Recent Posts
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Attracting & Supporting Birds, Bees & Butterflies: Free Gardening Seminar at Walker Farm in Southern Vermont…
This Saturday —April 23rd from 10 to 11 am– I’ll be presenting a free slide show, seminar & discussion,”Gardening to Attract Birds, Bees & Butterflies” at Walker Farm in East Dummerston, Vermont. This talk is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Please call 802-254-2051 or email walkerfarmvt (at) gmail (dot) com […]
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Books, Bowls, cactus, Container Gardening, Decorating Ideas, Decorating the Garden, Exotic Plants, Ferncliff, Garden Art, Garden Design, Garden Design Photos, Indoor Gardening, Inspirational Gardens, Plant Propagation, Plant Spotlight, Plants for sun, Plants for Texture, Pots, rock garden plants, scree gardens, Studio Garden, Succulents, Tropical Plants, Unusual Plants, Urns and Vessels
Dusting Off, Cleaning Out, Taking Stock & Getting Ready for Gardening Season… Plus Another Giveaway!
The bright gold of Kalanchoe blossfeldiana is a cheerful welcome in a chair beside my front door. I like using natural baskets as decorative covers for inexpensive, recycled plastic flower pots. I do a similar thing with plants placed outside in summer, using everything from wooden crates and baskets to tin cans and flea market […]
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Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design, Nature, Raindrops, The Seasons, Trees, Uncategorized, Vermont, Viburnum, Water Features, Woody Plants
Raindrops & Sunshowers
Stepping Out Through the Raindrops… Early spring is a busy season for gardeners, and it’s easy to get caught up in the many chores at hand. This morning, Mother Nature sent an unexpected gift —a rainbow wrapped up in a sunshower— reminding me to slow down a bit and enjoy the season as it unfolds… […]
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Bee-Friendly Gardens, Bulbs, Color in the Garden, companion planting, Early spring flowering plants, Early Spring Garden Plants, Ferncliff, flowering shrubs, Ground Covers, Insects/Entomology, Lawns, Naturalistic Garden Design, New England, Old Fashioned Flowers, Plant Spotlight, Planting Techniques, Spring Blooming Bulbs, Spring Flowering Bulbs, The Seasons, Woody Plants
Hazy Color Drifts Carpet the Garden: Tiny Gifts of Early Spring…
Spring Heath (Erica carnea) Begins Blooming in Early April (click here to revisit my Erica carnea plant-profile post from last year). Here, Sprawling Across the Ledge  in the Entry Garden… The Pink, Hazy Blur of Spring Heath is Particularly Lovely Against Grey Sky and Cool Stone. On a Blustery Day, I Can’t Help but Think […]
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Pruning Ornamental Trees & Shrubs: Free Saturday Gardening Seminar Sponsored by Walker Farm in Vermont
Lilacs are best pruned immediately after their flowers fade (or, if you like them as fresh cut blossoms, prune and decorate your house with bouquets at the same time). Learn more about how to prune lilacs in this post, and if your looking to improve your pruning skills… I’m presenting a free gardening seminar, “Pruning Ornamental […]
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Celebrating The Gardener’s Eden’s Second Anniversary and Giving Thanks To All of You for Following Along…
Crocus blooming in my garden Has it really been two years? I posted my first entry on The Gardener’s Eden two years ago, April 23rd, and since that time I’ve fallen in love with the incredibly supportive and enthusiastic community of gardeners and cooks I’ve met through this journal. You are wonderful, and I am so […]
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Asian Natives, Ferncliff, Garden Maintenance, garden tools, Ice Storms, Japanese Maple, pruning, The Seasons, Tree Care, Trees, Winter, Woody Plants
Spring Clean-Up Part One: Pruning Damaged Limbs in Tight Spaces Using The Handy, Folding ‘Grecian’ Saw, Plus… A Special Giveaway!
