Friday was the summer solstice, my favorite day of the year and one I always look forward to. This year we decided to open the house and garden to a party to celebrate with the neighbors. Now we don’t live on a very long street, there are only 11 houses on it. I know the neighbors on either side and directly across pretty well, and a couple of others to say hello to, but I realized when it came time to decide who to invite that there were still some houses where I hadn’t met the people in them. This, after having lived here for almost 2 years now. So, with invitation in hand, off I went to change all that. Continue reading →

“They say” that growing the Himalayan Blue Poppy is notoriously difficult so it is not without a degree of gardener’s smugness that I’m celebrating its appearance in the garden this spring. And what a sight it is, this clear blue burst of color tucked in the corner behind the coral bark maple. The 120 seeds I planted in The GreenHouse a year ago February yielded just 6 seedlings. Of the 6 seedlings 4 survived. Three are still only 5 inches tall and taking their own sweet time doing not too much of anything. The fourth grew up and is flowering. I’d say this gives me gardener’s bragging rights. Continue reading →