The Gardeners' Apprentice

Take It Easy

by

TAKE IT EASY             I was out in the garden today–planting, weeding, trimming and rearranging things.  Just as I was about to divide a large clump of grape hyacinths, I became aware of the unmistakable sound of the Eagles singing the refrain of one of their best-known songs: “Take it easy, take it easy. Don’t … Read more

Lungwort

by

LUNGWORT               Pulmonaria always takes me by surprise.   Sure, the soft, silver-splashed leaves cling to the ground on the edges of my shady beds, and I see them every time I pass by.  In fact, I see them so often that I take them for granted.  Then, every year in the early spring, a … Read more

Eastern Europe

by

TREASURES OF EASTERN EUROPE             A couple of years ago I was looking for a large-flowered clematis for my garden.  Paging through various catalogs, I noticed a lot of clematis named after famous Poles.  One of the most notable was ‘Cardinal Wyszynski’, a large, red-flowered variety, named after Stefan Cardinal Wyszynski, former Roman Catholic Primate … Read more

Brenthurst

by

BRENTHURST               Last summer, for the first time in years, I had the pleasure of regular hummingbird visits.  A single tiny bird came by every afternoon to sip nectar from the butterfly bush and other plants in my upper back garden.  Its route always seemed to be the same, and it never strayed into … Read more

Spring Breezes

by

SPRING BREEZES             We have had so much wind this year that spring didn’t just arrive; it blew in with a vengeance.  Of course all those blustery gusts might also have been winter blowing its way out–only a meteorologist would know for sure.  One thing does seem certain–if the gales keep up, the robins and … Read more