On Friday and Saturday Chicago got the biggest November snow storm in 120 years. Which is strange, because for about three weeks November had been doodling along acting like a nice October. Then suddenly there’s a wild mood swing and it feels like we’re in January.
In the normal course of events, November is one of the two most dismal months of the year. At least, in my part of the world. An inky blackness falls by 5 PM, the leaves are dead, and a penetrating chill is in the air. (The other most dismal month is February.)
For the last two years I’ve had nothing to show for the March Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. This year, though, is different. For that, I am grateful to the Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis and G. elwesii) in my back garden. Thank you, Snowdrops! In both 2013 and 2014, our …
In September, Autumn feels like a vacation from Summer. The cooler weather and softer light are both refreshing. At a certain point in October, though, it starts to feel as if you are preparing to leave a beloved place. The sun is so low in the sky that even the middle of the day feels …
First, the good news. As a result of frequent applications of the Stare of Life, several of the plants on the winter death watch have broken dormancy. Specifically: both my two year old fringe trees (Chionanthus virginicus), the bluebeard (Caryopteris x clandonensis ‘Longwood Blue’}, the ‘Blue Adonis’ compact butterflybush (Buddleia), and the ‘Conca D’Or’ orienpet …
I have been working very hard at not jumping to conclusions about which plants got killed off during our brutal winter. However, I am becoming increasingly fretful. Here’s the situation as of today. Gone forever After two seasons in my back garden, my flowering dogwood (Cornus florida ‘Appalachian Spring’) is pretty clearly a goner. No …
Following our long, cold winter, we seem to be having a cold spring as well. Temperatures lately are mostly in the 40s and 50s (F), well below normal. This means delayed blooming and leafing out, particularly for woody plants. In 2013 we had another cool spring, but many shrubs seem to be running about two …
At this time of year the blooms of the spring bulbs tend to get all the glory. But it is also worth paying attention to the tender green growth of later herbaceous plants, as well as the woody plants that are just starting to break bud. This new growth has a freshness and sweetness that …
So this past Saturday I headed to my local Home Depot to buy some of those big brown paper yard waste bags. It was a cold day, about 33 degrees, and the ground was still frozen – but warm enough for some spring clean up. But Home Depot wasn’t going to be distracted by the local …
This past weekend was the first to really feel like spring. Saturday started cold and cloudy, but improved when the sun came out. And Sunday was even – dare I say it? – nice. The snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis and G. elwesii) are blooming and it was warm enough for them to open up their little …
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