A noun. A verb. A blog.
Boardwalk provides the pathways around this pond in a Toronto Island garden If you count the Islands and the ins and outs of inlets and bays, Toronto’s Lake Ontario shoreline stretches for an astonishing 138 km, according to the City. Long stretches of it in the eastern and western beaches, as well as on the […]
The Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, California What could be better on a cold, blustery November Wednesday than a quick trip to California? This almost-wordless visit takes us to the Ruth Bancroft Garden – the dry climate garden that was the first of many private gardens to come under the protective wing of the […]
White and weathered, the Cabots’ home is centuries younger than New France, yet seems to pre-date it Whether you enjoy 28 acres, as the Cabot family has at Les Quatre Vents, or 0.06 acres, as I do, it’s good to consider how your garden works with your architecture – and how your architecture works with […]
Le Pigeonnier and its garden is one of 24 garden spaces at Les Quatre Vents If you love gardens and live in Canada, be proud that one of North America’s finest gardens is right here. Well, right here and a little over to our right – near La Malbaie, Québec. It’s Les Quatre Vents. Few […]
A screw-up with iPhoto deleted my 2013 “Scott Shot” of urban bee guru Scott MacIvor, so I’ll have to make do with 2012. With some regret, last month I waved bye-bye to my last urban wild bee nesting box – or, the last in the three-year study by ecologist and PhD candidate Scott MacIvor. Read […]
One of a series of willow arches around the kitchen garden of Domaine Cataraqui, Québec A couple of years ago, we wrote about living willow fences. You can build just about anything out of willow – it’s a tree with a great determination to grow! This summer on a visit to Québec City, these willow […]
Hydrangea paniculata ‘Quick Fire’ isn’t famous for fall colour. It probably should be. Even the Proven Winners site doesn’t mention fall foliage in its write-up for Hydrangea ‘Quick Fire.’ Why on earth not? The colour this year in my garden is a show-stopper, giving the dried blooms a flattering new outfit. Just look at the […]
Photographed yesterday, a row of Freeman maples (Acer x freemanii) along Carlton north of Allan Gardens At this time of year, you can especially note how often Freeman or Freeman’s maple (Acer x freemanii) appears along our streets. That telltale “x” says this tree is a hybrid – a cross between red maple (Acer rubrum) […]
All-green fall planters at Allan Gardens A little almost-wordless wow for another grey Wednesday in November. Don’t you love the textures here? And these babies will take a little nippy weather, especially here where they’re a little sheltered. It was hard to choose between them but this one might be my favourite after all.
Why, it’s silver thistle (Carlina acaulis). Here’s how I found out. Wish my photo gave you a better idea of its metallic sheen. Don’t know about you, but when it comes to knowing how to identify unknown plants (or bugs or plant diseases or…), I love to play detective. I photograph a lot of plants, and […]
Black chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa) – a North American native shrub – with glossy black pomes and bright fall foliage First, to confess. These fruits are highly decorative in the fall garden, but none of them are berries. As botanically defined, berries are fleshy fruits and seeds produced from a single ovary. Currants, blueberries and gooseberries […]
Autumn crocus (Crocus speciosus) blooming in November 2013 Especially after having written a Trellis Magazine article that mentions them among “the other bulbs” that are oft neglected in gardens, you’d think I’d have rushed right out and bought me a bundle of autumn crocuses (Crocus speciosus) and their cousins Colchicum speciosum. I could be enjoying […]