Serenity in the Garden

rose hips photo by Jan Johnsen  Allow your roses to form hips.   Did you know that, like  many plants that produce fruit, the formation of rose hips is a signal to the rose to go dormant for the season? from Monrovia - Japanese rose  Rose hips provide wonderful color in the garden and are a good source of vitamin C for birds in the fall and winter.  They are one of the highest plant sources of Vitamin C. 'Cherry Pie' Rose makes great rose hips: Oso Easy Cherry Pie Rose -from May Dreams Garden Blog  You can eat them too. Rose hips are used for jam, jelly, syrup, soup, beverages, pies, bread, and wine.  They can also be eaten raw if care is used to avoid the hairs inside the fruit.   The redder they are, the softer and sweeter.   source: live by the sun blog  for more info on roses go to Chris Van Cleave - click here . 

In these times, I look to one of my favorite Shakespare passages. They say being outside is one of the best things you can do to stay healthy. This is so apt for these times -  "Exempt from public haunt" indeed: "Sweet are the uses of adversity, Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous, Wears yet a precious jewel in his head; And this our life, exempt from public haunt, Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, Sermons in stones, and good in every thing." - Shakespeare, As You Like It

During this time of  Covid-19,  we must cultivate outselves, our well being and our gardens. Plants can be a soothing balm for troubled times.  This is modified from the National Garden Bureau - click on the words for some great and informative links.  Start  some seeds . Plan a  vegetable garden .   Plan to grow flowers for the joy they bring. Take an  online class  about plants or gardens, or watch some  YouTube instruction videos .   Plan an  herb garden.     T ake a walk in a nearby natural area:  woods, field, desert, beach or park.  Take this time to groom or repot houseplants.  Remove dead leaves, refresh the soil, take cuttings of favorites so that later you can share the wealth with friends. Create a new indoor display of plants.  Make a row of small pots in bloom on your kitchen counter or the windowsill above your sink.  Plan a new  group of cont...

The colors of Little Quick Fire flowers in the fall The outstanding Quick Fire® Panicle Hydrangea can grow to be as high as seven feet tall...But what if you have a small outdoor space, such as I do?  Try Little Quick Fire®  hydrangea! the compact Little Quickfire Hydrangea It grows to only 4 feet tall and has long lasting flowers with excellent fall color...and best of all, it is more cold tolerant than most other hydrangeas. And you can grow it in a pot during the summer... Proven Winners has a winner for sure! It starts out with white flowers in late spring which then darken to pink in summer. And by fall, the flowers are a light red. You can cut them and dry them for winter displays indoors. My favorite thing about Little Quick Fire® is that the leaves turn a fiery orange in the autumn.   It loves morning sun and shade in the afternoon. A little protection from winter winds is helpful. Make sure to mulch around the base to protect...

garden by Jan Johnsen The best place to seek God is in a garden. You can dig for him there. ~ George Bernard Shaw Being in a garden elevates us and inspires many of us... That is the why I write this blog.  I want to share my lifelong landscape work and experience with others so that you, too, will ‘touch the earth’. And I want to promote a reverent way of looking at the green world which sees the piece of ground outside our door as an ‘everyday conduit’ to the energy of life that flows within plants, water, trees, sunlight, rocks, birds and assorted creatures. a place, as George Bernard Shaw declared, where we can touch the divine. Looking at the natural world in this way is nothing new. The idea of sanctified outdoor space was the genesis for the sacred groves of the Egyptians, Indians and Greeks.  It birthed the medieval labyrinths and Native Americans’ 'medicine wheels'.  And of course, ancient Chinese geomancy, ‘Fen...

Boscobel Heaven is home.  Utopia is here . Nirvana is now.  - Edward Abbey

Lady's Mantle is a dew catcher This is the time of 'White Dew on the Grass' in Japan Sept 8 - 12 Microseason 43:  白露  Hakuro  (White dew)  Now is when you notice white beads of dew in early morning. They say 'on grass' but I see it on flowers and leaves too.   Dew appears between summer and fall when the temperatures drop during the night and moisture in the air solidifies. A magical time indeed. Like jewels on the flowers - dew drops glisten

This interview was published on July 18, 2017 on the great blog Gardening Know How . You can see it and much more - click here .  Q & A with Jan Johnsen, author of ‘Spirit of Stone’ Share Article         Jan Johnsen  is a well-regarded landscape designer, author and teacher with a passion for plants, rocks and beautiful gardens.  Jan is a co-principal of the design firm, Johnsen Landscapes & Pools, in Westchester County, New York.   Jan’s book,  Heaven is a Garden , (published by St Lynn’s Press, 2014)  is now in its third printing. In her new book, “ The Spirit of Stone: 101 Practical & Creative Stonescaping Ideas for Your Garden ’, (St Lynn’s Press, 2017) she celebrates this natural material and highlights its many uses in the landscape. 1.      Why do you have a soft spot for hard rock? Rocks are plentiful where I live in the Northeast. Growing up h...

'Lemon Daddy' Hydrangea lights up a soggy scene in one of my gardens.  The theme is rounded forms. The colors are green, yellow and beige. The mood is slightly damp. The lighting is muted, as are the sounds. It is a precious moment and Lemon Daddy adds a simple sizzle. garden and photo - Jan Johnsen, bench - Campania

ALERT!   Only 7 more days until the  fabulous Dale Chihuly exhibit at NY Botanical Garden closes : Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.  CHIHULY Nights: Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday through October 2017, plus Wednesday, October 25,  and  Sunday, October 29; 6:30–10:30 p.m.  RESERVE NOW:   https://www.nybg.org/visit/admission/ in the day, as you walk around, you might find this.... This is your last chance to see the immensely popular show - by day or night. I suggest you start in early evening and watch as the darkness brings out the glass sculptures in a way nothing else can. It features 20 installations! In the spotlights, the plants seem to dance along with the art.... That is what I did with my family visiting from Florida. We entered, visited the phenomenal bookstore ( another must for garden lovers) and then walked  the grounds  in the late afternoon light. The sweeping vistas and art co...