Woodland plants
-
Chartreuse, Climbing plants, Color in the Garden, companion planting, Dark Plants, Garden Design Photos, Honeybee Friendly Gardening, Hummingbird/Butterfly, Native Plants, Perennials for summer, Plants for sun, Plants for Texture, Studio Garden, Summer Flowering Combinations, Summer Flowering Perennials, Summer flowering shrubs, The Seasons, Vines, Vines - Perennial, Wildflowers and Meadows, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Late Summer’s Bold Crescendo …
The Large Drift of Native Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) in my Garden Glows Bright as the Late Summer Sunset After the recent rain –almost overnight it seems– the gardens have exploded in a new wave of bloom. Stepping out with my morning coffee, I am seduced ’round the corner by the sweet and spicy fragrance […]
Read More -
Autumn, Autumn Color in the Garden, Beneficial Animals and Insects, Birds, Black Leaves - Trees, Black Plants, Color in the Garden, companion planting, Dark Plants, Extending the Growing Season, Ferncliff, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Hydrangea, Perennials : Vermont, Perennials for Autumn, Perennials for summer, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Plants for shade, Plants for sun, Purple and Maroon Foliage, Summer Flowering Combinations, The Seasons, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
The Loveliest Ladies of August: Summer’s Beautiful, Late Bloomers are Well Worth the Wait …
Blush-tinged blossoms and gorgeous, season-spanning foliage make Hydrangea quercifolia one of my favorite native plants (shown here with Juniperus squamata ‘Holger’ and the lingering blue flowers of Adenophora confusa) . Check out this shrub’s autumn coloration here! After last night’s much-needed rain, I awoke to the sound of hermit thrush, sweetly singing in the hemlock […]
Read More -
Asian Natives, Black Plants, Chartreuse, Color in the Garden, companion planting, Dark Plants, Ferncliff, Foliage, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, ornamental grass, Perennial Close-Ups, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Plants for Light Effects, Plants for shade, Secret Garden at Ferncliff, Secret Garden Room, Secret Gardens, Shade Gardening, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Cooling Off in the Dappled Shade: Deepest Violet and Shadow Blue Hues …
Cotinus coggygria ‘Royal Purple’ with Fothergilla x intermedia ‘Blue Shadow’ Out working in the field during this week’s scorching heat and high humidity, I found myself dodging the sun whenever possible; ducking beneath the cover of every shade tree and arbor in order to hide from burning, mid-day rays. Over the past couple of weeks […]
Read More -
Native Plants, Plants for Light Effects, Plants for shade, Shade Gardening, Vines, Vines - Perennial, White & Silver, Woodland plants
Summer’s Luminous White Blossoms Dance in Ethereal Light & Shadow …
Positioned at the woodland edge to catch the late afternoon light, white plumes of Aruncus dioicus and clusters of pearly Valeriana officinalis dance on the breeze like beautiful girls in diaphanous summer dresses … Moving into high summer now –with temperatures soaring and humidity rising– cooler hues and lighter textures have an undeniable appeal. Strolling […]
Read More -
Asian Natives, Hydrangea, Living Walls & Fences, Night Garden, Perennial Close-Ups, Plant Spotlight, Plants for Light Effects, Plants for shade, Shade Gardening, Silver foliage, Vines, Vines - Perennial, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Moonlight & Shadow on the Rocks … Mysterious Japanese Hydrangea Vine
Moonlight & Shadow on the Rocks. Schizophragma hydrangeoides ‘Moonlight’ in The Secret Garden Moonlight Hydrangea Vine. Her name evokes silver-lined clouds in a velvet sky, and midnight strolls through the Secret Garden. I picture a heroine with long tousled tresses, holding a candle by the forest gate. It’s a fairytale of course, and in the […]
Read More -
Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, The Seasons, Tim Geiss, Trees, Trees for Fall Foliage, Trees for Fruit, Uncategorized, Winter Garden, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Native Beauty of the Forest Understory: Our Graceful, Flowering Dogwood …
Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida) Photograph â“’Â Tim Geiss In my work as a garden designer, I am constantly singing the praises of native plants to my clients; encouraging them to soften the edges of their landscape by blurring the boundary between the wild and tame. As an unofficial PR agent for our beautiful  native trees and […]
Read More -
Autumn Color in the Garden, Bee-Friendly Gardens, Beneficial Animals and Insects, Bird Friendly Gardens, Birds, Dining Outdoors, Early spring flowering plants, Early Spring Garden Plants, Fantasy Flowers, Ferncliff, Flowering Trees, Foliage, Garden Design, Hummingbird/Butterfly, Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Nature, North American Trees, Plant Spotlight, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Springtime’s Shimmering Silverbells: Halesia tetraptera in Full Bloom…
