The gardener understands that no year is typical, or average. Perhaps when final numbers are tabulated, the sum will nearly equal yearly averages, but that is only because extremes in both directions usually balance with only slight variations in the end. I suppose that there are parts of this planet where annual weather patterns are closely…

Bees are not expected in this northwestern Virginia garden in mid December, but here they are. There have been scattered freezes and consistent frosts for a month, but daytime temperatures have been mild, and this week a few days have climbed into the sixties. After two cold winters, I have no complaint. In addition to…

Fans of snow covered holidays will be disappointed, it seems, by mild temperatures in recent weeks and more forecast for the week ahead. I prefer camellias to snow, and with each week in December warmer than the preceding one, the chance that camellias will flower through the month appears likely as buds swell in warm…

With mild temperatures this afternoon, I managed sufficient energy to gather and shred leaves that buried hellebores, heucheras (below), and a few other low growing perennials that do not go completely dormant in winter. Deep piles of leaves remain under trees and shrubs on the garden’s southern edge that borders forest, but these will be…

Admittedly, I am easily entertained, and satisfied by nearly any bauble that ornaments the winter garden. I suppose there is no good purpose in planting ‘Winter Sun’, ‘Charity’, and ‘Underway’ mahonias (Mahonia x media) in the garden for winter flowers, since the three are difficult to distinguish, one from the others. Flowers and foliage are close…

If they could, they would. Have flowers through the winter, of course, and clearly most do not suspect the range of flowers that are possible through the dark and cold winter months. There is nothing magical about it, and certainly no skill or wisdom is required to have flowers every day through the winter in…

Earlier, I mentioned that alliums and Dogtooth violets (Erythronium ‘Pagoda’) were planted over the weekend. More time was spent trying to figure where they should go than time spent planting, but that’s behind me with a lesson learned (unlikely). Now, the thought has occurred that in early spring I planned, but later failed to order fifty…

Several hours have been spent on this cool and  blustery Saturday planting an assortment of alliums, though only an hour in digging. I fear I have miscalculated, and too many bulbs have been ordered for the too few sunny spots available for planting. Not that my schedule is hopelessly backed up, but time has been…