I recently introduced you to Madame Ganna Walska and Lotusland, the dream garden she created in California. As I've been thinking about my 2013 garden plans and resolutions, I keep coming back to my virtual visit to Lotusland and how this might be influencing some of my design decisions this year. More

Every home should incorporate some greenery, and we have solutions even for the black thumbs out there! Succulents are resilient, low maintenance, and come in a variety of shapes and colors, making them the ideal candidate for your own planted composition. More

With a windchill factor of -9ºF today, spring feels light years away. But it's the perfect time to daydream about what perfect gardeners we'll be this year… More

When my husband and I first moved to Seattle, we rented a townhouse with an itty-bitty front yard. It was just big enough for a raised planting bed, which our golden retriever puppy promptly claimed as his potty when we brought him home. By the time we were ready to buy, our dog weighed 80 pounds and a decent backyard was high on our must-have list. More

If you would like to be temporarily transported out of the doldrums of winter, then let me introduce you to Lotusland. While I haven't been there in person, I became acquainted with this spectacular garden last year in the Martha Stewart Living March issue, and it has been on my list of gardens to visit ever since. Lotusland is 37 acres with 17 gardens, all nestled in California's swank Montecito. While the grounds are quite impressive, to truly understand the gardens, you should first become acquainted with the garden's creator, Madame Ganna Walska. More

You may have noticed that part of the January Cure is bringing in flowers on the weekends — why not make it even easier on yourself by growing some of your own? I know I'd love to see a little dash of springtime in the midst of the winter gloom. More

There are exciting things going on in the horticulture industry. Seems the breeders and growers have caught wind of the fact that we are all a little tired of Amaryllis, Paperwhites, Pointsettias and the rest of the tried and true, but rather expected, selection of winter blooming holiday house plants. The trendy new option is Hellebores. More

I cannot believe Season 3 of Downton Abbey has arrived — I still haven't seen Season 2! Of course, since I watched all of Season 1 in less than 48 hours, it shouldn't be too hard to catch up. For now, I'm satisfied just gazing at the splendid gardens, imagining all the storming off, surreptitious conversations, and liaisons-in-follies I could have with such amazing grounds… More

As we head into the new year and try our best to refresh our lives with projects and resolutions, I thought of some of the most transformative garden makeovers that I have written about before. The kind that go from really nothing to really something. I'm participating in the January Cure (and blogging about it!), and this garden and the way it suddenly got all organized reminds me of my experiences so far. More

You really can start planting for the new year between Christmas and New Year's day! Continuing on my big bold bulb experiment (see "Summer to Fall" here), I finally got my act together, found a few hours and got some glorious spring and summer bulbs into the ground yesterday before it got really cold out here on Long Island. I even made a little movie of me shivering in the rain. :)

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