Serenity in the Garden

Early Spring is a wonderful time to savor a garden.... Just as a wine connoisseur relishes that first sip on his tongue, so can we revel in a flower, a scent or even a Spring breeze.  Gardening and wine are similar - although not essential to life, they enrich the experience and contribute to an overall sense of well being. Garden lovers know what I am talking about - that exquisite moment of 'stop time' when the wafting fragrance of a single rose-pink blossom captures your attention and lifts you away. Or when, basking in the warm morning sun, the birdsong is louder than the chatter in your head. Or that first deep breath you take when stepping outside into the budding green realm where Flora reigns.  In short, gardens allow you to delight in the little things of life, to savor the essence of the our natural world... to see the extraordinary in the ordinary. Other activities can transport us away from the daily hubbub - yoga, reading, running - bu

Pink Muhly Grass - Spring Hill Nursery  Pink Muhly Grass,  Muhlenbergia capillaris , is a native 'fave rave' of mine. You might say it is a 'fave rave nave'. It is a show stopping plant in the fall with its giant puffs of cotton-candy-pink plumes. Whether in a hedge, border or patio container, this ornamental grass offers unbelievably profuse, feathery blooms amid 4 foot stems and a cascading habit. Give it plenty of sunshine and  good soil drainage , and it will do the rest, beautifully withstanding heat, humidity, drought, and poor soil! Pink Muhly Grass, is an extraordinary ornamental grass plant for many reasons:  from Monrovia Its flower heads appear in the fall as a frothy haze of deep pink. It is low maintenance and virtually pest free. It is deer resistant. Its deep roots makes it a tough, drought tolerant plant suitable for erosion control on slopes and useful in xeriscapes (Although regular irrigation and fert

On March 25, 1893, a gala dinner was held in honor of Daniel Burnham in Chicago. But when Burnham took the stage, he chose to honor someone else instead:  “Each of you knows the name and genius of him who stands first in the heart and confidence of American artists, the creator of your own parks and many other city parks...  —Frederick Law Olmsted.” Then he added:  “An artist, he paints with lakes and wooded slopes; with lawns and banks and forest-covered hills; with mountain sides and ocean views.  He should stand where I do tonight, not for the deeds of later years alone, but for what his brain has wrought and his pen has taught for half a century.”  A collective roar went up among those assembled. paraphrased from:   “ Genius of Place: The Life Of Frederick Law Olmsted”   by  Justin Martin

"Many gardeners will agree that hand-weeding is not the terrible drudgery that it is often made out to be. Some people find in it a kind of soothing monotony.  It leaves their minds free to develop the plot for their next novel or to perfect the brilliant repartee with which they should have encountered a relative's latest example of unreasonableness.”  ―  Christopher Lloyd ,  The Well-Tempered Garden

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