There was a time when I had no asters in my front garden. Then I planted one small pot of tall, pink-flowered ‘Alma Potschke’ asters. ‘Alma’ prospered—so much so that now, if I didn’t pull out the seedlings every year, I would have hundreds of ‘Alma Potschke’offspring. Not only do I pull out the seedlings, … Read more
The bulb shipments have all arrived now, which is like Christmas coming early. Little brown bags and mesh sacks litter the table on the covered part of the back porch where only a month ago we ate weekend lunches and dinners. Now it is home to all kinds of spring-blooming treasures. One of those small … Read more
Now that I am fully into the preparation—as opposed to mourning—role for fall, it is time to pick up bulb bargains for last minute installation and forcing. Most bulb merchandisers, large and small, are eager to get rid of surplus inventory and settle in for the winter. Gardeners can reap the benefits. First the good … Read more
I used to mope romantically over the advance of fall, lamenting the loss of my beloved garden flowers, morosely plucking up as many roses as possible when hard frost threatened and generally carrying on as if horticultural Armageddon was just around the corner. The Grim Reaper seemed to step away from the neighbors’ lavish Halloween … Read more
I always think that my gardening life will be more relaxed in the fall, which is yet another example of a triumph of hope over experience. In fact, the fall season is usually fraught with a long to-do list and a sense that time is running out. Life heats up after the relative ease of … Read more
