Every once in a while, I surprise myself. As I was looking back at last year's garden, I found this shot of my driveway garden and thought, "Hey, that's pretty good!" I don't do that as often as I should. The driveway garden is a miserably hot place and since I'm not the most reliable waterer, the plants are forced to fend for themselves. It's a test of sorts. One that involves extreme neglect worsened by heat radiating off an asphalt driveway and the high expectations of a crazed gardener. Aside from the spring clean-up and the occasional weeding, this garden is on its own. Totally. In addition to the elements, it's survived the bumps and bruises of all kinds of athletic balls, floor hockey games and the occasional kid. In many ways, it's a lot like me. Like most gardens, it's evolved ...
Search Results for: shade
A New Year, TONS of New Plants and a Growing Wish List
The new plant wish list is getting longer in my garden notebook. I also keep an updated one in the notes section of my phone just in case I happen to pass a garden center this spring. Who am I kidding? I write of it as though it's a possibility when the reality is I will visit MANY garden centers and road-side farm stands. It's an obsession and one my kids have learned to accept. I've gathered images of all the new for 2020 or new-to-me plants I'll be on the lookout for this year. It's a motley list of veggies, annuals, shade perennials, sun perennials, and a drop-dead gorgeous new grass. Perhaps you'll find one (or several) here that you can't live without. In which case, we're kindred spirits and you can tell your significant other that Heather made you do it. Here ...
Bulb to Know: Summer Snowflake
It seems appropriate that we should be talking about a bulb with snowflake in its name. The snow's been flying since before Halloween and I'm behind on most everything garden related. Including replanting A LOT of displaced summer snowflake bulbs (Leucojum aestivum 'Gravetye Giant'). I'm always looking for something a little different. With plenty of daffodils already, although I can never seem to have enough of them, I wanted a new spring flower and one that rabbits wouldn't come from miles around to devour. I thought I was winning the battle a few weeks ago only to find their droppings and tell-tale footprints in the snow. It's a struggle. But I lucked out with Leucojum aestivum 'Gravetye Giant,' a variety of summer snowflake, and it's been going gangbusters for four years. Fifteen bulbs ...
From Fish to Flamingoes, It’s All Garden Art To Me
Several years ago, my mother-in-law, a devout Catholic, gave me a St. Francis of Assisi statue for my garden. As the patron saint of nature and those who care for the environment, she thought it perfect for my little Eden. And it is in so many ways. I'm not religious, but I deeply appreciated the sentiment behind the gift and for this reason he stands among the phlox and rudbeckia every year. I think it suits him. To me, he is art and a reminder of the loved one who gave him to my garden. It never occurred to me that someone could be so deeply moved by my garden art. It was an awkward moment but in a way reiterates the point of art. To evoke a feeling or emotion, no matter how kitschy or trite. A neighbor asked to see my garden and I eagerly invited her in. What gardener doesn't jump ...
Eight Houseplants for the Beginner
I used to think dust was the only thing I could grow on my windowsill. Houseplants were not my thing. So you might be wondering, after such an admission, why the heck you should trust me on this one. My answer is simple. I haven't killed these guys. And that's saying something. I'm not the most doting houseplant mom. Most of them get the third child treatment. You know, the kind where you temporarily ignore the saggy diaper and crusted snot smeared across his face long enough to down a cup of coffee, brush your teeth and attempt to look human. You care about their wellbeing but aren't maniacal about it like you were with your firstborn. Lucky for us, most houseplants thrive on neglect. Children, not so much. But I've matured enough to know that a little attention to their health is worth ...
I Finally Transplanted My Peony
Nothing like waiting until the eleventh hour. But in the case of my Scarlet O'Hara peony, that's exactly what I did. I received a bare root peony tuber as a door prize at a garden event about ten years ago. The planting spot I chose was visible from the house and rather close to a redbud tree that, at the time, didn't cast much shade. With plenty of morning and early afternoon sun, the peony thrived. Fast forward to a much bigger redbud and a peony that surprisingly still flowers despite receiving less than two hours of direct sun. Four to six hours is recommended. It's hard to imagine that a three-foot stick of a tree will, if all goes well, eventually create a beautiful green umbrella over the plants below. But that's exactly what the redbud's done and I'm tasked with finding a new ...