A young Acer palmatum ‘Bloodgood’ in my garden. This photo was taken last spring during a passing shower, just as the beautifully vibrant red leaves began to unfold I love all trees, but I have to admit that in particular, I am a very, very fond of Japanese maples. And in spite of the fact […]
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Garden Maintenance, Garden Science, Garden Seminars, garden tools, pruning, shrubs, The Seasons, Tree Care, Trees, Woody Plants
Spring Clean-Up, Part One: Pruning Winter-Damaged Branches Continues With a Tutorial on Cutting to Alternate & Opposite Buds…
Spring Clean Up Begins in My Garden with the Removal of Winter-Damaged Branches and Limbs on Woody Plants I’ve been tending other people’s gardens for more than a decade, and although I am officially eliminating maintenance from my professional services this year —making more time for design work, teaching and writing— that doesn’t mean I […]
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Garden Maintenance, pruning, shrubs
Spring Clean-Up, Part One: Pruning Winter-Damaged Branches…
Viburnum bodnantense ‘Dawn’ blooms early in the season. These flower buds were formed on old wood, last year. In general this shrub is only lightly pruned for shape, right after it has finished blooming. Damaged wood can and should be pruned anytime, as soon as it is observed. After a long, tough winter, it sure […]
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Bulbs, Cold-Climate Vegetable Gardening, Early Spring Garden Plants, Ferncliff, The Seasons
Getting Down to Earth in the Garden…
First Flowers: Glory-of-the-Snow (Chionodoxa luciliae ‘Gigantea’) What a difference a day makes! Yesterday, my hilltop was nearly invisible; blurred grey and white by snow squalls, sleet and driving rain. But today, all of the new snow has melted, the sun is shining and the sky is clear blue. Ah, New England. As they say: if […]
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Hello April, Ready for Spring?
We’re All Ready for Spring, But It Looks Like She’s Not Quite Ready for Us! Woke up this morning to find an April Fool’s Day trick from Mother Nature. Looks like we’ll be putting away our sun hats and gardening tools for today… Article and photographs are copyright Michaela at The Gardener’s Eden, all rights […]
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Cocktails, Cooking, Maple Syrup, Recipes, The Seasons, Trees, Trees for Fall Foliage, Vermont, Woodland plants
Early Spring’s Sweetest Things…
The New Sugar Shack at Deer Ridge Farm in Guilford, Vermont Spring, oh spring, where are you? You certainly are a bit coquettish this year; teasing us with early catkins on willow, then snapping us with a sharp, cold sting. Yes, Spring has been withholding many early-season pleasures here in New England, but she always […]
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Holy Rasputitsa, What a Quagmire! Stylishly Rockin’ the Mud Season Ball…
“In New England we have nine months of winter, and three months of damned-poor sledding”.—-Old New England Proverb Welcome to Rasputitsa! Looks like this is the official start of mud season —Vermont style— and as they say: you ain’t seen nothin’ yet! I was introduced to the term ‘rasputitsa’ by a friend of mine —a world-class pruner […]
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Native North American Woodlands, Native Plants, Naturalistic Garden Design
Forever Violets: In Memory of Elizabeth
Viola labradorica Elizabeth Taylor Promotional Film Still â“’ Wallace Seawell / MGM Archive Viola labradorica In memory of a beautiful, talented, kind and generous woman; a glamorous inspiration to generations and one of my favorite movie stars of all time. Goodbye Elizabeth. Sleep softly for all eternity in a bed perfumed with ethereal violets; luminous […]
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Aerial Photography, Annual Flowers, annuals, Color in the Garden, Conservatory, Container Gardening, Environmental Art, Farm Events, New England, Perennials : Vermont, Plant Propagation, seed starting, Succulents, Succulents in Containers, Vermont
Fresh Starts & Colorful Patterns at Walker Farm in Dummerston,Vermont…
