UH-OH. WHAT IF WE GET THE GARDEN ALL DRESSED UP, and then nobody shows? Tours of (disclaimer) The Garden After the Flood are next scheduled for Saturday, August 22, 10 AM to 4 PM, during Copake Falls Day (that would be my town’s second annual shindig). Look for details on their site; find the village, just off Route 22 In Columbia County, New York, and they will point you here. Or ask Andre. He seems to have a read on how it’s all going to go. Damn.
THE LECTURE that he’s been giving for a number of years is not-so-subtly called “Kill Your Lawn.” Ecological horticulturist Dan Jaffe Wilder knows that starting over and creating an entire native habitat instead of a lawn isn’t for everyone. But Dan just wants to grab our attention and get us to start to make some changes at least in the way we care for the turfgrass we do want in our landscapes. And maybe give up a little square footage of it to some other kind of more diverse planting, too, like the wild strawberries (Fragaria virginiana, inset). Alternative, more eco-focused styles of lawn care, along with some lawn alternatives is what he and I talked about on the podcast. Dan is Director of Applied Ecology at Norcross Wildlife Foundation in Wales, Massachusetts, and its 8,000-acre sanctuary. He’s also co-author with Mark Richardson of the book “Native Plants for New England Gardens.”
(Stream it below, read the illustrated transcript or subscribe free.)
Oh my god, how sad. Andre, how English of you. I don’t see Margaret as the girl in a party dress with a faded bouquet in her hand waiting for the guests that never arrive. I suggest an alternate more ‘American’ style doodle with SUVs galore tearing up the lawns and teams of nosey lookey loos pressing their noses against the house windows. Sound more familiar, Margaret?
I will certainly be there. When I visited in June I exclaimed to my companion, “I’d love to see later in the year! I’ll have to sneak back and peek through the fence.”
Thankfully I won’t have to resort to stalking procedures.
Ha Brian G. Yes, very english of me.
haha. This is how I feel about my blog sometimes. Margaret will have no worries.
Surely Margaret won’t have that problem. I think we’d all be there with bells on if we were close enough.
But probably everyone, if old enough, has experienced the stunning lack of enthusiasm about a get together… A sad but true part of the life experience!
Margaret – I’ll be there – but only in spirit cuz I am geographically challenged by living out here in the great Pacific NW.
I anticipate seeing your post-tour photos – you WILL do this, of course?? ;-} Someday, I really want to see your gardens…someday…
Andre – I love your Doodles and look forward to them EVERY Thursday – Thank you!
@CovintgonKat: Yes, good reminder…I will have to take some pictures and make a little “tour.” With the insane weather (the inverse of yours) I am not sure what of, exactly…so much damage to things. But there are always little moments to capture, right? I will go looking!
The cartoon makes me think of a garden tour that I have gone on a few times in North West Connecticut. The garden has been the subject of a book , and has had many articles written about it. The first time I went, it was MAGICAL, and exciting, I WAS THERE! The second time I went, was a month later with the Garden Conservancy tours. That time I noticed a lot of things that I had missed the first time, and it was interesting to see how the garden had progressed in one month. The third time I had gone, It reminded me of the B.B. KING song “The Thrill is GONE”. It had become like my own garden, that I have seen a million time. It was still beautiful and Magical, BUT only to someone else. I think a garden, or a lot of things relating to style have to have a bit of exclusiveness, to keep them desirable. MYTH is more important than TRUTH, when it comes to a lot of things in “Show Business”. For the person that has seen Margaret’s garden this spring, it will be an interesting thing if they return. In May the garden was ALL FRESH with new growth of young plants that had just emerged, BUT now at the end of the growing season, it will be a MATURE garden of plants that , no matter how well maintained, have got old, and in a lot of ways passed their prime. As I have said in other articles, the garden window is always changing. I do think that Margaret’s blog will bring in people that would not , most likely, have gone to the Copake Falls Day, and the Copake Falls Day will bring in people that would not, Most Likely, have gone on a garden tour. This is a Win- Win situation for both. Let’s look for a SUNNY day for the “Cup Cake Falls” event!
I love the idea of mom and stray dog…..unconditional love from both. Never open garden up to strangers after one nazi gardener too many commented on the wildlife in garden. Be nice or leave is my welcome sign.
That dog in the doodle can come to live with us.
This really happens. It rained 3 inches on my open garden day this year, and 14 people came. I have learned the meaning of “fair weather friends.” I also have a new life rule to visit open gardens despite the weather because I know how it feels to give a party when no one comes. And I had baked 24 dozen cookies………..
Hello there Margaret, I live over here next door in Greene County. I was planning on attending this weekend to view your gardens but, do I have to register somewhere?
I am really looking forward to it!
Welcome, Todd. No, everything (except food that will be sold down in the village for those who want it) is free at Copake Falls Day. Look at the site http://copakefallsday.org for a complete list of goings-on. As you know being a neighbor this has been aboutt he wackiest most impossible garden year ever, but everyone always has a good time and there will be something still upright to look at (maybe not me). Now back out to edge/weed/mow/water/rake more…
Hey Margaret, Will your gardens be open tomorrow with all the rain?
If so I will be sure to bring my rubber boots!