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Featured 2022-12-13

Winter Gardening Book Reading Suggestions

If you are like me, the active part of the gardening year is so busy that there is little time left at the end of the day to read all the books and magazines that I have on my pile. Consequently, the time for reading is winter, and then reading becomes one of my ultimate…

2022-06-24

The Ultimate Flower Gardener’s Guide

“Starting and Tending a flower garden is a personal affair. Each of us has our own life experiences and preferences that we bring to it. Even if we have never put a shovel in the ground ourselves, we love flowers because they are a part of our celebrations and daily life”

2020-03-31

Inspirational Women in Horticulture

Mary Helen Wingate Lloyd was a famous female horticulturist from the early 20th Century – Her famous garden – Allgates was visited from people around the world.

2016-04-04

Unfurling and Uncurling -Spring growth

As the days lengthen and the temperatures increase the pace of spring growth increases. Buds open. Shoots emerge and elongate. The pace of change is dizzying. Capture these fleeting moments in photographs to enjoy year round. Photos above: Leucojum vernum – Spring snowflake – dangling white and green flowers Veratrum – False Hellebore – fresh…

2016-02-29

More Witch Hazels for winter into spring bloom

The Hamamelis season is in full swing here at Northview. Many of the witch hazel flowers are out earlier this year as the weather has been mild this winter, although combined with one of the heaviest snowfalls recorded in Philadelphia. I have been thinking about witch hazels for the last few weeks. I was lecturing at…

2015-03-21

Snowy garden on March 21st! Wasn’t I meant to be planting peas?

Today is the first day of spring but you would not know it as we had a late season storm yesterday that brought another few inches of snow. It was beautiful outside today with morning temperatures hovering around 32 degrees fahrenheit and the snow crisp and crusty on the surface. The sun came up and…

2015-02-27

Philadelphia Flower Show 2015

The largest indoor flower show in the world opens tomorrow at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The annual taste of spring for all of us gardeners who are starved of the color and smell of the earth and flowers is a treat that we look forward to all winter. The Theme this year is ‘Celebrate the…

2015-01-25

Preventing snow damage to evergreen trees and shrubs in the snow

With one heavy wet snow this week and two more larger snowfalls expected, it is time to think of ways to prevent snow damage to your trees and shrubs. The first way is smart plant choice, and coniferous evergreens with needles are one of the best for a snowy climate. Not only are many of…

2015-01-11

Snowy details in the garden

We had several snow falls this week accompanied by bitter cold. Trips to the compost heap were about all the garden visiting possible until today when the temperatures have risen to around freezing. The winter garden is shades of sepia and white. The tiny details of old plant stems are outlined in relief against the…

2015-01-01

Happy New Year

Happy New Year. A new year brings another year of expectation in the garden. We always hope that this gardening year will be better than ever! At least this year we are not submerged in snow like last year. Winter is still young, we will see what nature has in store for us.