Carolina Silverbell (Halesia tetraptera) Carolina Silverbell Blossoms Attract Bumble Bees and Hummingbirds Looking up from the Terrace Dining Table, Into Thousands of Tiny White Bells Halesia tetraptera When it comes to the springtime show in my garden, Carolina Silverbell really knows how to steal the stage. Smothered in […]
Read More -
Ferncliff, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Ground Covers, Native Plants, Nature, Perennials for Autumn, Perennials for Spring, Plant Spotlight, Plants for shade, Plants for Texture, Secret Garden at Ferncliff, Texture, Unusual Plants, Urns and Vessels, Water Gardens, Woodland plants
Dramatic Darmera Peltata: A Native Beauty for Bog Gardens & Damp Shade…
Darmera peltata’s pretty, pink spray of airy inflorescence Darmera peltata… What a lovely, musical name. Often the botanical labels for plants pale by comparison to their intriguing and creative folk monikers. But in this case, I think the name Darmera peltata is far superior to the common alternatives (Indian rhubarb and umbrella plant). Just look […]
Read More -
Climbing plants, Dan Snow Stonework, Early spring flowering plants, Early Spring Garden Plants, Ferncliff, Furniture, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Gardening without Lawn, Ground Covers, ornamental grass, Paths and Walkways, Perennials : Vermont, Perennials for Spring, Plants for shade, Pots, Pots and Pottery, Rare Plants, Reflections, scree gardens, Secret Garden at Ferncliff, Secret Garden Room, Secret Gardens, The Seasons, Woodland plants
A Peek Inside the Misty Moss Walls: Springtime in the Secret Garden …
By May, a cool tapestry of springtime color carpets the Secret Garden path… This week my design studio and office began slowly migrating back down to the Secret Garden Room, where plants and paperwork happily mingle from late spring through early November. Each day on my way to and from appointments, I pass through the […]
Read More -
Perennial Close-Ups, Perennials : Vermont, Perennials for Spring, Plant Spotlight, Plants for shade, Plants for Texture, Secret Gardens, Shade Gardening, Uncategorized, Woodland plants
Lovely, Lavender Lady of the Shadows: The Japanese Wood Poppy Blossoms in The Secret Garden…
Glaucidium palmatum, the Japanese Wood Poppy in my Secret Garden today At times, it felt like a never-ending courtship. I prepared a special spot for her beside the wall; moist, mossy and protected from harsh sunlight and drying winds. I surrounded her with complimentary beauties; maroon leaves and burgundy-tipped ferns. I gave her the darkest, […]
Read More -
Dan Snow Stonework, Early spring flowering plants, Early Spring Garden Plants, Ferncliff, Ferns, flowering shrubs, Secret Garden at Ferncliff, Secret Garden Room, Secret Gardens, Shade Gardening, Shrubs for early spring blossoms, Spring Blooming Bulbs, Spring Ephemerals, Spring Flowering Bulbs, Steps and Stairs - Stone, Stone Walkways, stonework, Woodland plants
The Moment of Spring: A Walk Along The Secret Garden Path in Magical May
Pretty is the Cool Morning Mist; Softening the Landscape and Intensifying the Fragrance of Springtime So busy is the month of May… Days pass so quickly, I can barely remember to flip the pages of my desktop calendar. Things in the garden change rapidly from day to day, and I try to take a different […]
Read More -
Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Nature, New England, Plant Spotlight, Plants for Light Effects, Plants for shade, Plants for sun, shrubs, Shrubs for early spring blossoms, Shrubs for fall color, Shrubs for ornamental fruit, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Please Forgive Me, If I Stop and Stare… But Your Beauty, In This Light, Just Takes My Breath Away…
Like Droplets of Gold: Honey-Scented Blossoms of Lindera benzoin Lingering light and warm breezes… A sweet scent like honey fills the air. It’s springtime, and suddenly I’m falling in love all over again. Lindera, pardon me if I stop and stare… But your beauty, in this light, just takes my breath away. Some evenings in […]
Read More -
Cooking, Cooking with Kids, Ferns, Fiddleheads, Gourmet Garden, Late Autumn Garden, Mushrooms, Native Plants, Nature, Plant hunting, Plant Propagation, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Plants for shade, Recipes, Shiitake Growing, The Seasons, Unusual Plants, Vegetable Gardening, Vegetable Gardening/Potager, Woodland plants
Spring Brunch from the Kitchen Garden: Shirred Eggs with Shiitake & Arugula …
Shirred Eggs with Homegrown Shiitake Mushrooms & Garden-Fresh Arugula I’ve always been a breakfast person. French toast, waffles, eggs, potatoes, pancakes; I enjoy them all. Sometimes, in fact, I would like them all at once. Because of my love affair with breakfast foods, I have developed some pretty liberal ideas about when they should be […]
Read More -
Bulb companions, Paths and Walkways, Perennial Close-Ups, Perennials : Vermont, Perennials for Spring, Perennials for Winter Interest, Plant Spotlight, Plants for Light Effects, Plants for shade, Woodland plants
The Mysterious Moods of ‘Mrs. Moon’…
