Plants we love, hate, or just have something to say about.
April is the cruellest month.
April is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire, [...]
A salute to forsythia in poetry and prose
With a poem by Barbara Browne Ah, forsythia. It’s brief season is coming to a close here in Western New York, but over the past couple weeks I think I [...]
A Fool’s April
The bubbling fountain came last, the watery finish to a wonderfully sunny day spent playing in the dirt. Sure, spring had officially arrived a few days earlier, but to me [...]
Tulip Fever
An Easter Treat: There's only one flower which makes me catch my breath on sight. Well, at least that's as far as I can remember at this time of year. [...]
Video: Pollinators in My Front Garden
In a recent post I revealed the uptick in "pollinator action" in my townhouse front garden, thanks to suggestions that GardenRant readers made (to this post) for more critter-friendly annuals [...]
RIP To My Favourite Tree
I've been visiting the Royal Horticultural Society's garden at Rosemoor in Devon, UK, for 20 years or more now. Over that time I've seen many changes, some grand and some [...]
Warning: Removing English Ivy from Trees May Become Addictive
Does YOUR town have English ivy covering trees in its most prominent public spots? Well, MINE SURE DOES, which I finally got sick of looking at and decided to do [...]
Orchids Belong in this Museum Courtyard
This week I got to see the 28th Annual Orchid Exhibition by Smithsonian Gardens and the U.S. Botanic Garden, and since I'm no orchid expert (understatement alert), can I just [...]
Defending Bad Taste
I'm absolutely amazed by how many plants there are. I know the plants in my garden well; I have paid for them and chose them above others. Yet every time [...]
Favour the Fern
Many years ago The Financial Times sent me to do a feature on the RHS ‘Flower Show’ at Tatton Park . I was totally naïve and had no idea what [...]
Chilly Sweet Peas
My family heirloom vase waits all year for sweet pea posies. Anyone who has spent a few growing seasons with me will tell you, sweet peas are my [...]