Filippo degli Albizzia was descended from a family of Florentine power brokers that made successive economic and political splashes in that city beginning in the fourteenth century. At various times members of the Albizzia family, armed with a fortune made in the wool trade, were politicians, important churchmen, mistresses of churchmen, and inquisitors. Filippo was … Read more
Years ago, I planted three garden beds at my family’s summer cottage in the Finger Lakes region of New York State. Each bed presented a different set of soil and light conditions. One was adjacent to a shale beach, sunny and exposed with free draining soil. Another was partly shaded, surrounding the stump of a … Read more
Last week I wrote about the lowly but gorgeous purple and white-spotted petunia that wowed the crowds on our local garden tour. That got me thinking about petunias, a plant that I never really cottoned to. In the neighborhood where I grew up, everyone grew pink, white or purple ones in containers or in narrow … Read more
Last week my garden was part of a local charity garden tour. The weather for the two- day event was perfect, with warm temperatures and low humidity. On the first day, a Friday, the crowd was a steady stream of retirees in straw hats. On the Saturday the crowd was a mix of all kinds … Read more
It is exactly one week until my garden must look its best for the charity garden tour. After a washout over the long weekend when I had planned to move the planting scheme towards perfection, speed gardening has become the order of each day. Speed gardening means moving fast, focusing on the most visible parts … Read more
