You are perfectly entitled to answer my question by saying that you hold a deed for the ground that includes your garden, and you may tell me that it is fenced in or that it is your backyard, wherever you live. As a good citizen, you know that you are legally protected in the ownership … Read more
Lately, the question I hear most often is “What is a houseplant?” And that’s a good question when you come right down to it, but not an easy one to answer. Is a house plant grown for foliage? Usually. For flowers? Quite often. Is it short, tall, medium, bulbous, tuberous, fibrous-rooted, shrub-like, or treelike? All … Read more
Evidence is accumulating that the garden was the age-old training center in which the arts and sciences first blossomed. In a sense, the evidence confirms what Webster long ago suggested —culture started with soil cultivation. The very word reflects garden history. Horticulture and agriculture are obvious derivations. The Antiquity of Cultivated Plants But culture came … Read more
Mrs. David Holmes’ garden work in Williamsburg, Virginia, requires a green thumb, a working knowledge of botany, birds, history, and architecture – and a comfortable pair of shoes. A lecturer and hostess with Colonial Williamsburg, the non-profit organization restoring Williamsburg to its 18th-century splendor as the capital of the Virginia colony, her specialty is a … Read more
Gardening and fine art may seem, at first glance, rather unrelated. But gardeners know it takes considerable art to create an effective garden picture, and artists find that plants and flowers make interesting subjects for their paintings. The relationship, therefore, can be quite close. When we were first married almost 17 years ago, my artist-husband … Read more
One rainy day last spring, two ladies visited me at Breeze Hill. One of them came from Harrisburg, and the other from Syracuse. They were equipped with large umbrellas and galoshes, and so shielded from the rain, they accompanied me, similarly protected, around the garden. They were in no hurry, and neither was I; we … Read more
Plump amaryllis bulbs, ready for potting and forcing into bloom indoors, are available now from seed and mail-order firms or from local garden centers. Prices vary according to size, quality of bloom, and color. The best Dutch hybrids will provide wide-petalled flowers in solid deep red, pure pink, or clear white. The largest bulbs often … Read more
Many who have reached retirement age feel they have come to the end of their trail. The future seems dark and uncertain. When they are suddenly released from a job that has occupied 30 or 50 years of their lives, they are like a ship with anchors dragging and engines dead. Some have a hobby … Read more
When winter comes, we who live in the temperate zone button up our overcoats, don stadium boots, and perhaps even wear earmuffs to keep out the cold. That’s our way of coping with the climate in which we live. But how do plants living in the temperate zone cope with the cold season? Winter Survival … Read more
When the frost-tinged air starts blowing in from the North, it’s time to start digging the glads, dahlias, tigridias, tuberoses, and other tender bulbs, corms, and roots that need to be stored inside over winter. Just where to store them is always a problem. Most modern homes are not equipped with old-fashioned vegetable storage rooms, … Read more