For years I have called myself a rose lover, but I have completely neglected a significant category of old roses. Finally, this summer, a plantsman of my acquaintance called me on it. “How,” he said, “could you not grow alba roses?” Of course, I made all the usual excuses, mostly having to do with the … Read more
When I take my daily walks I breathe deeply, soak in the sunshine—when there is any—and snoop at other people’s gardens and landscaping. In my suburb I see a lot of conventional good taste on display. There is nothing wrong with that and it beats trash-strewn lots any day. However, amid all the conventional good … Read more
Everyone in the world seems to be reading Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing. Its de-cluttering message has almost certainly gladdened the hearts and fattened the inventories of recyclers, thrift shop owners and second hand book dealers from Memphis to Mumbai. I read it over … Read more
Great gardens have much in common with other works of art—form, color, structure, light, space and an indefinable “something” that draws viewers in. Unlike other masterpieces, however, gardens are ephemeral. Any gardener can tell you what happens when you leave a landscape untended for even a month. Lines blur, thuggish plants grow large while less … Read more
Whenever I am away from the garden for any reason I make a habit of greeting it when I return. This process involves a tour of the front and back and includes noting which plants are flourishing, pulling out an egregious weed here or there and reacquainting myself with my little slice of Eden. The … Read more