Like Farm Fields Viewed from Above, Flats of New Seedlings at Walker Farm Create Brilliant Geometric Abstractions Yesterday, I spent a few happy midday hours and an exciting lunchtime meeting with my friends Karen, Jack and Daisy at Walker Farm in Dummerston, Vermont. The 241-year-old farm has long been a popular and beloved local resource […]
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Conservatory, Exotic Plants, Flower Shows, New York Botanical Garden, orchids, Public Gardens, Rare Plants
A Special Offer on Orchid Evenings from The New York Botanical Garden…
The Gorgeous Display of Dazzling Divas at The Orchid Show: On Broadway – New York Botanical Garden – Photo â“’ The Al Hirschfeld Foundation via NY Botanical Garden Psst… Have you heard about The Orchid Show: On Broadway at New York Botanical Garden? Well, the show is already in full swing —dates are March 5 […]
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Bulbs, Color in the Garden, companion planting, Conservatory, Container Gardening, Fantasy Flowers, Glamorous Gardens, Green House Gardens, Indoor Gardening, Inspirational Gardens, Lyman Conservatory, Massachusetts, New England, Old Fashioned Flowers, Plant Spotlight, Smith College Botanical Garden, Spring Blooming Bulbs, Spring Flowering Bulbs, The Seasons, Vernal Equinox
A Warm Welcome to Spring: Blossoming Beauty at the Smith College Bulb Show…
Tulipa ‘Blue Spectacle’ Narcissus, tulips, hyacinth, freesia, iris and clivia; from the brash and bold to the delicate and ethereal, all of spring’s finest ladies were on display this week at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. The Bulb Show at Smith College’s Lyman Conservatory —where thousands of bulbs are carefully arranged and artfully displayed with flowering […]
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Celebrations, Citrus, Cocktails, Full Moon, Native Plants, Nature, New England, North American Trees, Recipes, Vermont, Vernal Equinox, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Oh Sweet, Sweet, Sugar Moon: Celebrate The Vernal Equinox & Celestial Beauty With a Seasonal, Maple Syrup Cocktail…
The Sugar Moon: A Maple Syrup Cocktail to Celebrate the End of Winter & March’s Full Moon at Perigee With the full moon at perigee, Winter’s end and Spring’s beginning, it seems there’s plenty to celebrate this weekend. Last night —eager for a preview of tonight’s celestial events— I took a tour of the local Connecticut […]
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Farmer's Almanac, Moon, Native North American Woodlands, Nature, New England, The Seasons, Trees, Trees for Fall Foliage, Vermont, Vernal Equinox, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Moonlight on Maple Buds…
Moonlight on Maple Buds Watching the moon rise through bare tree limbs last night, I couldn’t help but notice changes taking place in the forest all around me. By night, swollen maple buds stand out in soft silhouette against the sky’s moonlit glow. And by day, hillsides filled with reddish twigs color the landscape in […]
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Arnold Arboretum, Asian Natives, Autumn, Autumn Color in the Garden, Bee-Friendly Gardens, Color in the Garden, flowering shrubs, Flowering Trees, Hamamelis, Hardy shrubs, Massachusetts, Winter, Winter Garden, Winter Gardening, Witch hazel, Woodland plants, Woody Plants
Arnold’s Promise of Springtime…
Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold’s Promise’ is stunning against the blue sky on a late winter day Though it’s a bit grey and dreary here today —melancholy low fog and freezing drizzle— the promise of spring is in the air. A sure sign? Sweetly scented Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold’s Promise’. This gorgeous shrub literally lights up the […]
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Beneficial Animals and Insects, Bird Friendly Gardens, Birds
Nesting Plans…
Nest Photograph â“’ Â Tim Geiss at Poltergeiss Chirping, cawing, calling and singing; suddenly, the forest has come alive with the sound of migratory birds. Soon, it will be nesting time and you know what they say: the early bird catches the best real estate. OK, so maybe that’s not quite what they say, but Cornell […]
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