FROGBOY IS HANDSOME, isn’t he? I’m pretty sure I’m really in love this time.
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Juicy Bits
375 VISITORS, 1 BIG RHODIE: spring garden open day, in a virtual visit. How it looked, and also what they all asked about
keeping deer out DEER FENCE: I tried every potion and anti-deer trick till I finally got real and fenced. Strategies for every garden situation.
secrets to great tomatoes TOMATO TIPS, seed to harvest: Dozens of tricks for a better crop.
yes, even in dry shade MY 4 TOUGHEST GROUNDCOVERS perform even in the worst spots, like dry shade. Maybe these tough perennials will serve you as well?
5 great small trees GARDEN-SIZED TREES can’t just be the right scale; they need to have multi-season interest, too, to earn a spot here. Maybe you have room for one of my 5 favorites?
10 underplanting do’s and don’ts MAKING MOSAICS—that’s what I call good underplanting of trees and shrubs with a tapestry of plants for many months of enjoyment. Here’s how I do it.
a ribbeting bullfrog whodunit LET BULLFROGS BE BYGONES? No way. Where have all my biggest frogboys gone? The latest frog mystery explained.
stars of the spring shrubbery BEYOND LILACS (and forget forsythia!), a slideshow of some of the finest spring shrubs you may not grow (yet).
speeding up the compost DRIVE BY, HIT-AND-RUN composting is my latest craze, and speeds up the decomposition process while making good mulch quickly. Here’s how.
making a 365-day garden THINK FALL (YES, FALL): Don’t get sucked in by spring-bloomers only when nursery shopping. A great garden happens 365 days a year: Shop smart to make it so.
the facts about bulbs SOMETHING UP with a flower bulb? Paltry bloom, or wondering when to feed or cut off the foliage? It’s all here.
must-read garden poem MY FAVORITE GARDEN POEM celebrates loss, one of gardening (and life’s) realities. It does it with humor: "Why Did My Plant Die?” is a must-read.
12 steps to sanity? HELP FOR GARDENERS: Hi, my name is Margaret, and yes, we operate a 12-Step program here. Welcome.
orchid rebloom made easy I REBLOOMED MY FIRST ORCHID last year (finally!) and it turns out to be pretty easy going. Here’s how.
my seed-starting 101 WHAT ABOUT SEED-STARTING in general? The A Way to Garden method.
crispy refrigerator pickles WHAT IS IT ABOUT refrigerator pickles that makes everybody so happy? Get those cukes growing now. And then some.
hail the stewartia I LIKE PLANTS THAT EARN THEIR KEEP. By that I mean they do more than a week or two of showing off; they look good in more than a single moment, or season. The small-ish to medium trees in the genus Stewartia are a good bet if that’s the kind of multi-season interest you are looking for. Sound good?
can-do pruning REPEAT AFTER ME: I can prune. I can prune. If you follow this simple method for starters, your woody plants will thank you.
the ‘other’ peonies JUNE IS PEONY TIME, the big raucous kind of peony time, but just before that another kind of peony you might want to consider adopting does its subtler, wonderful thing.
which lilac to plant? SO MANY LILACS, so little space. Browse a glossary of some of my favorites before you shop—maybe you’ll like them, too.
keeping deer out DEER FENCE: I tried every potion and anti-deer trick till I finally got real and fenced. Strategies for every garden situation.
secrets to great tomatoes TOMATO TIPS, seed to harvest: Dozens of tricks for a better crop.
yes, even in dry shade MY 4 TOUGHEST GROUNDCOVERS perform even in the worst spots, like dry shade. Maybe these tough perennials will serve you as well?
5 great small trees GARDEN-SIZED TREES can’t just be the right scale; they need to have multi-season interest, too, to earn a spot here. Maybe you have room for one of my 5 favorites?
10 underplanting do’s and don’ts MAKING MOSAICS—that’s what I call good underplanting of trees and shrubs with a tapestry of plants for many months of enjoyment. Here’s how I do it.
a ribbeting bullfrog whodunit LET BULLFROGS BE BYGONES? No way. Where have all my biggest frogboys gone? The latest frog mystery explained.
stars of the spring shrubbery BEYOND LILACS (and forget forsythia!), a slideshow of some of the finest spring shrubs you may not grow (yet).
speeding up the compost DRIVE BY, HIT-AND-RUN composting is my latest craze, and speeds up the decomposition process while making good mulch quickly. Here’s how.
making a 365-day garden THINK FALL (YES, FALL): Don’t get sucked in by spring-bloomers only when nursery shopping. A great garden happens 365 days a year: Shop smart to make it so.
the facts about bulbs SOMETHING UP with a flower bulb? Paltry bloom, or wondering when to feed or cut off the foliage? It’s all here.
must-read garden poem MY FAVORITE GARDEN POEM celebrates loss, one of gardening (and life’s) realities. It does it with humor: "Why Did My Plant Die?” is a must-read.
