I’ve been devouring the spring blooms in Philadelphia over the past 2 weeks. As I take my daily morning walk, I’m amazed at the simple beauty of the plantings in both personal and public spaces. When walking down a city street, window boxes, container plantings, trees judiciously positioned, and pots strategically placed on the steps [...]
At the Laguna Beach Garden Club recently, a young woman came to the book-signing table, introduced herself, and invited me to a nearby nursery where she works. I took her up on it mainly to see the succulents, and didn’t expect such an impressive array of pots. Big ones, little ones, vivid ones, pale ones, [...]
The winners are in for our first Picture This Photo Contest of 2011! Here’s what our tireless judge, David Perry, has to say. “WOW! Great word, but even better feeling. And that is exactly what I feel when I look through this amazing body of work collected here under this one, unifying theme. “Macro In [...]
Garden books that I enjoyed this year and highly recommend as holiday gifts include two about edibles, one in my own area of specialization, one about color and design, and a regional guide I wouldn’t be without. Grocery Gardening by Jean Ann Van Krevelen with Amanda Thomsen, Robin Ripley and Teresa O’Connor (Cool Springs Press, paperback, $19.95) [...]
Structure, to me, is all important in garden making. Without it, a garden usually looks wimpy, mushy, and kind of inconsequential. There are exceptions, of course, but I’m just saying. Anyhow, I like using manufactured items from time to time, but feel as if the basic bones of a garden should come from its plants. So [...]