Not long ago I was on a road trip just as the mid-spring flowering trees were bursting into bloom. Cascades of white, wisteria-like blooms billowed from many of the trees along highways in central New York State. They stood out, even as we whizzed by at highway speed. Every once in awhile, a pink-flowered tree … Read more
In his novel, An International Episode, author Henry James says, “Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” I agree with him, but the flip side of that quote might be something like, “Rainy weekend, rainy weekend; to me those have always been the … Read more
Sometimes deadlines make you neurotic. Other times, they help you get focused. I am choosing the latter course, because I want a good-looking garden before Memorial Day. The problem—for the past week wet weather and at least one blast of high wind have made the garden soggy, riddled with opportunistic weeds and full, once again, … Read more
I love the moment in spring when all the flowering trees and shrubs seem to burst into simultaneous bloom. Depending on the weather, that mass flowering can last a few days or more than a week. It always ends in showers of petals that rival the snow flurries we had up until about three weeks … Read more
In my neighborhood we enjoyed winter right through April, followed by ten minutes of spring. Now we are in the process of jumping headfirst into summer. The last of the daffodils, having survived late snow, cold spring winds and all kinds of insults, hang their heads, defeated by a sudden blast of hot sticky air. … Read more
