SOUL MATE Last night I confessed to my husband that I had met my soul mate–at a garden center in Clifton, New Jersey. The moment I laid eyes on this gorgeous individual, some kind of connection happened and I couldn’t make it go away. After that momentous initial encounter, I tried to avoid further … Read more
MYSTERY PLANT When my daughter, Kate, was little, she used to bring me bouquets of fallen leaves that she gathered on her way home from school. Now, as a college student with a summer job in the City, she sometimes brings home interesting plants that she finds at the Union Square Greenmarket. Yesterday she … Read more
RAINY DAYS I grew up in a western New York town located about ten miles from an agricultural area known locally as “The Muck”. The Muck had been created from drained swampland in the first third of the twentieth century and was famous for its soil fertility. Onions were the biggest crop and millions … Read more
THE GARDENER AND THE DOG A friend of mine is the proud human companion of an adolescent golden retriever. The dog, whom I will call “B.”, to avoid embarrassing him, is among the most intelligent and handsome of his breed, but he seems to have some of the same problems as male human adolescents. … Read more
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF MOLLY THE WITCH Three years ago I bought a wonderful species peony with an unpronounceable Latin name: Paeonia daurica ssp mlokosevitschii. Known to its friends as “Molly the Witch,” this peony is native to the Caucasus Mountains and features delectable poppy-like flowers the color of spring sunlight. Fat clusters of … Read more
