As temperatures fall into the thirties tonight, I reflect for a moment on this year as I stroll through the garden, but mostly the gains I anticipate in the year ahead. Yes, the start of the new year is the more common time to look back, but the garden’s near dormancy is around the corner….

Green branch tips of the Japanese Umbrella pine (Sciadopitys verticillata, below) litter the path through the side garden, a befuddling occurrence seen annually in early autumn. I blame this on the obvious repeat offenders, squirrels, though I have no direct evidence of their mischievousness. In any case, the lost tips seem to do no harm…

No doubt, there are varying goals that gardeners hope to achieve. This is not an edible garden, at least not for my consumption, though numerous beasts feed here daily. There are several blueberries that have grown far above my reach, but I pluck only a handful or two, leaving most for the birds. While the…

With temperatures forecast to plunge near freezing this week, I must prepare for the inevitable move of tropicals into the basement and greenhouse. I delay lugging heavy pots of aeoniums and digging and potting large mangaves (below) that are in the ground as long as possible in a lost cause act of defiance. While many…

Japanese maples are often the latest of the garden’s trees to display their glorious autumn foliage colors. Dogwoods are among the earliest, but there’s little leaf color this first week of October except drought induced yellows. Still, there’s lots of color. A year ago, a number of the garden’s hollies lacked their typical profusion of…

Oh, the lessons I should’ve learned. When is enough, enough? Though there are only a few neglected roses in the garden, when is the time to stop and smell them? Instead, even after thirty-five years, it’s full speed ahead. Certainly, I’m planting fewer trees as the garden overflows, but there’s hardly a week without a…

I rejoice in the cooler autumn temperatures, but more, the return to regular rainfall after a particularly dry summer. The garden survived the drought without irrigation except a few containers that demanded an occasional sip, and of course, the few new plantings from June and later required a drink or two. As I recall, nothing…

Through the dreadfully dry summer, I frequently whined and hoped for a deluge that would relieve drought stricken plants and refill the garden’s ponds. And, here it is. Of course, while the remnants of the recent hurricane saturated our parched ground, there were extreme consequences in the mountains of North Carolina where so many of…

Unsurprisingly, I give myself too much credit. My analytical self is often shoved aside by an impulsive other guy. Another redbud or Japanese maple is obtained. How can I resist? Then, the other, more reasonable side must figure out where it can be planted to do the least harm. The eventual, wonderful result is claimed…

Several toad lilies (Tricyrtis) have been rescued from beneath overgrown areas of the garden. I expect a few have been lost in recent years, but I haven’t an inventory of varieties, so I can’t be certain. Toad lilies are a treasured collection, but as the numbers increased, the minor differences in many diluted my enthusiasm…

The two year old revision of the lower rear garden that replaced a damp, weedy lawn is coming along nicely. At the start, several fillers were planted so I would not cringe for several years waiting for all to grow up. Vigorous amsonia and baptisia have quickly filled in to the point that they are…

The surprise lilies (Lycoris radiata, below) have done it again. In the garden, I enjoy today, hardly thinking about tomorrow unless I’m teased by a swelling bud. So, I hardly noticed the lilies until the buds stood above the neighboring hostas. The next day, they flowered. And, from what I recall, there are several more…