The latter half of the twentieth century produced a bumper crop of great gardeners, garden designers and garden personalities. I have been inspired by many of them, especially British born Beth Chatto, 1923-2018, who shone brightly in that horticultural pantheon. Now, an authorized biography, Beth Chatto: A Life With Plants, presents a fond, but unvarnished … Read more
The problem with New Year’s resolutions is that they are usually too big to be manageable for more than a few weeks. Change—whether it is weight loss, curbing bad habits or de-cluttering your home environment—is best done in easily attainable increments that take human nature and time constraints into account. I like to think about … Read more
The island of Madagascar, off the coast of Africa, is home to all kinds of interesting plants and animals. My favorites among the fauna are lemurs, primates that have adapted successfully to even the harshest environments. There is something especially endearing about the ring-tailed lemurs, which hold their long tails optimistically aloft while roaming through … Read more
Merchandisers are under a lot of pressure every year to introduce new and/or different plants for the holidays. Troll the aisles of nurseries and garden centers right now and you will see new and different poinsettias, bodacious kalanchoes and even hellebores for indoor display. Novelty piques interest. I am a jaded horticulture consumer, so piquing … Read more
The fall bulb packages have arrived, nearly submerged under a high tide of holiday catalogs. Since I have long since forgotten most of what I ordered at various times during the summer, the boxes are full of glorious surprises. Unpacking them gives me a feeling akin to opening the boxes of Christmas ornaments in December. … Read more
