Most people think small when they think of rock gardens—miniature plants in confined spaces. Leonard J. Buck (1894-1974) was not one of those people. Buck, who made a fortune importing and exporting metal ores, created a thirty-three acre rock garden at his estate in Far Hills, New Jersey. Buck has been gone for forty years, … Read more
Nearly a decade ago, I first visited Greenwood Gardens in Short Hills, New Jersey. The owners of Greenwood, 28 acres of gardens, structures, outbuildings and naturalized areas, were beginning the process of making the transition from private property to public garden. Deterioration was encroaching on the property, which had its moments of greatest glory in … Read more
Back in the days when dinosaurs roamed the earth, before plant breeding was the domain of huge conglomerates, the breeding and nursery business often ran in families. The Lemoine family of Nancy, France was one of those multi-generational concerns, breeding and selling plants from 1849 through 1960. Victor Lemoine, his wife, Marie Louise, their son, … Read more
Rose breeders are always looking for something new—blue roses, continuous bloomers, roses that flower in the shade and plants that are absolutely impervious to climate change, pests and diseases. This has been going on for centuries, but in an era when breeding advances can be communicated around the world in an instant, the hunt for … Read more
Alan Titchmarsh is quintessentially English, from his last name to his loves—gardening, dogs, country life and the Queen. Best known to Americans from the imported gardening makeover series, Ground Force, Titchmarsh is a celebrity in Britain. He hosts the BBC’s round the clock coverage of the Chelsea Flower Show every year, has written numerous garden … Read more
