Inspiration comes at the strangest times and in the most unlikely places. The other day I was walking in a neighboring town, doing what I always do—looking at other people’s landscaping, envying some of the results, and imaging what I would do with less inspiring properties. This practice is highly satisfactory because it exercises my … Read more
I am an absolute sucker for old-style plant catalogs. Sure, vendors offer greater variety online, and I always order that way, but there is something irresistible about all of those vibrant flowers, fruits and vegetables. They demand your full attention and all but leap off the pages, making it clear that their ultimate intention is … Read more
Not long ago the mailman dropped off the wonderful snowdrop catalog that my friend, Hitch Lyman, puts out every year. As you might expect, Hitch always waxes poetic, practical and whimsical about his line-up of unusual snowdrops, but he also has a long history of including inspiring quotes on the back cover. This year’s quote … Read more
Every day in New York and Los Angeles, any number of aspiring actors toil in obscurity, awaiting the moment when they will be “discovered” by someone who can launch their stage and screen careers. Once upon a time, a flashy horticultural performer with the ungainly name of Eschscholzia californica, had a story much like that. … Read more
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
