ONLY THE TRULY FEARLESS FLOWERS such as winter aconites, snowdrops and the giant pussy willow have dared to open so far at A Way to Garden, where a certain gardener is growing impatient. But here come the hellebores: Helleborus niger, H. foetidus and my mainstay, the orientalis hybrids, are coming on strong. [read more…]
a plant i’d order: sedum ‘angelina’
April 5, 2009 at 7:40 am
SEDUM ‘ANGELINA’ JUST NEVER STOPS. Maybe that’s why I like it (as in, it takes one to know one). But seriously: What perennial provides such a bright, textural carpet every day of the year, even in my Zone 5B climate—actually, even in the garage all winter, where some of it looked nice in pots all winter long despite the dark deep-freeze treatment? Not that you’re looking for plants to grow in your garage…but wow. [read more…]
how-to slideshow: wake up, cannas, wake up
April 3, 2009 at 8:36 am
OUT OF THE BASEMENT THEY CAME YESTERDAY, the cannas I’d stored after frost last fall. It’s easy to keep these prolific rhizomes year to year and even have plenty to give away. All they ask is a little trimming of the dead bits in early spring, and for a headstart, perhaps potting up now while you wait for the weather to settle. Here’s how it goes, in a slideshow of images from yesterday’s canna cleanup: [read more…]
doodle by andre: ‘you complete me’
April 2, 2009 at 12:15 am
LIKE THAT SCENE FROM ‘JERRY MCGUIRE,’ what does one better half of a worm, er, couple, say to another? Answer: “You complete me.” The mad doodler Andre Jordan’s latest offering also has me singing Peaches and Herb’s 1980 Grammy nominated “Reunited” (“I was a fool to ever leave your side/Me minus you is such a lonely ride”). I will spare you (but it is really funny if you read it looking at the doodle…OK, so I don’t get out much). Perhaps you’ll indulge me in just a few more lines: [read more…]
slideshow: beloved conifers
April 1, 2009 at 9:25 am
S HOPPING FOR PLANTS, ARE WE? Make a stop in the conifer section for the most obvious of year-round-interest garden additions. I wish I’d started planting conifers earlier in my gardening career, but thankfully some of those added this last decade (like the Korean fir, above) have started to really shape up. Shall we have a look, this time in a slideshow? [read more…]
