I am a grandmother, which is hardly unusual. Like all grandparents, I like to brag that my grandchildren are unique. But that word is actually an understatement–all my grandchildren are geraniums. They belong to my daughter, who buys them, installs them in elegant pots and fusses over them like any other doting parent. She is … Read more
As I walk around the neighborhood on torrid mornings, I try not to be jealous of people with in-ground sprinkler systems. Still it is hard to watch the little sprinkler heads spewing water in all directions, making flowerbeds glisten and lawns lush and green, and not wish that I had gone into a more lucrative … Read more
There is only one word for my lower back garden these days—depressing. The infernal heat, with or without humidity, has made the hydrangeas, ferns and hostas look as if they are in the last stages of consumption. Even the stalwart hellebores are flat out—literally. Daily watering does little to stave off the desiccating effects of … Read more
Like the neighborhood ice cream truck, summer flowers announce themselves loudly and insistently. My front borders are screaming with tall Shasta daisies and multi-colored coneflowers. Standing head to head with all those daisy-flowered amazons are the daylilies, which are among the best-loved early to mid-summer plants. I have lots of daylilies, but I have forgotten … Read more
My collections of garden books and garden weeds are roughly the same size. I haven’t learned much from the weeds–except that they are eternal–but I have learned a lot from the books. There are some lessons, though, that only experience can teach. Here are a few of them. Self Seeding vs. Self Preservation—If you have … Read more
