Month: June 2012
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Fragrant Fern, Damp Moss & Fantaisie: Summer Rain in the Secret Garden…
Inside My Secret Garden: Earthy Fragrance of Damp Moss & Fern, Verdant Hues & Cool, Moist Air {In Mexican Terra Cotta: Ligularia ‘Osiris Fantaisie’ & Athyrium nipponicum ‘Pictum’} Although the shady Secret Garden outside my studio door is a welcome retreat on hot summer days, sometimes I feel it is actually most alluring in the […]
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Aviation, MA, Massachusetts, Nature, New England
Stepping Through the Looking Glass… Earth from Above: A Birds-Eye-View
Behold, A Magical-Mirror Keyhole, Visibly Only from the Sky… Unlocking the Door to Another World, High Above Treetops… Travel with Me, Through the Looking Glass… Where Suddenly You are a Giant; Gazing Upon Tiny Buildings & Trees… Slipped away from work on a Monday afternoon —ignoring teetering piles, all needing to be filed, on the […]
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Annual Flowers, annuals, Container Gardening, Dark Plants, Exotic Plants, Fantasy Flowers, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Perennials for summer, Studio Garden, Succulents, Succulents in Containers
Bye, Bye Boring… Hello Blackbird! Euphorbia Euphoria in Pots
Euphorbia hybrid ‘Blackbird’: Here on the Studio Balcony in an Oxblood Pot with Senecio mandraliscae and Sedum ‘Sunset Cloud’ Oh my, would you look at this smoldering, velvety loveliness! What a dark, gorgeous beauty! From the moment I saw this stunning spurge, my heart went a flutter and all I could think was, “Bye, bye boring […]
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Celebrations, Dining Outdoors, Summer Solstice, Summertime Cocktails, The Seasons
In the Good Old Summer Time…
Summer Time in the Wildflower Walk. Read About Oli’s Wondrous Wildflower Walk Here Long days, balmy nights, bare feet and the smell of freshly mown grass: summer time at last. And now, with the rush of spring time planning and planting behind us, it’s time to begin reaping the garden’s rich rewards. Step inside the […]
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Summer Solstice, Summertime Cocktails, The Seasons
A Kiss Goodbye: Farewell to Springtime
An Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly Visits the Mountain Laurel Along the Secret Garden Path Early this morning, warm sunlight streaming through dewy fog lifting from the valley, I slipped outside for my last springtime walk through the garden. The seasons change tonight —7:09 pm ET marking the Summer Solstice and the longest day of the […]
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Secret Garden at Ferncliff, Secret Garden Room, Secret Gardens, shrubs, stonework, Studio Garden
Slip Beyond the Misty Walls & Linger Within My Secret Garden…
Weigela florida ‘Red Prince’ Tumbling Over the Secret Garden Wall. Stonework by Vermont Artist Dan Snow. Read More About W. florida  by Clicking Here. It’s mid-June —showtime for some of the season’s prettiest perennials, flowering trees and shrubs— and the garden is always dressed to the nines. Even within the shady depths of my Secret Garden […]
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Beneficial Animals and Insects, Frogs and Toads
All Hail the Prince…
Prince Pickerel has Returned to His Summer Home in My Secret Garden His Highness, Prince Pickerel of The Secret Garden, has returned to his summertime throne. You may recall earlier mentions of this copper-clad charmer from summers past; particularly this post on the pickerel frog, from August 2010. Welcome Home! All Hail the Prince! Photographs […]
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Bee-Friendly Gardens, Butterflies and Moths, Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Nature, Wildflowers and Meadows
Wild Blue: The Beauty of Baptisia…
The Beauty of North American Native Plants: Wild Blue Indigo (Baptisia australis) & Goat’s Beard (Aruncus dioicus) in My Garden. This Flowering Combo is Backed Up by “Nativars” (Native Plant Cultivars):Â Juniperus virginiana ‘Grey Owl’ &Â Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Diablo’ In my work as garden designer, I often find myself doing overtime as PR agent for native plants. […]
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The Scent of Peonies in Rain…
The Last of the Golden Tree Peony Blossoms Add Glorious Warmth and Fragrance to the Secret Garden on a Rainy Day (Paeonia moutan x lutea ‘High Noon’, and at Her Feet: Euphorbia cyparissias ‘Fen’s Ruby’, Heuchera ‘Stormy Seas’, Hakonechloa macra ‘All Gold’. Peonies. As a gardener, I confess that they are my great weakness. When […]
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Annual Flowers, Bee-Friendly Gardens, Beneficial Animals and Insects, Bird Friendly Gardens, Birds, Butterflies and Moths, Caterpillars, flowering shrubs, Flowering Trees, Garden Design, Hummingbird Moth, Hummingbird/Butterfly
In Praise of the Poetic Papillon: Attracting Butterflies, Moths & Other Pollinators to the Garden…
Red-Spotted Purple Butterfly (Limenitis arthemis) in My Wildflower Meadow, Visiting Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota) Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly (Papilio glaucus) on Lilac Blossoms (Syringa vulgaris ‘Mme. Lemoine’ ) in My Garden- Read More About This Lovely Butterfly in My Previous Post by Clicking Here. Fritillary on Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) – Read More About This […]
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