Garden-worthy Gems

Some Like It Hot

One thing I can tell you with all certainty is that this gardener does not like it hot. When I stepped out into Elizabeth Lawrence’s garden this morning at 8:15, the thermometer read 79F. That alone wouldn’t be bad, but add in 85% humidity, and that’s enough to drive me back indoors. Well, not right back indoors…

A Late Summer Seductress

A Late Summer Seductress

“The season of squills need not end with spring...”

Elizabeth Lawrence, The Little Bulbs

Rarely do I refer to any flowering plant as a delicate workhorse, but Barnardia japonica, commonly known as autumn squill, deserves that association full-stop.

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A Single Bulb, A Legacy in Bloom

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A Single Bulb, A Legacy in Bloom

Last week, I had an incredible discovery: one of Elizabeth Lawrence’s original plant tags intertwined in the original hog-wire fencing on the west property line. As soon as I saw the tag, just hanging out with its “legs” wrapped around the fencing, my brain went all fizzy and buzzy…

Garden-worthy Gems, Plants to Know & Grow

Garden-worthy Gems, Plants to Know & Grow

I truly wish this plant had a common name, but apparently it does not. What it does have, however, is three solid seasons of subdued attractiveness in the woodland garden. So what is this plant, you ask?

Pachyphragma macrophyllum is a nearly evergreen perennial. It is not a showy top-billing plant, but rather nicely fills a supporting role under larger shrubs or at the edge of a path.

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Lovely Lycoris, the Bewitching Bulbs, Part 2

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Lovely Lycoris, the Bewitching Bulbs, Part 2

In this segment, we’ll take a look at the last four lycoris to bloom in Elizabeth Lawrence’s garden, those that span August to the end of September.

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Lovely Lycoris, the Bewitching Bulbs, part 1

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Lovely Lycoris, the Bewitching Bulbs, part 1

There are few flowers that I long more to see each year than those of lycoris. There is something bewitching about these bulbs. Perhaps it is the way they spring from the ground seemingly overnight; perhaps it is their brief but spectacular flowering. The anticipation is like a siren that lures me in more every year.

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It's all about the daylilies, Part 2

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It's all about the daylilies, Part 2

For the past ten years, I have been sussing out the identities of the 28 daylilies here in the garden that are original to Elizabeth Lawrence. Even after all that time, 12 remain a mystery. That may not sound like many to figure out, but there are records for 30 daylilies that could fit those 12 plants. There must be a method through this madness!