Tag: Forsythia
Tulip Season Begins
Today I am a happy man, for the tulip season has begun in earnest in our garden. What, you say, tulip season in the middle of April? Yes, indeed. First, Tulipa kaufmanniana ‘Early Harvest’ has come into its own, blooming in both beds and containers. The no neck phase was just a period of awkward …
Spring Out of Sync
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 …
An Early May Walk Through the Chicago Botanic Garden
Last Saturday morning, after finishing my class at the Chicago Botanic Garden, I walked outside and realized that it was a perfect day. Perfect days have been few and far between this spring, so I called Judy and asked her to come up and meet me so we could take a walk and enjoy the …
Forsythia: For Or Against?
Forsythia bushes bursting with bright yellow flowers is a common springtime sight in this part of the world, a sight that lifts the spirits of many. Yet not everyone loves forsythia. The anti-forsythia camp argues for an indictment of this shrub on the following counts: An exotic, it is of little wildlife value in North …
End of Month View: April 2013
Helen at The Patient Gardener‘s Weblog hosts a meme called End of Month View, which is pretty much what is suggested by the title. This is a very useful exercise because I am often tempted to show close ups of a particular plant or a grouping of plants. Wider views of different sections of the …
Grouse About The Rain, And This Is What You Get
So apparently the weather gods took note of my last post complaining about our torrential rains and flooding. The weather gods don’t appreciate malcontents. Yesterday I drove home from downstate. Flooded roads and highways turned my usual four hour drive into an eight hour trek. When I woke up at home the next morning, the …
Weekend Garden Notes: Blooms, Buds, and Pots
A Fine Weekend for Gardening The sun was shining and the temperature was mostly pleasant. It got all the way up to 69 F (21 C) on Saturday. Today was cooler, in the mid 50s (13 C), but still darn nice. To make the weather even more perfect, we got some rain Saturday night, much …
Weekend Garden Notes: Is It Spring Yet?
Yes, technically, it is. But it is still by no means spring-like. The ground is still mostly frozen. Yesterday was sunny, but had a high of 37 degrees F (3 C). Today is gloomy and windy, and snow is expected tonight and tomorrow. However, you can’t keep a good (or at least an obsessive) gardener …
Physocarpus, Heal Thyself
So last night I went to the first class of the new course I’m taking at the Chicago Botanic Garden, “Introduction to Plant Health”. Actually, I thought it was the first class – really, it was the third class. I was confused about the date due to the parallel space-time continuum I enter whenever there …
gardeninacity 