12 steps to sanity? HELP FOR GARDENERS: Hi, my name is Margaret, and yes, we operate a 12-Step program here. Welcome.
orchid rebloom made easy I REBLOOMED MY FIRST ORCHID last year (finally!) and it turns out to be pretty easy going. Here’s how.
my seed-starting 101 WHAT ABOUT SEED-STARTING in general? The A Way to Garden method.
crispy refrigerator pickles WHAT IS IT ABOUT refrigerator pickles that makes everybody so happy? Get those cukes growing now. And then some.
hail the stewartia I LIKE PLANTS THAT EARN THEIR KEEP. By that I mean they do more than a week or two of showing off; they look good in more than a single moment, or season. The small-ish to medium trees in the genus Stewartia are a good bet if that’s the kind of multi-season interest you are looking for. Sound good?
can-do pruning REPEAT AFTER ME: I can prune. I can prune. If you follow this simple method for starters, your woody plants will thank you.
the ‘other’ peonies JUNE IS PEONY TIME, the big raucous kind of peony time, but just before that another kind of peony you might want to consider adopting does its subtler, wonderful thing.
which lilac to plant? SO MANY LILACS, so little space. Browse a glossary of some of my favorites before you shop—maybe you’ll like them, too.
latest tweets
never stop wanting more plants, my garden mentor instilled in me 20-plus
years ago, regularly reminding me of another gardener, past 90, who still lusts
for every new thing he can get a cutting of. I promise not to, until I myself
am back in the soil.
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Have you tried kissing him yet? Who knows what will happen!
Ah what a sweet face. I love frogs(-:
Man…I’m pretty sure that no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t attract a frog to my garden (I live in an urban area). Very cute!
Nice! I can’t believe he sat still long enough to pose for his portrait. We have a toad who LOVES to sun himself on our laundry room steps, but he hightails it whenever we try sneak up with a camera.
Now Kitt, you know I’m not the type to kiss and tell.
As far as how to attract men of this caliber, all I did was (years ago) put in a water garden, a little pool of less than 2000 gallons with a little spillway/waterfall. Everybody in the Peterson’s Guide to Eastern Forests (the volume listing plants/animals of my area) showed up in Year 1, as if an invite had been sent. Amazing.
i am most certainly in love!
I have three toads in my garden…I’m obsessed with them all.
Welcome, Wendy, and also welcome, Katherine. Funny how these zen masters of the animal kingdom really get to us, huh?
A lot of them will let me pet them, and even pick them up, and I even get to hold the occasional salamander on especially magical days. A funny place, this is.
What a great site. We live in Michigan…get only 90 days of nice weather a year, so we live for flowerboxes, raised gardens, and all the beauty one can squeeze in each of the 90! Nice piece on the toads…we just discovered one that looks like it’s 75 years old!
He sure is. It good to see your blog is doing good since you started it. Congrats on the 3 mos
Welcome, Tom (and thank you, Curtis).
As for old-soul toads, well, yes, exactly. Don’t they look wise and patient and like they have been around forever and know it all?
Fern, we used to have lots of tree frogs in our Sacramento backyard, even though it was an urban area. I think someone must have had a pond or pool or something, but I wonder how they got there.
He looks sad. Or is that a pouty-kinda-sexy face? Either way: “ribbit.”
Welcome, GardenGrrrl. I had a close encounter with a tree frog not so long ago. Apparently they like cream cheese with their bagels.
Fern, even a little pond will attract froggies. Mine is not much more than 450 gallons — a big hole, a liner, a pump and filters, rocks, water, fish and plants, plus patience, and I have so many frogs that I’m afraid my neighbors (I live in town) will call the police because after it rains, I’m pretty sure the froggies violate the city noise ordinance!
Margaret, Be careful about kissing that fellow! We listened to a book on CD: “The Frog Princess,” on our way to Yellowstone NP and the results of frog kissing can be frightening! He (or she) is a really cute frog though.
diana
We have a colony of similar amphibious guests taking over the small but apparently attractive dug pond of our country house. Peepers and toads galore! And masses of tempting tadpoles amid the escaped goldfish … which might explain the great blue heron’s visits.
There are so many miracles in a garden. We lived most of our lives in an old Spanish Colonisl Revival house. It had a walled garden with a small pool, and one morning, a frog. How did he get there? He seemed happy enough, though shy of us. Was he lonely?
He is a beauty. You build a pond and they will come! I have some big ones at mine! Who doesn’t love a frog. Big mouth, no teeth, always smiling!
This is my first visit to your blog and I see that you got to visit and document gorgeous gardens! Wow, and they even paid you for that.
Very “right living”, I have to say.
I write garden articles (Victorian Homes and Country Woman have 2 articles by me this summer) but no one is sending me around the country to be surrounded by beauty :)
I love green froggies and brown toads too. Such good garden residents.
He is so cute. Every evening I have two tree frogs that hang out on my back livng room window.
Welcome, Terra and welcome to you, too, Sam.
@Terra: I am hoping that my new pared-down life is even more right-living than before…we shall see. Those were good days, and these are, too.
@Sam: From inside the glass I guess you get to see how those suction-cups on their feet work, yes? Wild.
What a handsome fellow! I grew up with a brook in my backyard. We had tadpoles, frogs, sunfish and minnows. My mom had to beg me to come in. I miss it so.
you are certainly the pied piper of frogs, miss margaret.
Welcome, Banana! I assume you are gardening in the tropics? Hard to grow a good banana here, but frogs I am very successful with, a bumper crop each year of beautiful big (noisy) boys.
That is an amazing frog pic!
I have caught a few this season too. Check them out!
Great blog,
Enjoy reading your posts.
Regards,
ESP.
Welcome, ESP. I have just traveled to your place in Texas to meet George and Mildred. Great photos, and I love the dialog. Hope to see you again soon.
What a great photo!
I love that picture. Sooooo cute!!
Welcome, Katie. I can see that you have VERY good taste in men. :)