Thoughtful musings on various topics by interesting people at Blithewold

All grown up

I think I might have an inkling of how parents feel when they realize that their babies have grown up. It seems like the garden is suddenly full of teenagers. I have to crane my … Read more.

Fresh perspective

The other day when Fred and Dan had the ladder out they invited me up on the north porch roof for a look at the North Garden. I’m a little bit scared of heights and … Read more.

A perfect partnership

Ever since Dick, our vegetable gardener extraordinaire, first joined his wife Mary in the Blithewold gardens, we’ve had more produce than we know what to do with. (Dick orders the vegetable seeds, starts them, plants … Read more.

Feels like July

There’s really no need to check the calendar. It suddenly feels like going to the beach and that can only mean one thing. It’s July. I’m inclined to think that July is a state of … Read more.

Our fledgling

Yesterday morning everyone at Blithewold – staff, volunteers and even a few visitors – ran an emotional gamut from excitement and pride, to awe, to dismay, fear, sadness and around again to hope. All for … Read more.

Mixed feelings about mixed containers

On the one hand, I can hardly help but want to group plants together and if there’s a pot big enough for everyone, I’m all for it. And there are places in our gardens that … Read more.

Days of whine and roses

Sometimes I still feel like a backseat whiner. I should know better than to complain out loud because as a kid, whenever I asked, “are we there yet?”, my Mom would only reply cryptically, “10 … Read more.

A frenzy

I think it might be safe to say that we’ve been even busier than bees in the last couple of days. And by “we” I mostly mean the garden volunteers. Gail, Tara and I placed … Read more.

Inside work

We really needed the rain. Not only were the gardens dry – which is hard to believe since it’s been so not-sunny lately – but rain also gives us a chance to get to things … Read more.

Baby pictures

Everybody loves babies, right? They’re so tiny and soft and fuzzy; totally precious and addictively photogenic. I am completely enamored with spring’s tiny toes and can’t get enough of (almost) all of its smells. I’m … Read more.