An herb is defined as any useful plant. I grow lots of them, though some are decidedly more useful than others. I wage constant battles with rambunctious, self-sowing nuisances like perilla mint and lemon balm, which are on a perpetual campaign for garden, if not world domination. I gladly grow other, better-mannered herbs, including lavender, … Read more
Winter has set in for good and even the toughest of the garden flowers have gone the way of all things. I look longingly on the remains of the last fall-blooming crocuses—two brave singletons that bloomed on a warm day last week. Having done their duty, they have folded their petals and taken to their … Read more
I have a friend who lost a cherished front-yard tree. After the tree surgeons removed the remains, he began the hunt for a new one. The choices were endless. His lot is large and could accommodate a sizeable specimen. The old tree was deciduous, rather than evergreen; as a fan of autumn color, he wanted … Read more
I have been swept off my feet by a flashy cat, appropriately named ‘Blue Dreams.’ The cat in question is botanical rather than feline, but it has many feline qualities. Like pedigreed, four-footed cats, ‘Blue Dreams’ has a fancy proper name—Nepeta subsessilis ‘Blue Dreams.’ Its stems arch gracefully, reminiscent of a cat’s back and, like … Read more
TOO MUCH, TOO FAST This is the time of year when the garden is a rampaging torrent of growth. Plants—cultivated and wild—are increasing with reckless abandon, vying with each other in Darwinian attempts to attract as many pollinators as possible. Every day I pull out handfuls of garlic mustard, chickweed, immature pokeweed and other noxious … Read more
