There are days when I ponder the deeper questions: Why is there evil in the world? Why is it that in our house 1-2 of my socks lose their mates in the laundry every single week (and I’m the one who does the laundry)? That comes to an average of 78 socks a year – …
Klehm’s Song Sparrow Farm began in 1852 as a nursery for fruit trees, and has been in the same family ever since. Charles Klehm, a lover of peonies and charter member of the American Peony Society (founded 1903), shifted the emphasis to ornamental plants. Their website is here. Klehm’s, currently located in southern Wisconsin, offers …
Let’s say you’ve decided you want to plant Bee Balm (Monarda didyma). You go to an online catalog, and there could be dozens of varieties to choose from. How do you know which is best? You can go by the description in the catalog, which may be more or less accurate. This may purport to …
I love asters. I love their clouds of little flowers, the way they positively hum with bees, the fresh color that they add to cool autumn days. In my garden there are a number of aster species, some commonly found in gardens, others more easily found in the wild. I want to write about three …
Autumn seems to be taking over in a hurry. Suddenly I find I need to wear a jacket when I go outside. The Crooked Stem Aster (Symphyotrichum prenanthoides) is covered with tiny sky blue flowers. Then there is Big Leaf Aster (Symphyotrichum macrophyllus). I have finally admitted to myself that Big Leaf Aster (or as …
A couple of years ago I transplanted some surplus Black-Eyed Susans (Rudbeckia fulgida) to the Parkway Border. They prospered, and were soon joined by a couple of volunteer Brown-Eyed-Susan (R. triloba). Around this time of year, as a result, there is a big cheerful drift of golden yellow in front of our house. Passing drivers …
The Left Bank is my new name for the sunny garden bed that is west of the driveway, between the crabapple and the sidewalk. I like the name, but at the moment the garden looks like a collection of green lumps. My intent with this garden was to prove that I was capable of planting …
Once again it is time for Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day (GBBD), hosted by May Dreams Gardens. GBBD provides a mid-month opportunity to count up our flowering plants like a latter day pirate counting his treasures. So put on your eyepatch, and let’s go. The Driveway Border is the most colorful of all the front garden …
With high summer comes a new cast of players in the front garden’s Driveway Border. There are many stars in the border, and it is gratifying to see them strut their stuff. At the far end, anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) comes to center stage. I’ve already written about the virtues of this plant, but let …
So you have to be careful about what you say to Judy. One day I casually mention that people really liked her overview shots of the garden and maybe she should do more of those. Next thing you know, she’s sitting on a windowsill on the second story of our house, both feet dangling over …
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