A gutter box planting

I walked down Haywood Street in West Asheville a couple of times today and yesterday, while getting my car window shield replaced (a chip morphed into a long crack on either side).A high point were these "gutter" plantings, in ordinary galvanized gutters, filled with attractive sedums.In the front,...

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Rudbeckia triloba and Ceratostigma (Plumago)

After the second season, the Rudbeckia triloba plants in front were unceremoniously moved to the back, above the wall.  It's a short-lived perennial species, but self-sows freely, in quantities not well-behaved in the full-sun conditions in front of my raised bed vegetables.They don't flourish...

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Brooklyn Bridge Park (in NYC)

It's always inspiring to read about new urban parks like this one; this article in the New York Times describes a vibrant, naturalistically-planted park full of meadows and other plantings. Bringing nature to the city is a good thing.  And large scale plantings make a distinct difference in places where concrete is the norm.It's inspiration for our smaller cities and towns, too, where perhaps...

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Sunflowers in the morning

Sunflowers at Biltm...

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Morning glory magic

The telephone pole out front has enjoyed our morning glory plantings for a number of years. Yes, they're weedy.  Yes, they require thinning.  Yes, we have to pull them down before they reach the transformer.But they're wonderful, regardless.  This year, there's a mixture of blue-purple...

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An exuburant front vegetable garden

The filet pole beans are coming in now, as are the climbing squash (winter squash varieties). And, I've been harvesting tomatoes and early peppers for weeks now.  There are paste tomatoes, slicing tomatoes and cherry tomatoes -- hard to beat that, along with the ancho and romano peppers.front...

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Natural neighborhoods: re-knitting the fabric of life

What's interesting me now, especially, as I've transitioned to volunteer outreach, is how those of us who are keen and passionate about gardening for nature (especially with native plants in mind) can help reach more folks.And even more importantly, how do we create neighborhoods that help sustain...

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