THE SUMMER OF OUR DISCONTENT Summer is almost here. The good news is that plants have gotten through spring’s frenetic growth orgy and slowed down to a more reasonable pace. The rampant growth of noxious pests like chickweed has ceased and it is finally possible to keep up with the weeding, pruning, mowing and … Read more
DOUBLE GERANIUMS In my garden this will be the Year of the Fluffy Flower. Ever since the first mail order catalogs arrived last December I have been mesmerized by the pictures of double-flowered varieties of hellebores, daylilies, primroses and Shasta daisies. My usual love of simplicity has gone south in favor of the pursuit of … Read more
DELPHINIUM STAND-INS If you live in a place with short unpredictable springs and hot sticky summers, you probably have issues with delphiniums. You can buy them, you can plant them, but you can’t expect them to give you joy forever. In fact, you frequently can’t expect them to perform beyond the first season. This … Read more
TWO GARDENS I am lucky enough to have two gardens. At home in New Jersey I grow hundreds of plants, a full compliment of weeds and a daily dose of satisfaction. My summer garden in central New York State is much smaller and less ambitious. I tend it for three weeks a year at most, … Read more
Never underestimate the power of a woman with a good pair of loppers. Armed with those loppers, plus clippers, a pruning saw and a stout pair of gloves, I finally triumphed last week over the dastardly privet hedge that runs along one side of my property. The process has taken just this side of forever–almost … Read more
