Houston Botanic Garden’s surprising cactus garden and more – part 2
September 25, 2020 During my inaugural visit to the brand-new Houston Botanic Garden last weekend, my eyes widened when I rounded a bend and saw this — a rocky garden of agave, yucca, and cactus. After all, this is Houston, city of sauna-like summers and 50 inches of annual rainfall ...
Tropicalesque Tanglewild, where bananas and palms grow big and bold
September 17, 2020 With the arrival of cooler weather it’s garden visiting season, and I’ve started calling on gardening friends who are willing to have me over for a socially distanced, masked, outdoor visit. How I love touring gardens! This week’s tour is at Tanglewild Gardens, a 1.7-acre garden in ...
Chicago garden of restaurateur Rick Bayless
August 20, 2020 No, I have not recently traveled to Chicago (I wish!). But I did just come across photos from the 2009 Garden Bloggers Fling in Chicago and was stunned to realize I’d never written about one of the gardens we visited: the home garden of chef, restaurateur, TV ...
San Antonio Botanical Garden reopening, part 1
May 19, 2020 After a month and a half self-isolating at home, I was craving a garden visit when I got the news that both the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and San Antonio Botanical Garden were opening back up at limited capacity. I immediately went online and secured tickets ...
Containers and color galore in Rob Proctor’s garden: Denver Garden Bloggers Fling
July 15, 2019 Rob Proctor has been showing Coloradans how to garden for decades. A former director of horticulture at Denver Botanic Gardens and the author of 17 gardening books, he also appears weekly on Denver’s channel 9 news for a gardening segment called “Proctor’s Garden.” When we arrived at ...
Party under the willow tree in Judy Seaborn’s garden: Denver Garden Bloggers Fling
July 13, 2019 Grandmother Willow offers sage advice in Pocahontas. Old Man Willow terrorizes the hobbits in The Lord of the Rings. The Whomping Willow bashes the unwary and guards a secret passageway in the Harry Potter series. Why does the willow figure so prominently in our cultural mythology? Perhaps ...
A fusion of nature and art in Scott Deemer’s garden: Denver Garden Bloggers Fling
July 11, 2019 A “designer showpiece” garden conveys a grand gesture, expensive hardscaping, and maybe not much in the way of plants. At the home garden of Scott Deemer in Niwot, Colorado, a grand-gesture fireplace and beautifully designed hardscaping create a wow moment as soon as you step onto the ...
TatTopia garden embraces stonework and sustainability: Denver Garden Bloggers Fling
July 09, 2019 When the construction dust settled at Tatiana Maxwell’s new energy-wise home, studio, and guest house in Boulder, Colorado, in 2010, the yard was just an expanse of bare dirt. Her first thought was to build an English-style cottage garden. But after brainstorming with stonemason artist Thea Alvin ...
Cat’s pollinator garden with a canyon view
May 16, 2019 Three years ago my friend Cat Jones (check out her IG and blog) and her husband, Derrick, newly empty nesters, sold their house and Cat’s lovely garden and moved to a different home in their Steiner Ranch neighborhood, not to downsize but — fellow gardeners, can you ...
Creative display gardens at The Natural Gardener
April 07, 2019 The Natural Gardener beckoned as a fun first stop on my wildflower drive last Wednesday. Mom was with me, and after we stashed a bunch of new plants in the car, we stepped back out to explore the nursery’s colorful display gardens. The herb garden designed by ...
Gardening book roundup for holiday gift ideas
December 08, 2018 Wondering what to get your garden-loving friend or family member (or yourself) for the holidays? Here’s a roundup of recent books with something for everyone, whether their interest leans more to ornamental design, edibles, or ecology. Dreamscapes: Inspiration and Beauty in Gardens Near and Far by Claire ...
Golden ginkgo glory in Lucinda Hutson’s garden
November 26, 2018 My phone buzzed on Saturday as my daughter, home from college for Thanksgiving, and I were heading out to do a little shopping at Blue Genie Art Bazaar. It was Lucinda Hutson, her voice excited as she said the magic words: “The ginkgo tree is absolutely the ...
More butterflies and Halloween scarecrows at San Antonio Botanical Garden
November 11, 2018 I’ve shown you the fabulous new gardens at San Antonio Botanical Garden that have opened over the past year — the culinary and entry gardens and the Family Adventure Garden — but there is more to see in the original gardens. During my visit at the end ...
Food for people and butterflies in San Antonio Botanical Garden’s culinary and entry gardens
November 06, 2018 San Antonio was calling my name last week, so I hopped in the car with my friend Cat of The Whimsical Gardener, and we road-tripped south to see the new gardens at San Antonio Botanical Garden. Wow, was I impressed with the changes! Zachry Foundation Culinary Garden ...
Dia de los Muertos in Lucinda Hutson’s festive home and garden
November 05, 2018 As a native of border city El Paso and a veteran traveler throughout Mexico, Lucinda Hutson has long embraced Mexican culture and traditions like Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. She recently hosted a small gathering in honor of the holiday, which is a ...
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 ...
