Gardening

Whether it's filled with mossy rocks and ferns or sands and cactus, a terrarium is an amazingly fun way to learn more about nature. With a terrarium in your room, something of the outdoors can always be inside.

Terrariums that feature plants (not animals!) lock water inside to keep the soil moist. When the plants transpire, they let out water vapor. When the soil gets warm, it lets out water vapor. All this vapor collects against the top and falls back as rain.

Sitting by a garden pond, watching bright fish weave their way through tangles of lilies while listening to sounds of rushing water—does this sound good to you? When we moved into our house we inherited a fish tank and found out just how nice it was. Unfortunately, the tank resembled a moonshine bathtub. So we have decided to give the fish a new home. Planning the pond has been fun, but there are a lot of things to consider before you start digging.

I’ve gardened for years, both flowers and vegetables, and am a Master Gardener. My passion, though, is selecting, growing, and enjoying cultivated daylilies. Daylilies (hemerocallis lilioasphodelus, Greek for 'beauty for a day') are so named as each bloom lasts one day, yet the plants may be loaded with blooms, opening over several days, if not a couple of weeks. Daylilies come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. They generally range from about 12” to 46” tall and have blooms from about 2” to 8” across! Colors include cream, pink, peach, wine, almost black, red, orange, yellow, and variations and combinations of those colors.

If you are asked to visualize a flower in your mind, chances are, you will visualize a rose. You can find roses in a child's drawing, grandmother's wallpaper and the family room’s sofa. Roses have been loved for thousands of years, throughout many civilizations.

Scented geraniums' modest flowers are almost invisible among the big blossoms of their flamboyant cousins...but their fragrant leaves made them the secret stars of Victorian Valentine bouquets.

First, a Little History

Originally, strawberries were wild things. Their unique flavor and sweetness led to their cultivation. At Monticello, Thomas Jefferson grew Alpine Strawberries, a European import, among other varieties and shared the seeds with his friends. The plants were hardy and delicious, but the berries were tiny. Jefferson remarked that "100 would fill half a pint." Wild strawberries grew freely in abandoned fields and woods and were gathered by Indians and colonists alike.

Does hot July find your lawn a patchy, scorched remnant of greener times? Perhaps it bothers you that your green recycling efforts may be countered by the water and chemicals that seem necessary to maintain the visible herbal greenness.

Why Even Have a Lawn?

Well, they're a terrific place for the kids to play. Summer evenings + cool, green lawn + kids = throwing a football. Red Light—Green Light. Badminton. Wading pools. Water games. Tire swings. Firefly captures. Etc.

Autumn chrysanthemums of beautiful color,
With dew in my clothes I pluck these flowers.
I float within wine to forget my sorrow,
To leave far behind thoughts of the world.
Alone, I pour myself a goblet of wine;
When the cup is empty, the pot pours for itself.
As the sun sets, all activities cease;
Homing birds, they hurry to the woods singing.
Haughtily, I whistle below the eastern balcony
I've found again the meaning of life.