Living and gardening in an older Hudson Valley home
Spring is a magnificent time of year. We relish the end of winter and the arrival of spring in all its glory. Spring gardening is some of the easiest gardening. The cold of winter causes magic to happen inside the many bulbs and tubers, causing a cacophony of color. We anxiously await the first blossoms. […]
When one of the tree peonies bloomed this past spring, in the oriental garden, it spurred me on to continue development of this part of the garden. The blossom proved the viability of the area for the plants I hoped to grow. The oriental garden has taken longer to develop than other areas of our […]
Autumn has begun in the Hudson Valley. The days are shorter, and much cooler. The leaves are changing colors and beginning to fall. However, the weather is still good enough to continue projects outside. One of my projects is changing out deer protection on certain plants. A few years ago, I planted oak leaf hydrangeas […]
Plant friends are the best. Plant friends listen to you carry on about your garden and plants, they give you extra plants from their garden, they share their secrets, and they tell you your garden is beautiful – even when it looks more like a semi-organized patch of weeds. When I moved to Newburgh in […]
Names are arbitrary and this is certainly true for the names we use to describe areas in our yard. With so many different areas it is helpful to have distinct names so that Andrew and I can more easily discuss them. Naming each area provides us with an ability to be creative and in some […]
Welcome to No. 1 Old Oak Tree Path. The woodland garden is home to an elf, sometimes many elves. The elf’s name is Dobby. Fans of Harry Potter may recognize the name of the character from J. K.Rowling’s novels, where he was a house elf. A few years ago, my lovely goddaughter, Amy, and her […]
Last year, I had my old garage doors replaced. They were wooden and had seen better days. A ground hog had decided to visit one evening and thought it would be a comfortable place for an overnight stay. Unfortunately, his check out time did not coincide with when I would next be opening the garage […]
A fluffy snow arrived last night. The snow fell in thick clusters of flakes. The temperature was quite chilly. The result is trees and bushes with what appears to be a generous dusting of powder sugar coating everything. It reminds me of childhood and the wonder of waking up to a snow covered yard, hoping […]
Planning and constructing a garden is exhilarating. There is no end to the possibilities, challenges and rewards from the garden. Gardens are nothing if not surprising places. A gardener can plan, plant, sculpt and otherwise attempt to influence nature, but it is ultimately nature herself who will decide what works best. Each generation of property […]
Nearly all aspects of creating the woodland garden have been challenging. From digging out large bushes to moving big rocks, every task has required not only muscle, but also some forethought – ingenuity if I may lay claim to such a skill. The old adage “where there’s a will, there’s a way” is something I […]
