If you happen to be a flashy individual who changes your name every few years and carries on colorfully in public places, you might be called a “performance artist”, or possibly something even more descriptive. If you were to morph into plant form and do the same thing, gardeners would simply ignore all the name … Read more
Not long ago I went to Grace Gardens, in Geneva, NY, a magical daylily garden and nursery. It was early July, just before peak daylily bloom, but thousands of blossoms were already open for business. The array of colors and forms was breathtaking. I found it impossible to leave without a handful of new daylily … Read more
The great American garden writer, Elizabeth Lawrence, famously said, “No one gardens alone.” The truth of those words shows in my garden every day. Ninety percent of the landscape and tending falls to me; the rest is done by others. Fortunately, given the state of my bank accounts, I don’t have to pay them anything. … Read more
I am not an orchid person, but from time to time I fall madly in love with plants that bear orchid-like flowers. Sweet peas beguile me, though I have never had success growing them in the garden. I blame that on climate, though inattention might also play a role. Every year in early summer I … Read more
After four years of waiting, at least one go-around with Mr. Antlers and a presumption of plant death, ‘Vick’s Caprice’ has finally bloomed in my garden. And even though the tough little rose put out only one flower, it was worth the time and anxiety. The cupped and quartered bloom is lovely–rose pink, accented with … Read more
