“Looking for inspiration and relaxation? It’s all in your own backyard.”
Report From PIA – March 11
Last Sunday I spoke about perennial bed maintenance at the Chicago Flower Show, and tomorrow I’ll give the same talk to the Cape Cod Master Gardener’s Backyard Horticultural class. Needless to say, this has me thinking about maintaining perennial gardens and how this relates to other things we want to [...]
Report From PIA – March 10
It was the third day above fifty degrees in this area, and it’s amazing to see how the plants are responding. As I walked around Poison Ivy Acres with The Dog I saw emerging tips of daylily foliage, blooming crocus and many weeds. The chickweed and assorted grasses are green [...]
Report From PIA – March 8
I arrived home from the Midwest late this afternoon, and as always, felt grateful to be back at Poison Ivy Acres. It was above fifty degrees, so it felt as if spring is near. Notice I said near not here…I may be glad to be home, but I’m not delusional.
Since [...]
Report From PIA – March 4
One of my favorite tender container plants is Euphorbia ‘Sticks of Fire’. I’ve had it in a pot for about six years, putting it out in the summertime and inside for the winter. As I drive around my hometown today, and read emails about last night’s blog, I thought of [...]
Report From PIA – February 27
This afternoon, as light snow fell and melted on the ground, I went to the shed to look in on my crate of lettuce seedlings. The shed is solar heated, and last year by mid-February the temperatures didn’t fall much below 35 f. This made us decide to see if [...]
Report From PIA – February 24
Driving home after having dinner with a friend, I thought about the subject for today’s blog. “What’s here, in this day?” I asked myself. I truly believe that every hour, incident, and day contains information and inspiration that extends beyond our moment-to-moment experience.
“What’s here,” I asked again, and then it [...]
Report From PIA – February 23
Gardeners soon learn that they need to be able to say, “No, you can’t grow here.” Some plants self-seed prolifically, for example, or wild trees, shrubs and weeds are oh-so-willing to sprout throughout the garden. We need to be able to pull most of them out.
I have watched a young [...]
Report From PIA – February 21
Continuing on from yesterday’s post about horse manure and intransigence, I’m thinking today about the courage to say that you might be wrong, and move forward.
It’s difficult for all of us to admit that we haven’t succeeded or that our original beliefs have proved to be incorrect. And yet, if [...]
Report From PIA – February 20
When I was preparing to leave after my talks at Sullivan Renaissance today, a woman stopped me in the atrium. “Can I ask you a question?” she said. “What do you think of horse manure?”
I told her that I thought that any manure was great for the garden, and that [...]
Report From PIA – February 9
A snowstorm is predicted for tomorrow, with a total accumulation of 5 to 9 inches. Some forecasters say more, of course, because when they hype total snow amounts that means that people will keep watching or listening to their station. That’s the All-Fear News as Paul Gorman used to call [...]
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