Serenity in the Garden

(Zig Zag Leaves - Norm Magnusson) Artist Norm Magnusson lives near Woodstock, New York.   Yes, that Woodstock...where I spent summers as a child with my artist mother....it must be in the water or something up there... Magnusson (see his website, Funism ) is an artist that uses all media to get his ideas across. In his 'Decorating Nature' series of art photos (giclee prints - they're for sale) Magnusson paints on or colors pieces of nature, like adding stripes to a fallen leaf, painting a pine cone blue or drawing concentric rings on a stone. He says, (Blue Cone - Norm Magnusson) "We use nature to how we see fit: we strive to bring order to it, we seek to explain it in a language that doesn’t belong to it, we try to make it prettier, we try to make it better, we try to make it more profitable. Some efforts succeed, some don’t." (amen to that - Jan) (Tree Rock - Norm Magnusson) But Magnusson also says that his art photos are all about beauty, saying, ...

(Jan Johnsen - all rights reserved) Annual flowers - those that bloom all summer into late fall then give it up for good - are the secret to a joyful and colorful garden.  I know people will jump down my throat with their disdain for the garish or overstated, perhaps saying that subtle is so much more pleasing or that the extra work planting is not worth it or whatever, but I say, "go ahead, try it!" (Jan Johnsen - profusion zinnias, marigolds,salvia, plectranthus) Colorful annual flowers make us happy, enrich our lives and then take our breath away, to boot! (Jan Johnsen - coleus, plectranthus,angelonia, and more) I know all about annual flowers because after graduating college (landscape architecture focus) decades ago, I went to work in the display gardens at MOHONK MT. HOUSE in New Paltz, NY. I was not very happy about the situation,  thinking flowers 'beneath' me...you see, I had drunk the 'koolaid' that said landscape architects need not be c...

(Angelonia with Helichrysum, petunia, Johnsen Landscapes) Blue is everyone's "favorite color."  It is, hands down, the most popular color worldwide and is the least "gender specific" color, having equal appeal to both men and women. Now Purple is giving blue a run for its money as the second favorite color.... Blue is the favored color for toothbrushes, so that says it all!  ( this info is from a great website: Sensation Color ) but can purple be far behind? Scientists have found that the color blue causes the body to produce chemicals that are calming. This may be why we all like to be around blue....stare at this square and see if it calms you. In fact, over the past decade, scientists have reported the successful use of blue light in the treatment of psychological problems such as addictions, eating disorders, impotence, and depression. Moreover, a deep blue/purple such as Indigo or Deep Violet symbolizes mystical wisdom and spirit...

( Johnsen Landscapes & Pools ) Its Official! Serenity in the Garden came in as runner up for best new garden blog of 2010! Pretty good for being in the blogging business for about 5 months.... and all because of you - thank you so much ...and now I will continue to post whatever garden item seems to be cool, weird, useful or down right loopy... I like the loopy posts the best...

My friend, Jim, has a Neuton mower , a cordless, battery powered mulching/bagging lawn mower. He uses it to mow the lawn around his service station - you know, the station with 90 solar cells on its canopy and a mulch pile comprised of leaves and the coffee grounds from his coffee stand that everyone around my way goes to  ... I saw the classy looking mower sitting out on the lawn as I got my coffee and I just had to try it.  Wow! No noise...and it works. There is no gas or oil to spill and no engine emissions to pollute the air. The Neuton CE6 is powered by a removable, rechargeable DURACELL® battery and Neuton says that recharging costs about 10 cents.  The battery  fully recharges in 12 hours and runs for up to an hour (depending on grass conditions). The mower comes with a battery charger. You might want to get an optional spare battery. There are other electric mowers out there as well. But last year Neuton mower was nam...

My favorite deer resistant annual flower is Euphorbia 'Diamond Frost' . This plant, which looks like airy Baby's Breath , made its debut in 2005 in the Proven Winners catalog of annual flowers and since then has become the Most Award Winning Plant in Proven Winners History . Why? Well, besides having a nice mounded habit to it (about 12 to 18 inches tall),  it blooms continuously in clouds of airy white flowers through summer heat and drought. You can plant it alone as seen here or mix it up with other plants in a container. It stays beautiful without deadheading. And it is deer resistant! (internationl hearlad tribune - posted by erasmus) It is adaptable as a houseplant; it can fill in plant beds in the middle ground of a combination. It tolerates temp down to 40°F  and you can plant it in sun or partial shade. It blooms nonstop from spring until frost. What more could you ask????? Euphorbia is known as spurge and was ...

 Made Wijaya used to be Michael White who was born in Sydney, Australia. He arrived in Bali in 1973, having jumped ship and swimming ashore in a rainstorm ( that is what he says ). His fascination with Bali's rich culture and tradition led him to stay there, working as a tourist guide and photo-journalist before being asked to design the gardens of the legendary Bali Oberoi. More than 600 gardens later, Wijaya is a well known tropical garden designer with a team of artisans and "garden commandos," as he calls them. He has also published five books on tropical gardens and South East Asian architecture. And he designs outdoor lights: His designs are strong on natural materials and organic shapes: Below is a project he did in Mumbai India called Taj Wellington Mews....Vesica piscis anyone? and here are some details: This is a mounded water fountain...very cool.