In the Beginning of the Garden Romance, ‘Mrs. Moon’ (Pulmonaria saccharata) Blushes, Shy and Tender in Spring Rain… Meet ‘Mrs. Moon’, the garden coquette. Hot, cold. Hot, cold. Just when you think you have her figured out, she up and changes her mood. Surely you’ve encountered such a fickle flower; blushing and eager one moment […]
Read More -
Bee-Friendly Gardens, Birds, Books, companion planting, Early spring flowering plants, Early Spring Garden Plants, Ferncliff, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Nature, New England, Perennial Close-Ups, Plant Spotlight, Plants for shade, Secret Gardens, Shade Gardening, Spring Ephemerals, Wildflowers and Meadows, Woodland plants
Ephemeral Woodland Wildflowers & Return of the Ethereal Hermit Thrush…
Red Trillium (Trillium erectum) There’s no place quite like New England for experiencing three seasons in one day. Sunday morning I rose to find a chilly house and snow covered gardens. Soon –with the sun shining brightly outside– temperatures soared to 63°. Breakfast in the snowy garden … Well, why not? I threw open the entryway […]
Read More -
Cocktails, Cooking, Maple Syrup, Recipes, The Seasons, Trees, Trees for Fall Foliage, Vermont, Woodland plants
Early Spring’s Sweetest Things…
The New Sugar Shack at Deer Ridge Farm in Guilford, Vermont Spring, oh spring, where are you? You certainly are a bit coquettish this year; teasing us with early catkins on willow, then snapping us with a sharp, cold sting. Yes, Spring has been withholding many early-season pleasures here in New England, but she always […]
Read More -
Celebrations, Citrus, Cocktails, Full Moon, Native Plants, Nature, New England, North American Trees, Recipes, Vermont, Vernal Equinox, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Oh Sweet, Sweet, Sugar Moon: Celebrate The Vernal Equinox & Celestial Beauty With a Seasonal, Maple Syrup Cocktail…
The Sugar Moon: A Maple Syrup Cocktail to Celebrate the End of Winter & March’s Full Moon at Perigee With the full moon at perigee, Winter’s end and Spring’s beginning, it seems there’s plenty to celebrate this weekend. Last night —eager for a preview of tonight’s celestial events— I took a tour of the local Connecticut […]
Read More -
Farmer's Almanac, Moon, Native North American Woodlands, Nature, New England, The Seasons, Trees, Trees for Fall Foliage, Vermont, Vernal Equinox, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Moonlight on Maple Buds…
Moonlight on Maple Buds Watching the moon rise through bare tree limbs last night, I couldn’t help but notice changes taking place in the forest all around me. By night, swollen maple buds stand out in soft silhouette against the sky’s moonlit glow. And by day, hillsides filled with reddish twigs color the landscape in […]
Read More -
Arnold Arboretum, Asian Natives, Autumn, Autumn Color in the Garden, Bee-Friendly Gardens, Color in the Garden, flowering shrubs, Flowering Trees, Hamamelis, Hardy shrubs, Massachusetts, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Gardening, Witch hazel, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Arnold’s Promise of Springtime…
Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold’s Promise’ is stunning against the blue sky on a late winter day Though it’s a bit grey and dreary here today —melancholy low fog and freezing drizzle— the promise of spring is in the air. A sure sign? Sweetly scented Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold’s Promise’. This gorgeous shrub literally lights up the […]
Read More -
Beneficial Animals and Insects, Berries, Bird Friendly Gardens, Birds, Foliage, Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Nature, New England, shrubs, Shrubs for fall color, Shrubs for ornamental fruit, Shrubs for Winter Interest, Shrubs with Textural Bark, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Gardening, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
The Living Garden: Crow Feasting Upon Staghorn Sumac Berries…
Crows feasting upon native staghorn sumac berries (Rhus typhina) in my garden this morning… This morning while lingering over my breakfast, I heard some loud caw-caw-cawing coming from the edge of the back garden, and then noticed a pair of American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) enjoying an early meal of fruit from staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina). […]
Read More -
Ferncliff, flowering shrubs, Flowering Shrubs and Trees for Forced Flowers, Forcing Branches in Winter, Fragrance, Hamamelis, Hardy shrubs, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Nature, New England, North American Trees, Uncategorized, Winter Garden, Winter Gardening, Witch hazel, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
The Sweet Scent of Springtime: Bewitching Hamamelis Vernalis…
Sweetly Fragrant Hamamelis Vernalis: North American Native Vernal Witch Hazel, Cut from My Garden and Forced Inside Copper-Orange Tassels of Witch Hazel Glow in the Afternoon Light March, much like November, is a different month every year in New England. Some seasons, March skies are grey and late winter winds are cold; heavy snow falling […]
Read More