KIKU In September and October chrysanthemums dot the suburban landscape, and no house, apartment or condo is without at least one pot of mums somewhere on the premises. Gardeners also plug them into the borders to replace the washed-up summer annuals. Generally treated as annuals, millions of mums sacrifice their lives each year … Read more
JAPANESE ANEMONE Every year I wait for the arrival of the monarch butterflies. For much of the second half of the summer, one or two monarchs a day float through the yard, especially when the butterfly bushes are at their peak. But every year around this time, the numbers increase as the butterflies gear … Read more
BALLOON FLOWER Envy may be a sin, but it is also one of mankind’s most popular hobbies. Every day we envy each other’s homes, gadgets, cars and clothes. In this respect I am no better than anyone else. At least once a week during the growing season I suffer from a bout of plant … Read more
PARROTS For years I worshipped at the shrine of the lily flowering tulip. Tall, slim and elegant, the lily flowering tulip is everything I aspire to and is also closest in appearance to the wild tulips that got the world started on its long love affair with these spring flowering plants. For years I … Read more
SUCCESSES AND FAILURES The growing season is coming full circle. As I cut back the browning daylily and iris foliage, patches of bare earth emerge, and the garden begins to look more like it does in the early spring. The slow-moving stages of clean-up give me ample opportunity to think about this year’s garden. … Read more
