Month: May 2009
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Garden Design, Planting Techniques, Plants for shade, Spring Flowering Bulbs, Woodland plants
Bluebells on a rainy day…
Hyacinthoides hispanica,’Excelsior’, (Spanish Bluebell), shown here with Pulmunaria saccharata, (Bethlehem sage), and emerging hosta. Native to Spain and Portugal, this blue-beauty is perfect for naturalizing and for planting between late-emerging perennials and beneath trees and shrubs in the garden.  Bluebell bulbs are planted in autumn. A woodland flower by nature, the Spanish bluebell prefers a bit […]
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Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Garden Paths, Perennial Close-Ups
At Ferncliff this week: The wildflower walk and other highlights of late spring…
The wildflower walk, very late May… Although there is a more formal entry to my home, at this time of year I usually take the ‘wildflower’ path through the garden. This seeded walkway was not designed for utility, (there is a much wider walkway along a retaining wall), but as more of a whimsical, meandering […]
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Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Garden Maintenance, Garden Science, Planting Techniques, Vegetable Gardening
The Art & Science of Designing a Vegetable Garden…
Creating a beautiful and bountiful potager A vegetable garden can be an incredible source of pleasure. Â Every sunny morning, my four-legged companions and I take a walk to the potager where we enjoy each other’s company while I sip my morning coffee. Â I like to start my day listening to the mocking bird and watching […]
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Great Growers and Nurseries, Plant hunting
Shopping locally for garden plants supports your community
WALKER FARM Route 5, Dummerston, Vermont – (photo: road-side display and entry) Well here it is again – Memorial Day Weekend. And for many of us, this weekend means it is finally time to shop for warm weather vegetable starts and flowering annuals. What better place to go for plants and free advice than your […]
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Garden Design, Plants for shade, Woodland plants
Beauty in the Shadows
Glaucidium Palmatum Native to Japan, this beautiful perennial prefers light shade and rich, moist earth. Â Glaucidium Palmatum is hardy to zone 4 and can reach 16-24″ in height. Â *****
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Garden Design, Garden Maintenance, Garden Science, Plants for sun, Roses
“That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet”….. Shakespeare
Selecting and Siting Roses in Cold Climates Damask, Moss, or Gallica?  Modern, Old or English? Call them what you will, many gardeners fall in love with roses early on, and the infatuation never ends. The moist, velvety petals and heady fragrance of this fabled flower are powerfully seductive.  It is easy to to understand the allure […]
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Garden Design, Garden Design Photos
May at Ferncliff …
Blooming in the garden this week… woodland phlox, daphne, sweet woodruff… Â Â and more bulbs. Â Fragrance fills the air … Garden design and installation: Michaela H Stonework by Dan Snow ***
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Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Shade Gardening
Designing a Quiet Vignette for a Shady Garden…
Image â“’ Michaela at TGE – No usage without permission Perhaps because I grew up in a bright, sunny home with the bold and colorful flowers my mother chose for her garden, I have always been intrigued by the opposite. Â The allure of the shady nook on a hot summer afternoon is very seductive to […]
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Pruning Trees and Shrubs in the Garden: A Guide for Beginners…
When I think about the most beautiful gardens I have ever seen, my mind’s eye goes not to the flowers or the foliage in these spaces, but to the sculptural shapes of the trees and shrubs. Â I can recall many such stand-outs; a magnificent wisteria, masterfully pruned against a stone wall in Positano, […]
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