I was putting in some fall-blooming crocus, I noticed what I thought was a patch of clover right by a large clump of Helleborus x orientalis (Lenten Rose). On closer inspection, the “clover” turned out to be … Read more
Yesterday I should have edged the beds that surround the front garden and plied the hedge trimmer on the perpetually sprouting privet that bounds the property. Instead I remade a corner of the garden that has never quite succeeded aesthetically and always bothered me. The corner in question is mostly shaded by a nearby maple … Read more
ORNAMENTAL OREGANO I am always looking for non-fussy ground covers that stomp weeds and look good doing it. On a garden center run a few years ago I happened upon ornamental oregano, something I had read about but never tried. The cultivar was ‘Kent Beauty’ and it was in bloom, with pinkish flowerheads that … Read more
Porcelain-berries are among nature’s most beautiful fruits—shiny in jewel-like shades of lilac and azure to dark blue-purple, with speckles that make them look like little Easter eggs. The berries appear on long, vigorous vines with medium green, deeply dissected leaves that remind me a bit of wild grape, to which it is related. In short, … Read more
