Like the crocosmia, agapanthus (Lily of the Nile) was love at first sight. The plant is native to South Africa, so it is used to a temperate climate. In Atlanta, it usually blooms in June and July, producing beautiful puffs of pastel flowers atop an elegant long dark green stalkContinue Reading
The Vintage Minolta Love Project is in its preliminary stages. Shooting every major Minolta SLR necessitates buying more cameras. Since I’m buying on a budget, every camera is tested when it arrives in case I have to send it back. I wish I could buy the remaining cameras from KEHContinue Reading
First-time gardeners have a steep learning curve—how much water, how much sun, best location, when to prune, what kind of fertilizer. Fortunately, help exists in some book or magazine for all of these. However, the weather is trickier. All guides, articles, and websites assume the usual four seasons when givingContinue Reading
How often should new plants be watered and how much each time? Both questions plagued me that first summer. The best advice I found said water new plants every day, then as often as you water the rest of your garden. Having never had a garden, I didn’t find thatContinue Reading
By June 3, the azaleas on the east side of the yard had been moved to allow for the hosta garden. The herb garden had been planted, and now it was time for the botanical section, so named because it was the intended home of the more exotic plants. Belatedly,Continue Reading
So It May Secretly Begin (listen) is a song track from my favorite Pat Metheny album, Still Life (Talking). I have listened to this album, especially this song, hundreds of times—driving, falling asleep, studying, romancing. I like its fluid elegance. It starts softly, tentatively, as if expressing contemplation or uncertainty. As itContinue Reading
The day I held the Maxxum 7000i for the first time proved to be a turning point in my life. I thought I was buying an inexpensive AF camera to take pictures of my garden. In reality, I was joining the ranks of Minolta collectors. I started down this pathContinue Reading
By the end of May 2014, I had mapped the sun’s movement, chosen plants, and bought topsoil, mulch, and composted manure. I owned two types of shovels, a garden rake, a hatchet, a digging fork, a kneeling bench, and various smaller implements— all I needed were the plants. I hadContinue Reading
Gardening magazines have a way of filling one’s head with all kinds of blossomy dreams only to have them dashed by the local big box garden center. The perennials at most big box stores are usually limited to two types of daylilies (yellow Stella d’Oro and maybe an orange variety),Continue Reading
When people at a nursery warn you about a plant, believe them. Here are my four cautionary tales. I had never heard of bee balm before deciding to dig up the yard. It earned a spot in the garden because the flowers are so oddly shaped. They resemble jester’s hatsContinue Reading
