I may not post as often as I wish I did, but I can’t tell you how many posts I have composed in my head — I have a regular dialogue with you all, whether you hear it or not. It is lovely to think of so many people spread so far who have appreciated …

Right now is the peak Clematis moment here in our garden. This refers, first of all, to what we call the Great Wall of Purple filled out by Clematis ‘Jackmanii’ on part of the west-facing wall of the house, around the corner from the front door. Here we are walking up the driveway to the …

Readers of this blog know that we’ve been worrying about our prize Clematis ‘Jackmanii’ that grows on a west-facing wall near the front door.

June is the month of blue flowers, or so it seems in our garden. Sadly, we are missing one of my favorites, Wild Indigo (Baptisia australis), which was lost to sewer repair. I planted a replacement, but it won’t bloom this year.

We put up our new trellises the other day, and I’m pretty happy with them. These were the 9′ Panacea Giant Wall Trellises I wrote about earlier. They’re certainly a big improvement.

We’re really super proud of our Clematis ‘Jackmanii’. Every year it climbs a trellis that stretches up about 12 feet, all the way from the ground to the roof gutters.

Right now is this year’s peak for our Clematis ‘Jackmanii’. It covers most of the west-facing brick wall at the front corner of the house, which I like to call “The Great Wall of Purple”, though it is either white or green for most of the year.

What I Did About the Japanese Yew

You may recall a couple of posts during the spring where I talked about how I was removing a large Japanese Yew (Taxus cuspidata) from the southwest corner of the Back Garden, right next to the gate that opens up to the alley.

All of a sudden, it’s hot out and feels like summer. But the garden is still clothed in the blues and whites of late spring, especially out front. The reds, yellows, and oranges (but especially yellows) of summer are gathering force, not yet ready to bust out. They are delayed in part because of the …

Ballad of the Yew Slayer

If I were a superhero or a Viking or something like that, I would like my name to be “Yew Slayer”. Fact is, I have taken down a lot of Yews, particularly Japanese Yews (Taxus cuspidata). It’s nothing personal, it’s just that I really don’t like Yews (although I guess that does make it personal). …