As part of an annual tradition at Smith College, in Northampton, Massachusetts, rooted ivy cuttings are distributed to each incoming first year student–just one indicator of the botanic leanings of this prestigious womenās college. With late winterās days lengthening, Smithās Lyman Conservatory– one of the few remaining plant conservatories in the United States built in […]
With trees, size matters. Sometimes towering behemoths block light to gardens and greenhouses. Pruning with a chainsaw may be the only option. Or sometimes a lack of trees results in homes and outbuildings bereft of unifying plantings.Ā In both cases, the best garden design strategyāplant the right-sized trees now. I talked with Nancy Buley, Communications […]
It may be cold and bleak outdoors, but this is definitely a time of year when itās easy to appreciate the advantages of greenhouse gardening. Just take your cue from the Conservatory of Wave Hill, a public garden located in the Bronx, New York. Here, the fragrances and colors of other climes help us momentarily […]
Early March is about when I ought to be perking up and getting out in the garden a little. I should be cutting back the dead hosta flower stalks and all the other debris I didnāt get cleared away in fall. I should be chopping ornamental grasses off at a couple of inches to make […]
Itās time to plan for seed starting, whether you have a greenhouse or an indoor light setup. And it looks like this year, once again, I will be starting my own tomatoes instead of buying grafted plants. I have looked on longingly over the last couple of years as the developing technique of grafting has […]
Itās indoor seed sowing time! Whether you set up a small table, or a full-size greenhouse, seed starting can sometimes be fraught with challenges. Just when you think your seedlings are growing well, they can turn up their toes. It all comes down to the fungus among us, says Rose Marie Nichols-McGee, president of Nichols […]
Recent years have seen renewed interest in vegetable gardening everywhere, but perhaps nowhere is this more pronounced than inside our larger cities. Despite the challenge of growing in the densely populated confines of city spacesāand subject to the often intense growing conditions within these microclimates, some New York City gardeners appear to embrace their limitations. […]
The first time I tramped a trail in a Costa Rican rain forest, while being buzzed by hummingbirds as thick as mosquitoes in Michigan, I looked at a vine clambering over a nearby tree and realized: Hey, thatās a philodendron. It was the same plant with heart-shaped leaves that can be found in greenhouses, fern […]
Whether gardeners bring favorite houseplants to a sunny windowsill, or retire them to a greenhouse for winter enjoyment, the act of gardening still goes on in the colder months. So here are some practicalāand often overlookedāindoor gardening gifts to add to your list. Cachepots: Humble pots can be slipped inside these beautiful containers. Choose them […]
Glass and gardens are great partners. The dynamics of blown glass capture the echoes of plant growth. I love to see the gleam of glassāsmall colorful float balls tucked into containers; robust spears stretching upward as focal points; bright dishes spreading open like lilies to capture rainwater among the foliage. But it wasnāt until I […]
The Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New Yorkāmost often associated with yoga and alternative philosophies — decided to apply mindfulness to a very practical matter. The Omega Center for Sustainable Living (OCSL ) opened in 2009. At the heart of the OCSL is the Eco Machine ā¢, designed by John Todd Ecological Design. This water reclamation […]
The trees are abandoning their leaves, the perennials are giving up on their leaves and stems and Iām dumping out my pots of annuals. And all the abandoned plant debris from the yard, garden or greenhouse ends up in the compost. Iām amazed every March to find a bounty of compost in bins that started […]
