A Way to Garden

doodle by andre: sub-tropical separation anxiety

margaret — Wed, 16 May 2012 09:29:58 +0000

IT FEELS LONELY IN HERE, or at least it will by the end of the week when the last of the children (some larger than I am) are all outdoors at summer camp. You’re absolutely right, Andre Jordan; it’s a bit of a shock and will take some getting used to. (And by the way: Was that Jack’s voice you are invoking in the window-as-thought-bubble? To set the record straight: He never calls me darling; it sounds something like “Meow,” which I take to be short for “Margaret” or “Mommy,” not quite sure which.)

garden-tour aftermath: the asked-about plants

margaret — Mon, 14 May 2012 13:48:24 +0000

I AM ALWAYS FASCINATED to hear what visitors comment or ask about on Garden Open Days, the first of which was Saturday and bought 275 new and old friends. I make a bet with myself on which plants it will be that rate the most, “What’s that?” or “I love it” reactions–but this year there were a few new ones on me, even after 15 years of hosting visitors. Want to see what got the most attention (besides the cat)?

Saturday’s event included a giant plant sale by Broken Arrow Nursery (shopping in my own driveway?–divine!) and a triple-homicide performance piece by Jack the Demon Cat (in front of large numbers of guests, of course; he loves an audience almost as much as he loves chipmunks). As ever, my massive stand of common old rhubarb (above) got the most “What is it?” questions of all…but here are the other top contenders:

The Slideshow

Click on the first thumbnail to start the slides, then toggle between images using your keyboard arrows or the ones beside the captions. Links to stories on some of the subjects are included below the slides.

Links to the Favorites

How I grow massive garlic
Bottlebrush buckeye,Aesculus parviflora, beloved multiseason giant
My favorite bawdy primrose, Primula kisoana
Golden cutleaf staghorn sumac, the Tiger Eye Rhus typhina, is in this colorful-leaf shrub slideshow if you want to see the leaves once fully unfurled

Other Tour Dates: Come Visit!

THE GARDEN will be open on June 2 and August 18, and full details are always in my Events Calendar. See you next time?

new: what’s growing at your place? share a photo!

margaret — Sun, 13 May 2012 16:35:44 +0000

FOR YEARS I HAVE WANTED to be able to see your gardens, too, and the to-do item labeled “get public photo-uploader plugin” has been on my website wishlist forever. (Don’t you love it when I talk geek? Even crazier than botanical Latin, isn’t it?) A drum-roll, please: It’s finally here! Now you can post your photos on my website. I always show you my garden–so now how about you show me yours?

My wish for a photo-uploader that you could use to post pictures to A Way to Garden was inspired by my friend Pam Kueber of RetroRenovation, and her wildly popular website about loving the “mid-century modest” home you’re in. (Like how about these 300-plus different reader living rooms–whoa! Can we top that, gardeners?).
In the future I’ll have other community photo events like this–but for now, why don’t we simply start with this theme:

Upload photo(s) of a favorite happy moment in your garden, whether a single plant or a whole scene…

Uploader Tips:

Please set your camera or photo-processing software (like iPhoto or Photoshop) to no bigger than “medium” images, so files aren’t too large — large files really slow down the slideshow for all to view. About 640 pixels wide and 100 kb or slightly smaller is ideal.

Use the “Browse” button below to find the image on your computer, then give it a caption and add your name and location in the blank field as indicated–so perhaps, “My first peony of the season, from Mary’s garden in Columbus.” Then hit the wide gray button “Choose file (ABOVE) then upload by clicking here,” and that’s it.

(2) Even though the uploader DOES work, and you will get a confirmation on the screen, you may also see a message that seems to say otherwise. Just an occasional bug. Simply upload ONCE and trust the image is there — though they will not appear immediately, because…

…All photos must be approved manually by me first, before they go live (to keep all you plant pornographers from breaking decency laws!).

(3) Terms of Use apply to all uploads.

REMEMBER: Medium-sized images only–please no 2000-pixel or 1MB files!!!! 600-900 or so and 100kb is plenty. Thanks.

add description plus nickname

The Happy Garden Moments Gallery

GO AHEAD: Try it. My photo up top (and the first one in the gallery below), taken today, is of Euphorbia griffithii ‘Dixter,’ a plant I’ve grown for more than a dozen years that was said not to be hardy here so I shouldn’t even try. Take that, hardiness naysayers! What’s showy at your place now or from your photo archives? Do show-and-tell. (Click the first thumbnail to see the slides, then toggle between images using your keyboard arrows or the ones beside each caption.)

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