Tall iris time is here—with a vengeance. Last month, the gardens in my neighborhood sparkled with species like Iris cristata and Iris reticulata, dainty varieties that ornament the earth in early spring. Now the statuesque show horses of the Iridaceaee or iris world are enjoying their moment in the sun. In my garden, something unusual … Read more
I frequently tell people that my garden speaks and sometimes even sings to me. What I don’t say is that the voices are in many different languages. Any given plant might have ancestry going back to one or more species native to Asia, Africa or one of the world’s many other cradles of botanical diversity. … Read more
Lately the balloon flower—Platycodon grandiflorus—has been stalking me. As I wander through garden centers in search of mid-summer bargains, the inflated buds pop out from the pallets. A neighbor’s border overflows with a blue-flowered variety. Last week, on a visit to the main garden of the Cloisters museum in Upper Manhattan, I saw a giant … Read more
