lilacs

It always seems like there is nothing blooming in mid-May, but when I really look around, I realize there is a lot blooming but none of it is flashy, like the big yellow sheets of daffodils previous or the three Grandes Dames of June that will soon be here. The blooms of mid-May are modest [...]

In Part 1 I mentioned the two hard frosts and a freeze we had recently, all of them rather later in the season than is typical. I illustrated how different species in the same genus reacted to the freeze differently, and also gave examples of plants that were damaged even though they were protected. Appearances [...]

Carol's done it. Mary Ann, the Idaho Gardener's done it. So has Mr. McGregor's Daughter and Cindy from My Corner of Katy and M Sinclair Stevens from Zanthan Gardens. They've all used a reciprocating saw to prune woody plants. Not only have they pruned with a recip saw, they raved about how easy it made [...]

Usually, when you want to know your last spring frost, the experts send you to a hardiness zone map, a chart, or even the NOAA records, conceding that this will only give you a ballpark figure. If you really want to know your local last frost date, consult a neighbor--at least until you've kept records [...]

I suppose there exists, somewhere on this planet, an ornamental gardener who has never grown a plant that they had been given from someone else's garden, but it is hard for me to imagine it. Before I even knew myself to be a gardener, when I was just a kid, I tagged along behind the [...]

Sights One of the many good things about spring is that without it, and without the absence imposed by fall and winter, we flawed mortals might fail to appreciate the beauties around us. So much of the wonder of spring is found in the return of what was absent. Would the appearance of new leaves [...]

You probably have a Grand Tour of your own, even if you don't think of it in terms of "grand." It usually starts with drinking something hot in a mug and looking out the window. Somehow you find yourself outdoors, checking things out, and you're "only going to be a minute." Your feet know the [...]

Kath, which peonies are you getting and from where? What are especially fragrant lilacs? I am getting a Charles Joly from Hortico. What's with the colchicums? I admit I am not aware of their charms.

I've been reading Lilacs for the Garden by Jennifer Bennett. It's a much more approachable book than Fiala's Lilacs: The Genus Syringa and has detailed information on numerous cultivars and species. I've discovered lilacs that bloom earlier and later than the ones in my garden, especially fragrant lilacs, especially hardy lilacs, and lilacs that do [...]