Thoughtful musings on various topics by interesting people at Blithewold

Comfort and joy

By the looks of a stubborn delphinium in the Rose Garden, I’m not the only one who would prefer to think of the winter solstice as the official start of summer. But winter might actually … Read more.

Filling in the gaps

Last week I had the great pleasure of speaking with the author/photographer of some of my all-time favorite garden books. Ken Druse, who wrote Planthropology and Making More Plants among about a bazillion others, called … Read more.

The color of June

With so much coming into bloom now I might be crazy to try to identify June’s quintessential color. (I might be crazy full stop.) There are some great colors to choose from: take anything in … Read more.

Days of whine and roses

Sometimes I still feel like a backseat whiner. I should know better than to complain out loud because as a kid, whenever I asked, “are we there yet?”, my Mom would only reply cryptically, “10 … Read more.

Hopes and dreams

Along with taking a good look back at last year’s successes and failures (I’ll get to those later maybe) we gardeners take this time to look forward and dream a little. (Incidentally, we are probably … Read more.

Thinking ahead

We know it’s fall – that it’s still only October – by the color of sky and the leaves on -and off- the trees. Temperatures tell a different story. The last few days have so … Read more.

Why the Rose Garden stinks

Usually when people enter the Rose Garden they take a deep breath in through the nose and heave a big blissed-out sigh of appreciation … Not today. The roses are still blooming; they are still … Read more.

Focusing on fall

I have gotten out of the habit of getting here extra early every morning to walk the property in search of interesting things. Lately, I have really only had eyes and time for the gardens. … Read more.

Into each life a little rain must fall

This morning a fellow dog walker said to me, “Ugh – this rain is horrible!” To which I replied, “yeah… but we need it.” She looked at me a little sideways. And to myself I … Read more.

Change of scene

I have looked at these gardens so much that even though they change everyday I can hardly see them anymore. It’s not that I’m tired of the garden – far from it. I still want … Read more.