“The human soul is hungry for beauty; we seek it everywhere – in landscape, music, art, clothes, furniture, gardening, companionship, love, religion, and in ourselves. No one would desire not to be beautiful. When we experience the beautiful, there is a sense of homecoming.” – John O’Donohue July Backyard Gardens One of the best partsContinue reading “July Backyard Gardens: Color Palette and Planting Guide”
Category Archives: gardens
Summer Gardens
“Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world.” Ralph Waldo Emerson It’s funny sometimes to think amidst the busyness of work, family, appointments, kids’ practices and games, about slowing down. Most of the year, out of necessity, I’m moving too fast. Busyness becomes a routine, andContinue reading “Summer Gardens”
Poppies and Peonies
To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. – Audrey Hepburn Every spring, the warming weather hooks me with its promises of color after the long Ohio winter. Every spring, I can’t help myself and plant a few more flowers. Last year, I planted poppies. A few years ago, I planted peonies. And justContinue reading “Poppies and Peonies”
A Gardener’s Color Guide: 20 Favorite Garden Flowers
“My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece” – Claude Monet I love flowers. I always have, and probably always will. This year, I’m more excited than usual to get planting — I have a garden to plant, a blank slate. Before my family and I moved to Prague, my gardens at our former house overflowed withContinue reading “A Gardener’s Color Guide: 20 Favorite Garden Flowers”
Gardens and a Beautiful Life: a Photojournal
“A garden to walk in and immensity to dream in–what more could he ask? A few flowers at his feet and above him the stars.” ― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables During the month of May and the first half of June, the weather blew into Ohio in hot gusts, dry enough to wither theContinue reading “Gardens and a Beautiful Life: a Photojournal”
Hummingbird Time
“Hummingbirds open our eyes to the wonder of the world and inspire us to open our hearts to loved ones and friends. Like a hummingbird, we aspire to hover and to savor each moment as it passes, embrace all that life has to offer and to celebrate the joy of everyday. The hummingbird’s delicate graceContinue reading “Hummingbird Time”
To Blossom
And then the day came, when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to Blossom. Anaïs Nin It’s that time of year when the Pear trees are in full bloom, and the street on which I live, lined with dozens of Pear tress, looks likeContinue reading “To Blossom”
A Lasting Spring, in photos
“Sweet spring, full of sweet days and roses…” – Sir Alan Herbert This past weekend, I took advantage of the warm hours of sunshine, slipped on my gardening gloves, and headed out into the gardens with the pruners. The remnant of last fall’s foliage, weathered and grayed and lifeless, lay strewn in mounds. After aContinue reading “A Lasting Spring, in photos”
10 Favorite Garden Roses
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.” -Helen Keller This past week has been a chaotic and heart-breaking one, in terms of the world around us. From the terrifying scenario playing out in Ferguson, Missouri, to the war-tornContinue reading “10 Favorite Garden Roses”
On Light, Darkness, and Garden Beauty
People are like stained – glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within. – Elisabeth Kubler-Ross I haven’t always loved flowers, or maybe I have … but I remember vividly the dayContinue reading “On Light, Darkness, and Garden Beauty”
