At Hartley Botanic we have a good relationship with many knowledgeable garden writers both in the UK and USA – here you can enjoy reading their articles and gardening tips.
“This morning, when I went to look at my flowers…I saw again in my mind all the blossoms in the woods, the fields, the gardens, the orangeries and the green-houses; and I thought of all that we owe to world of marvels which the bees visit.” Maurice Maeterlinck, 1909. Not just the bees, I hasten […]
This spring was quite wet, which made it ideal for producing berries. I grow a variety of berry plants, all of which keep on giving year after year. Not wanting to make jams or jellies during the heat of summer, many of my berries are bagged and frozen to be used in cooler weather. Here’s […]
What can be more magical than a full moon on a summer evening? That great silvery orb peeping out behind drifting clouds or rising regally into a clear sky twinkling with diamonds. Makes one wax lyrical. Sitting out in the garden on such a night could be called moon-bathing, and provide an opportunity to enjoy […]
With all the rain we’ve had this summer, I decided it was time to build a rain garden to absorb some of the water runoff from my greenhouse roof. Because the greenhouse is a lean-to-style one attached to my studio building, additional water runs off the studio roof as well. This runoff can fill my […]
It’s that time of year again. The umpteenth generation of house finches is leaving the nest, one by one, encouraged by their parents to fly the coop; it’s getting crowded in the Mexican tin lantern that is the couple’s poquito ranchito. It’s a wonderful thing to witness as each baby bird gains confidence and control […]
Considering all of humanity’s endeavors for which clever workarounds have been invented…like “smart” phones, thermostats, search engines, algorithms, whatever we can open with the touch of fingertips on keyboards, I feel justified in thinking of gardening as the last hands-on enterprise left to us. Okay, I exaggerate, but just a tiny bit. Think about it: […]
It’s hot. Really hot! Forecasters say that temperatures here in Rhode Island could reach 100oF (38oC) with humidity to match even though summer is just beginning. Fortunately, I live on the coast, so high temperatures inland create a sea breeze that cools our local area outdoors. But inside my greenhouse is a different story. If […]
“Water adds life, movement, and sound,” says Vanca Lumsden. For fourteen years she was the owner of Pondering, an aquatic plant and supply business in Medford, Oregon. She says, “Even plants growing in still water add a whole new dimension to the greenhouse.” Whether it’s a fountain or simply containers where aquatic plants can thrive, […]
May! At LAST! And all craziness in the garden has broken loose. The mantra in the Rockies is not to plant anything before May 14, or Mother’s Day, whichever is latest. This is, however, a newer rule. Consulting my trusty volume, How to have Good Gardens in the Sunshine States, published in 1957, the author, […]
I have tried to grow a lot of plants in my greenhouses. They have ranged from orchids to vines, from seasonal vegetables to perennial fruit and I have found that there are certain plants that or either difficult, invasive or just plain ornery when grown in the greenhouse. They range from plants that cannot stand […]
One of the secrets to success with plants is simple—look at the conditions where the plant has evolved in the world and then duplicate those as close as you can. This is true of both species and the cultivars and hybrids that are derived from them. By knowing whether they grew in damp or dry […]
Spring burst upon the scene this month, and was I ever glad to see it, as was just about everyone else I know in my part of the southwest, i.e. from the Rockies south thru the Sangre de Cristo mountains to Albuquerque. We had the errant snowfall…like it lost its way then dropped a desultory […]
