Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
In the Northeast we take water for granted. In fact we sometimes curse it in the summer when hot and damp conditions combine to promulgate fungi, slugs and other residents of our gardens that turn lovely plants into mush or fond memories. There are no such problems in Southeastern Arizona where the land appears to […]
Getting off the plane from Phoenix on Friday morning it seemed as if we entered a different world. The morning was cool and wet rather than the hot and dry weather we had become used to over the prior week. But the most remarkable thing about our return was the transformation of the landscape. Prior […]
Being on a north-facing cliff, I have always recognized that our gardens reside in a unique micro-climate. Everything emerges late compared to gardens in town or even a few hundred yards up the block, which is more southerly facing. But our recent visit to the Ramsey Canyon in Arizona has really shown us the incredible […]
It is interesting to get differing opinions about topography. When Juana and I decided to take a guided tour up Ramsey Canyon a few days ago, we were told that the first part was flat and the portion leading to the overlook was a little steep with switchbacks. Now where we come from, flat implies […]
New England has a profusion of flowers that start to emerge in the Spring. In the Southwest, the number of flowering plants is no different though the form is. When we think of difficult or thorny flowers in the North, roses come to mind. Their beauty is counterbalanced by the care with which they must […]
April is the month when you are unsure about how and when you will start your seedlings. The desire to get an early jump on the year is governed by the weather and the temperature of the soil. Often I start a few flats of greens in March with the hope of transplanting them into […]
When the rhyme, “April showers bring May flowers,” comes to mind, I’m sure that snow showers were not considered when it was written. But that is what happens all too often in New England at the beginning of the month. This has been a vacillating season with snow coming and going all too often. Last […]
Spring may be tardy this year with over a foot of snow still coating the ground. Prior to the early March storms, we were hoping for early flowering bulbs making their way through the frozen soil. That is unlikely for at least a few weeks as the piles of shoveled snow have melted and then […]
Bicycling is one of my favorite outdoor activities. Once the temperatures go north of 50 degrees, I will bare my pale old-man legs and peddle throughout the area. Now that I am much further south than is typical and the temperatures are rarely below 70 I have few excuses not to be on my wheels. […]
While many of us look to put together highly planned gardens with everything in just the right spot, sometimes random plantings can be the most rewarding particularly when they find themselves in inhospitable places. I was biking the other morning and was nearing a new Publix that is going up in Islamorada. There used to […]