In light of 2016’s many significant events, you may not have noticed that it was the “Year of the Cosmos”. But noticed or unnoticed, Fleuroselect, the Netherlands-based horticulture trade group, decreed that last year, cosmos were the brightest stars in the horticultural heavens. It may be a coincidence, or not, but at the same time, … Read more
My friend, the ace flower arranger, made a flamboyant holiday arrangement the other day featuring a fountain-like array of crystal vessels festooned with an extravagant amount of red-berried nandina. The whole thing turned out to be a bit over-the-top for her home décor, so she offered me the nandina. I jumped at the chance, since … Read more
CYCLAMEN Florists’ cyclamen—Cyclamen persicum–are great imposters. Despite the Latin name, they do not hail from Persia or modern-day Iran. The flowers look more like orchids than their primrose-family affiliation might suggest, and their leaves, when massed together, look less like foliage and more like marble or damask fabric. Beguiling plant buyers with their ravishing … Read more
Life has had its ups and downs this past growing season, but in my yard, lavender—Lavendula—has experienced one long “up”. The fragrant herb grows throughout the mixed borders, but is planted en masse in the bed by the driveway that is home to my hybrid musk rose collection. Today, in mid November, one of those … Read more
Pity poor Charles Dudley Warner. Born in 1829, he was a lawyer, newspaper editor/ publisher, prolific writer, confidant of numerous famous people and dedicated amateur gardener. Despite that impressive resume, he is best remembered; when he is remembered at all, as a close friend of Mark Twain. So close, in fact, that a phrase coined … Read more
