Serenity in the Garden

Time to try some luscious flowers in a pot or in the garden....here are some for your consideration: PEONY 'SORBET' ( Paeonia lactiflora ‘Sorbet’) The unusual pink and white 5-7" double blooms of this hybrid are  delectable! The fragrant flowers look amazing in early summer and the handsome foliage turns red in autumn. These bushy plants grow up to 4' tall and require little care. Suitable for any climate and soil type. Space 36-48" apart. Zones:  3-8     Light:  Full Sun to Partial Shade Deer tend to avoid. LOLLIPOP HELENIUM    Helenium puberoleum Round, chocolate-brown flower heads with rustic yellow and bronze highlights provide a bright display that blooms summer and lasts well into autumn. Globe-shaped blooms make a pretty contrast to vertical blades of Iris. Loves sun. Zones:  4-9     Deer Resistant  'BLUSHING SUMMER VALENTINE'  DAYLILY   Bloom Perio...

Three is nothing as delightful as a clear, crisp morning in spring... I took this at the Everett Rock Garden at NY Botanical Garden. A must-see for Garden lovers.

From Annie's Annuals Thalictrum rochebrunianum Lavender Mist Meadow Rue Deer resistant perennial!  This Japanese native has  blue-green  columbine-like foliage in spring and shoots up willowy purplish stalks that are 6-7’ tall.  In July these burst into airy clouds of lavender-pink flowers with prominent soft-yellow anthers.  I t has a delicate bearing.  Its sprays of lilac flowers rise above shorter plants. Place at the back of a border; can withstand some shade;  Intolerant of intense heat and humidity.  Prefers r ich, loamy soil.  Best used in borders, meadows and naturalized areas.  Plant in a group.  Zones 5 - 9 from annie's annuals

Stonescaping - review by Jennifer Moore Stahlkrantz I find the abundance of natural stone—the outcroppings, the ridges, the meandering walls—in our area just breathtaking. If you’re drawn to it, as well, and looking to add dimension and resilience to your landscape, grab a copy of Mt. Kisco landscape designer Jan Johnsen’s new book The Spirit of Stone . Inside, she shows the many creative ways that stone and gravel can be used in a garden. The tips and photos are inspiring. serenityinthegarden.blogspot.com. To see this review go here: http://www.townvibe.com/Bedford/May-June-2017/Shout-OutsLate-Spring/ .................................................................................................................................. Btw - Please sign up for my new monthly newsletter - full of tips, ideas and links for all garden lovers. ! Click here.

Thomas Church - Donnell Residence, Sonoma, CA 1948 Thomas Church was one of the most influential American landscape architects of the twentieth century. His ideas on the 'modern' landscape revolutionized home landscaping and changed the look of the suburban backyard.  Born in Boston in 1902, he attended college in California and came under the spell of its climate and outdoor lifestyle.  Church received his landscape architecture degree from Berkeley in 1923 and his Masters in Landscape Architecture from Harvard in 1926. Tommy Church - Plan for Donnell Church urged people to see residential property as a single living space with the house and garden directly connected.  This was a dramatic notion for its day.   His greatest influence was through his books and numerous articles. His popular book on home landscapes, 'Gardens are for People ,' was published in 1955.    Church advocated four basic landscape design principles: •...

"Serenity.  Serenity is the great and true antidote against anguish and fear,  and today, more than ever, it is the architect’s duty to make of it a permanent guest in the home, no matter how sumptuous or how humble.  Throughout my work I have always strived to achieve serenity, but one must be on guard not to destroy it by the use of an indiscriminate palette." Luis Barragan, 1980 

We all know that herbicides can harm us and the environment, so it follows that scientists are studying natural weed control methods.   A team at Michigan State University  recently studied the effectiveness of   mulched maple and oak leaves on common dandelions in bluegrass lawns. The team tested chopped up leaves of red maple, silver maple, sugar maple and red oak and looked to see how they worked to suppress dandelions in a lawn. They found that after one and two mulch applications (at a high rate of mulching)  up to 80% and 53% reduction in dandelions was achieved, respectively. This makes sense since leaves lay naturally on a meadow and are not blown off. They block light and water and suppress weed growth.. But we, lawn owners, immediately blow off all the leaves on our lawn in our early spring 'clean up' which opens up sun to all weed seeds.  We then apply pre-emergent weed ...