Xeriscape in bloom at Wells Branch Community Garden
May 14, 2020 Lemon-lime retama trees in bloom caught my eye recently as I drove by the Wells Branch Community Garden and its native xeriscape garden. Someone takes really good care of this waterwise garden, which dresses up the exterior of the walled community-garden plots. Until a few years ago ...
Playing in The Gardens on Spring Creek in Fort Collins
September 12, 2018 During our Great American West road trip last month, my daughter and I passed through charming Fort Collins, Colorado, and visited The Gardens on Spring Creek, the city’s community-oriented botanic garden. The entry garden was ablaze with late-summer flowers like purple coneflower, rudbeckia, and cleome. Pink cleome ...
Willowsford Farm market stand & Fling wrap-up: Capital Region Garden Bloggers Fling
July 20, 2017 I’m not a food gardener myself, but I enjoyed the Capital Region Garden Bloggers Fling welcome-event visit to Willowsford Farm, a 300-acre farm surprisingly located within a recently developed planned community in Ashburn, Virginia, about an hour’s drive northwest of Washington, D.C. After a lovely outdoor reception, ...
Turning a neighborhood median strip into a garden
April 18, 2017 A few years ago I toured Colleen Jamison’s beautiful garden in central-west Austin, and a few days ago I had the pleasure of a revisit. It is still wonderful! But here’s what wowed me before I even stepped foot in her garden: a median strip down the ...
Autumn stroll around Lady Bird Lake
November 28, 2016 Autumn rarely sets our trees aflame here in central Texas, and this year’s fall color looks to be more of a dud than usual. But still, you can find a few russet tinges if you squint, especially in the coppery needles of bald cypresses around Lady Bird ...
Edibles, green roof, and playground at Mueller Community Gardens & Gaines Park
November 25, 2016 We spent Thanksgiving in the mixed-use, urban-infill, sustainably-designed Mueller neighborhood in east Austin, where my in-laws hosted us in their lovely new home. As always when we visit, I’m impressed by the park spaces and community amenities available to Mueller residents, and I fantasize about moving into ...
Scenes from Minneapolis gardens, sightseeing, and bloggers: Minneapolis Garden Bloggers Fling
August 03, 2016 This is my 10th post about the recent Minneapolis Garden Bloggers Fling, and I have two more coming up that cover one very special garden. Even so, I won’t have shown you every garden we visited. There were just too many! But here are a few images ...
Cabbagetown garden art and Hugh Garner Co-Op Green Roof: Toronto Garden Bloggers Fling
June 29, 2015 The teeny tiny gardens of Toronto’s Cabbagetown neighborhood of Victorian homes kicked off our final day of Toronto Garden Bloggers Fling in early June. Due to the tight quarters, pictures of artful vignettes were easier to take than overview photos, and I’m sharing my favorites here. Cabbagetown ...
Floral design demo with urban farmer Sarah Nixon: Toronto Garden Bloggers Fling
June 21, 2015 Floral designer and urban farmer Sarah Nixon welcomed approximately 70 bloggers (in two shifts) into her tiny back garden during our first day at Toronto Garden Bloggers Fling earlier this month. Sarah, a gardener and floral designer who operates My Luscious Backyard, explained her business to us ...
Gardens on Tour 2013: Highland Terrace West Garden
May 15, 2013 I used to walk by this house every day while picking up my son from kindergarten, and each time I’d gape at the lush, shade garden fronting the charming cottage with the welcoming front porch, wondering what the rest of the place looked like. Twelve years later, ...
Bee-utiful community and food gardens at Asheville Fling
May 27, 2012 Wallowing in poppy goodness, the bees and I enjoyed a visit to the Burton Street Community Peace Gardens while in Asheville recently for the Garden Bloggers Fling. Look at this girl’s full pollen basket on her legs. Like slipping into satin sheets Dusted with pollen Off to ...
Intimate gardens of Spring Fling
June 05, 2009 Mr. McGregor’s Daughter’s garden On Thursday before Chicago Spring Fling, Mr. McGregor’s Daughter invited those she knew were arriving early to visit her garden, Squirrelhaven. Several of us took the train from the hotel that afternoon and were met at the station by an open-armed, excitedly yelling ...
Austin achieves Community Wildlife Habitat certification
March 13, 2009 Austin demonstrated yesterday that it’s pretty easy being green. The National Wildlife Federation certified our city as a Community Wildlife Habitat. Austin is the largest U.S. city and the first in Texas to achieve certification. As explained on the NWF’s website, “The Community Wildlife Habitat project is ...
Guerrilla gardening in Austin
September 09, 2008 ‘Lavender Lady’ passionflower vine The trendy topic of guerrilla gardening, hashed over for months in the garden blogging community (see Garden Rant and Gardening Tips ‘n’ Ideas), has trickled down to the local news. Local readers, tune in to KEYE 42 news tonight at 10 p.m. to ...
Green roof movement in Austin
February 06, 2008 Green roof on a Hill Country residence. Photo used with permission from Casey Boyter My preconceptions of green roofs are changing with the times. I used to picture, I don’t know, rustic Swedish cottages when I thought of green roofs—if I thought of them at all. Then ...
Austin almost at goal for NWF certification
November 27, 2007 This summer I posted about Austin’s goal to become certified as a Community Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. With a population of 735,000, Austin would be the largest city in the country and the first in Texas to become certified. Now I hear that Austin ...
