Serenity in the Garden

courtesy of Utah Skies website NASA says: On March 19th , a full moon of rare size and beauty will rise in the east at sunset. It's a super "perigee moon "--the biggest in almost 20 years. It is 14% bigger than usual and 30% brighter than lesser Moons.  Go outside tonight and soak up some moonlight. There's plenty of it. "The last full Moon so big and close to Earth occurred in March of 1993," says Geoff Chester of the US Naval Observatory in Washington DC. "I'd say it's worth a look." Perigee Moon behind Alps by Vincent Jacques Full Moons vary in size because of the oval shape of the Moon's orbit. It is an ellipse with one side (perigee) about 50,000 km closer to Earth than the other. A perigee full Moon brings with it extra-high "perigean tides." The best time to look is when the Moon is near the horizon. This is the 'moon illusion' when it looks huge.....For reasons not fully understood, low-hanging Moons ...

Identify any tree in North America in just a few taps on your cell phone / droi d / etc. TreeID was created in MEDL Mobile's App Incubator.  The idea was submitted by Jason Siniscalchi, a PhD in Forest Resource Science. He wanted a way to share his interest in tree identification with all nature enthusiasts. It is #12 in Canada. Identify Almost Any Tree in Northern America •Name •Scientific name •Physical Attributes (bark, leaf and fruit) •Geographic location  Matt suggested this to me - looks like a great aid to have on your phone! ....(just got to remember to keep it charged.)

sitting spiritually.com.uk We are co-creators with life. We have forgotten how to do this. Gardening helps us to remember. The Living Centre The earth needs out ministrations right now...the upheavals are only just beginning. If we handle the upheavals creatively, the situation can become an opportunity for growth. Gardening allows us to come back to what is important and experience with grace the inevitable shifts that will occur.  The newness that wants to be born will come through a sprout in the ground ... Bokashi  

Outdoor benches are the last bastion of modern art.....and Pablo Reinoso, an Argentinian born in Paris (doesn't that make him French?), has tackled benches with his signature use and manipulation of bentwood (a la the Thonet bentwood chair). Reinoso combines utilitarian need with experimental forms in a delightful and memorable way! His benches inject a surreal quality into the landscape. I would love to plant a dutchmen's pipe vine to twine around his artful benches. You can see these photos at the website of Carpenters Workshop Gallery Reinoso’s quirky exploration of the relationship between a static bench and its environs was inspired by the rolling English landscape and twisting tangled vines...,. This is the 'Huge Sudeley Bench'  by Reinoso. I can imagine a whole park of these interconnected benches - it would be the greatest playground ever built! Pablo - are you interested?  Your benches are just the beginning.....Call up Jupiter Artland and suggest ...

As a budding garden writer, I must share with you one of my favorite authors - Edith Wharton. Edith Wharton was a famous woman of letters in the 19th century when she went to Italy and wrote her seminal, turn of the century   Italian Villas and Gardens . The writing is classic garden literature. First serialized in the popular 'The Century Magazine' and then released in book form in 1904, Italian Villas and Their Gardens is Wharton's description of her visits to 75 different villas. It combines Wharton's flowing prose, her keen intellect and eye and Maxfield Parrish's striking and nuanced color  illustrations. What a combination for such a wonderful topic! All the Parrish illustrations shown here are from a fabulous website called 100 years of Illustration and Design by Paul Giambarba (click here). The book was a genuine collaborative effort between the two. Each traveled to Italy to gather material for the project and then they met later in The Moun...

Jupiter Artland Logo by Iain Mckintosh, illustrator Edinburgh has a unbelievable private sculpture garden called Jupiter Artland , a private (no public funding!) sculptural park featuring a magical collection of outdoor land art and more. Nicky and Robert Wilson created Jupiter Artland on the grounds of their 80 acre home, Bonnington House in West Lothian. It is what they call, "their life's work." Jupiter Artland is open on weekends, during the summer, for a modest entrance fee. Photo from Times On Line of Life Mounds at Jupiter Artland The marvels they feature include a Charles Jencks earth sculpture called Life Mounds which is bisected by the driveway up to the house.  See above photo. Jupiter Artland Map by Iain McIntosh, illustrator Robert Wilson, in an interview with Anna Burnside  of the Sunday Times said, "“I dislike private collections that are not open to the public,"  He wants to share his wonder with others. “Otherwise it’s like King Midas...

When I started this blog I wasn't very savvy about photos and linking and all that. But now I am so I hope to rectify a few omissions.  My first priority is to make up for my use of a great photo from Toronto Gardens blog   - I did not ask them or even worse,  link back to them... I just wrote Toronto Gardens blog under the photo... from Toronto Gardens Blog Well, to make up for that, I am here to tell you how great the Toronto Gardens Blog is. (click here or on the title of this post)... The bloggers write about themselves : "Brought to you by the muddy hands of Helen Battersby and Sarah Battersby, sisters and neighbours who come from long lines of English gardeners...". Their blog is both beautiful and informative. And they have high ratings to prove it. They have been at this garden blog business a while...they started their blog in 2006! from Toronto Gardens Blog So please add Toronto Gardens Blog to your garden blog 'must read' list.... ...