This year, in many parts of the country, winter stood its ground and refused to unclench its chilly grip. Spring-flowering plants emerged slowly; understandably cautious about exposing their petals to the freezing breezes. The flip side of that hesitance is that once the petals opened, they remained open longer due to the low temperatures. While … Read more
The next time you go to the nursery or garden center, lead with your nose. Get up close to the plants that catch your eye and take home the ones with the best fragrance. Your garden, whether it is an estate property upholstered in expensive floral treasures or a collection of annuals in recycled spackle … Read more
Recently a friend invoked the wrath of the Garden Gods. While trimming the winter-worn leaves of her hellebores, she came to a patch of the wonderful Eric Smith hybrid—Helleborus x ericsmithii. These hellebores don’t generally need trimming, because their beautifully marbled foliage remains good-looking right through the winter. Sometimes, however, all those lush green leaves … Read more
The name “Georg Arends” will ring a bell with astute gardeners, even if it only sounds faintly familiar. Arends was a German nurseryman and plant breeder with an establishment in Ronsdorf-Wuppertal, an imposingly named town near Cologne. He lived and worked from 1863 to 1952, a long career, that left an impressive legacy. If you … Read more
It has taken an extra month this year, but the hellebores have finally come into their own. Over the past few days, I have made circuits of the garden, gently raking away the dead leaves that camouflage new growth and clipping away last year’s ratty old foliage to free the flowers. Newly liberated, they open … Read more
