Recent Posts
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Beneficial Animals and Insects, Butterflies and Moths, Costa Rica, Frogs and Toads, snakes, Spiders, Travel
Deep Forest: Exploring the Heart of Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica . . .
This Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii), is a mostly arboreal/nocturnal resident of Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica. Though its venom is highly toxic, this snake is non-aggressive and its bite is rarely fatal to humans. Still, I observed the colorful beauty from a distance and zoomed in with my camera for a close-up look. Learn more […]
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A Return to Costa Rica’s Pura Vida: Field Notes from a Tropical Paradise . . .
Color-Saturated Beauty: Costa Rica from Above Descending Over Fields and Farmland Northwest of San Jose, Costa Rica There’s talk of a snowstorm to greet the first day of spring back home in New England. Cruel, and yet, it seems so far away, now that I’ve shed my snowshoes and winter wool in favor of flip […]
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Baking, Coffee, Cooking, Recipes, The Seasons, Winter, Winter Garden
Caramel-Drizzled, Spiced Coffee Cake, Daylight Savings & Winter’s Last Hurrah
 Caramel-Drizzled Coffee Cake Takes the Edge Off a Winter Storm Late winter snow storms are real heart-breakers. And it seems that, no matter how many times we’re hit by an early March ‘weather event’, I’m always caught by surprise. Songbirds are returning, buds are swelling on trees, and clocks are about to spring forward to […]
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Coffee Cultivation, Costa Rica
Cool Beans: Stroll Through Costa Rica’s Finca Rosa Blanca Coffee Plantation & Glimpse the Beauty of Harvest Season. . .
 Late Afternoon Sunlight Streams Through Banana Leaves at Beautiful Finca Rosa Blanca, A Certified Organic Coffee Plantation in Costa Rica  Freshly Harvested Coffee Berries at Finca Rosa Blanca Plantation, Costa Rica  Ripe, red Caffea arabica berries signal the beginning of harvest season at Finca Rosa Blanca Coffee Plantation. Coffee berries, or “cherries”, are picked during the dry […]
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Forward, March . . .
 Not just yet, but in a matter of weeks, the Witch Hazels will begin to bloom (Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Pallida’ in March of 2012). Read more about spring blooming Witch Hazels in my previous post, here. Although March belongs, in large part, to Winter, this never seems to stop Spring from sending flirtatious hints our […]
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The Seasons, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Garden Design, Winter Gardening
Farewell to February . . .
 A Soft, Snowy Farewell on the Last Day of February A foot of new snow fell on the hilltop yesterday, coating the last morning of February in a blanket of soft white. With longer days and warmer temperatures ahead, there’s much to look forward to in March. But for now, there’s the beautiful stillness of […]
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Aerial Photography, The Seasons, Winter
Love The One You’re With . . . Renewing My Appreciation Of Winter
 Snowshoeing the Woodland Trails . . . Time is relative, and it always seems to pass most slowly when you’re waiting. At this time of year, many of us in New England start to feel a bit down. Winter is a long season here, and in spite of what the calendar might say, it often […]
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Unusual Plants, Valentines Day Flowers
Hello Lover, Won’t You Be Mine?
Express Your Heartfelt Passion with Some Pizazz: Guzmania ‘Luna’ (Read More About Beautiful Bromeliads Here) It’s almost Valentine’s Day and everything, everywhere, is coming up roses. Yes, a rose is a rose is a rose, and by any other name it would certainly smell as sweet. But when it comes to expressing your love with […]
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Wild Animals, Winter, Winter Garden
A Tiny Garden Guest, Cloaked in White
Mustela erminea, Commonly Known as an Ermine, Short-Tailed Weasel or Stoat Meet the beautiful, white-cloaked ermine (Mustela erminea), also commonly known as the stoat or short-tailed weasel. This curious, swift-moving mammal —closely related to ferrets, weasels, otters, wolverines and badgers— is native to the woodlands, mountainous regions, wetlands and moors of North America, Europe, Asia […]
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White Witch, Winter, Winter - Preparations
Fast Forward into Stormy February . . .
Canada Geese Slip & Slide on Thin Ice – Barton Cove, Gill, Massachusetts I simply can not believe that an entire week has passed… My goodness we are already well into February! And have you heard? There’s a big storm brewing on the east coast. They’re calling it Nemo. Sounds rather ominous, doesn’t it? I […]
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January Twilight . . .
Wolf Moon Rise in the Twilight Mist of Condensation-Coated Glass Is this really the last week of January? Impossible! The weeks have flown by with several exciting garden designs on my drafting table and daily painting sessions in my studio. It’s been a busy month, and I’ve been away from my computer. Good to take […]
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Bark, Color in the Garden, Conifers, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Garden Design, Winter Gardening
Brightening the Winter Landscape with Bold Bark & Colorful Conifers . . .
