Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
Lilacs were my mother’s favorite flower. During their all too brief flowering period, I would bring a bouquet to her when I visited. She would exclaim surprised joy upon seeing them, burying her nose within the tiny florets, absorbing their scent. Removing her face, she lit up with a great big smile and then went […]
The white trilliums that I planted from rhizomes a few years back are finally in full bloom. Every year I plant new native wildflowers in the back wooded area hoping to recolonize the space. And now that we have extended the deer fencing further back, there is even more ground to cover.
Water and heat. Those two elements have caused an explosion of simultaneous blooms on bushes and trees alike. Everything is alive at once. The redbud is full of lovely and tasty flowers. We have already started to harvest some blooms with their green-bean like taste as a topping for salads. Its neighbor, a crabapple, is […]
Right now pansies and violas are pretty much all you can find at garden centers and they are the best plants for flower pounding. This exercise takes a flower and through the use of brute force (and a hammer) transfers the image of a flower to paper or cloth. We are back to in-person, unmasked […]
It’s the first flower Friday of the season. Like many prior Springs, all of the bulbs are not coming up when they should.. . .everything is coming up now. Two of the few bulbs yet to flower are the tulips and hyacinths being followed by most of the perennials. Another strange season. Lesser celandine: An […]
It’s daffodil time at Ann’s Place. We have nearly 15,000 bulbs planted throughout the grounds and in the last week or so they have started to flower out. The two main swaths we have are in the back by the labyrinth on the far north of the property and on a rocky knoll on the […]
The typical surprise of Spring growth is more intense this year as we have not had the prior weeks to observe its tiny signs. Instead, the melt of six inches of snow last week creates a fresh show for us. Crocuses planted by squirrels in the lawn have emerged as have the snowdrops. Like in […]
It seems no matter where you travel in the Keys, it is hard not to bump into or spot an orchid. These epiphytes hang effortlessly on trees, fences, strings and anything their often-exposed roots can grab. I am jealous that we have had little luck up North keeping the ones we purchase alive and healthy. […]
Dried flower prints and bookmarks has always been a winning arrow in my quill of horticultural therapy activities. It is one of the few classes that I can do in Winter that surprises my clients with floral color and beauty.
Finally some new color arrives at our home. A long-to-flower amaryllis has finally bloomed. This bulb was purchased prior to Thanksgiving and has taken two months to emerge. It has been worth the wait.