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
July is daylily time, with slender flower buds bursting open joyfully just as the last of the petals have fallen from the roses and the oak leaf hydrangeas have reached their peak. Though each bloom lasts only one day, the plants are among the toughest around, as well as the most popular. The common, tawny … Read more
Last year we had no blue hydrangea flowers. A late spring frost decimated the buds of all old-fashioned Hydrangea macrophylla bushes and for most hydrangea lovers in my corner of the northeast, the blooms never came. Eventually the shrubs bore fresh green leaves in abundance, but hydrangea aficionados were forced to say “next year” in … Read more
One of the sad realities of my suburban life is that lawn grass grows best in a single segment of my property—the garden beds. The green blades struggle in the backyard, perpetual losers in the never-ending competition with ajuga, clover, wild violets and broadleaf weeds. The grass issue in back is exacerbated by the fact … Read more
