I know that I do a lot of grousing about my garden; people are undoubtedly tired of hearing me constantly complain about the poison ivy (entirely justified, though!), the stony/rocky clay soil, the rabbits, and the rodents. [Oh, wait, the rodents are part of the House Whine…sorry…] Given my growing reputation as a GOG (Grumpy…
It’s that time of year again, and there are some interesting winners as well as two brand-new award categories added to this second instalment of my personal garden awards. So, let’s get the show on the road! The Smiley (for surprising success) This ended in a tie between Daphne x transatlantica ‘Eternal Fragrance’ and Edgeworthia…
I have a redbud problem; or, more accurately, a problem redbud. It was already here when I bought the Money Pit in 2013, although – thanks to a late-winter snowstorm – I had no idea what it was. What it turned out to be was a weeping redbud, about three feet tall and with a…
Are you a ruthless gardener? I never used to be one. In past gardens, I’d always somehow find a place for a bonus plant included with an order (regardless of color, size, or growing conditions preferred) because to simply chuck it out would be – in the words of The Princess Bride’s Vizzini – “inconceivable!”…
At the end of my post about plant pet names, I mentioned that my little granddaughter had bested me in the creative-plant-nicknames department and promised to tell more. So, without further ado, here’s the story, morning-glory! 😊 Last month, my son texted me a photo of the lilies in his front-yard planting. Very impressive they…
Do you ever name any of your garden plants? I don’t mean in the hybridizing or cultivar-name sense, but as a sort of nickname or shorthand, based on either a characteristic or the plant’s ‘official name.’ I never used to do this before this garden, but now find that at least a dozen of my…
My face is scarlet with shame that I have not written a garden post for almost seven (!!) months, and there really are no excuses that wouldn’t sound horribly lame (despite being true.) I am terribly behind on both of my sites, to be honest. So, I will sit in a hypothetical corner and promise…
Having taken a look at how the front yard fared in 2021 as far as TGGR, let’s check out the back. The Four Seasons Bed This was the Four Seasons Bed at the end of September last year. I think that I got all those Japanese anemones out (fingers crossed.) The caged plants are the…
The Chatsworth Lady 