A Shot of Luminous Color in the Wintry Landscape: Cornus sericea Lights Up the Entry Garden in January It’s easy to create a colorful garden in June, but can beds and borders still be bright in January? Of course! While undoubtably more subdued than midsummer, a midwinter landscape can include a complex variety of hues. […]
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January Inside the Sky . . .
Light. Texture. Pattern. The sky offers a bit of fresh perspective; revealing the beauty of Winter’s bones. High above the valley —retracing fields, roads, rivers— the familiar becomes strange, and the strange becomes familiar, once again… Photography and Text â“’ Michaela Medina/The Gardener’s Eden. All images, articles and content on this site (with noted exceptions), […]
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The Warmth of January Sunlight . . .
Sunrise in the Winter Garden When the Honey-Gold Sun Pours Warm Over the Garden, Winter Can Be So Lovely Snow-Dusted Boulders, Consumed by a Web of Climbing Hydrangea (H. petiolaris), Illuminated by Winter’s Sunglight And the Paper Birch, Delight of White, Vertical Line, Dance in a Sparkling Swirl of Backlit Flurries (Betula papyrifera) A Winter’s […]
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Wishing You A Very Happy New Year!
Here’s to a Fantastic 2013! Photography and Text â“’ Michaela Medina/The Gardener’s Eden. All images, articles and content on this site (with noted exceptions), are the original, copyrighted property of The Gardener’s Eden and may not be reposted, reproduced or used in any way without prior written consent. Contact information is in the left side […]
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Romancing the Full, Cold Moon . . .
The Full, Cold Moonset: December 28th, 2012 In the hour just before dawn this morning, I pulled on my winter boots and trudged out into the drifting snow to greet the full, Cold Moon as it set on the western horizon. Did you miss it? Well you’ll have another chance this evening. Moonrise tonight is […]
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The Seasons, White Witch, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Solstice
Dramatically Draped in Sequins & Lace, In Swept the White Witch of Winter…
Winter Swept in Upon a Blue Velvet Evening … Winter is a drama-queen. In she sweeps on her snowy chariot, with a chilly air. She bears little resemblance to her sisters; coquettish Springtime, carefree Summer, or even melancholy Autumn. Wrapped in sheer white lace and silver sequins, Winter certainly possesses bare-boned beauty and elegance, but […]
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Song of the Solstice . . .
Lighting the Longest Night And Welcoming Winter’s Soft Beauty … Crystal-Crusted Maiden Grass Sunspots and Snow-Blasted Birch Ice-Laced Viburnum Branches … Stonework: Dan Snow Garden Design & Installation: Michaela Medina Harlow Photography and Text â“’ Michaela Medina/The Gardener’s Eden. All images, articles and content on this site (with noted exceptions), are the original, copyrighted property […]
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Searching for Homemade Gift Ideas? Create a Terrarium: Verdant, Misty Garden Beneath Glass!
To Deck the Halls or Wrap and Give: A Simple, Homemade Terrarium. Click Here for Easy Tutorial. Now that the holiday season has arrived, I find that my free hours are spent stringing lights, gathering evergreen boughs and decorating the house and garden for ongoing festivities. And like most everyone else, my mind is occupied […]
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Welcoming December . . .
Sunrise Flurries and a Fresh New Month Welcome December. Late Autumn greets Winter as we prepare to celebrate the coming solstice. Long, dark nights bring flickering candles to the dinner table and twinkling lights along the garden paths. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be gathering pinecones, winterberry, evergreen boughs and bittersweet for wreaths, swags and […]
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Autumn Color in the Garden, Autumn Garden Design, Color in the Garden, Conifers, Flower Seeds, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Hardy Succulents, Hoar Frost, Holiday Decorating, Late Autumn Garden, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Perennial Close-Ups, Perennial Garden Design, Perennial Garden Maintenance, Perennials : Vermont, Perennials for Autumn, Perennials for Winter Interest, Shrubs for ornamental fruit, Shrubs for Winter Interest, Succulents, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Gardening, Woody Plants
Crystal-Coated & Sugar Plum Kissed . . . . Late Night Garden Party with Jack Frost
The Entry Walk and Ledges, Sparkling in Sunlight After Jack Frost’s Midnight Ball I love surprises. A life lived predictably seems terribly boring to me and a garden kept under tight control leaves little room for romance. For months now, I’ve been encouraging readers to leave seed pods and other garden remnants standing over winter […]
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