I must continually balance care of this garden. At what point is my hand too intrusive (rarely) or too light? I am not the only human occupant of this garden, so I must not allow patios to become overly cluttered by debris or paths to be obstructed by overhanging foliage. Certainly, birds, bees, and other…

A first in the garden, I see a mild infestation of mealybugs. While I plan no action to be rid of them, I shooed them away from buds of lilies ready to open as a precaution. I see they have taken residence nearby, and I’ll be curious to see if a predator moves in. For…

In the middle of July, I resist the impulse to fill gaps in the garden that continually catch my eye. After returning from our recent hiking adventure, Barbara is anxiously planning the next. With possibilities for another hot and dry summer and several disappointments in the garden following our absence, I will cautiously wait another…

The sun has reached its midday peak, now shining unfiltered through the canopy of Japanese maples that surround the circular writing patio (below). While I typically move to a more shaded space, potted succulents and tropicals on the patio benefit from this brief moment of sunlight. Soon, the sun’s angle will change, and the patio…

In early July, long, flowering stems of lavenders sway, not in the gentle summer breeze but under the weight of bumblebees and carpenter bees moving from one flower to the next. Following construction of two small rockeries, the concern is not if lavenders will survive (in the native clay soil) but that they will become…

While thirty or forty varying ferns have been planted in the garden (I have no clue how many survive, but most), nature provided the most common. Sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis) is not found in the forested area bordering the garden where Christmas and Ostrich ferns are seen in scattered colonies, but the native somehow found…

A summer tour Winding garden paths are most effective when offering a mystery around every bend. Obscuring the view beyond the curve is difficult in a young garden and a near impossibility with perennials that grow only to knee height. A shrub or low branched tree is most effective in shielding the view, adding a…

Don’t be fooled. I have no magic touch. I regularly kill plants, mostly ones newly planted due to my inattention, but also, ones not ideally positioned. This is a part of gardening, and while I’m disappointed by losses, I understand that I must experiment and occasionally stretch a plant’s limits and my own knowledge. Most…

One of two clumps of thyme in the new planting in crevices between boulders in the shade above the circle (writing) patio is barely hanging on after two week of heat and dryness. Thyme prefers a sunnier exposure, but if it survives, it will be ideal trailing over the rocks. I knew the shaded spot…