The "Living Light" show at the Tompkins County Public Library is still going, until March 26th. It is definitely worth the visit. Compliments to the Finger Lakes Native Plant Society for coordinating the exhibit, and to the 52 artists who contributed their artwork. I want to call them photos, but one of most of the photos are better labeled art.

This photograph is the best my Sony Cybershot could... read more

Jade and Fred have 25 years between them. But they were acting like puppies in the melting drifts (still 3 to 4 feet deep in places) this weekend. (Click on images for larger views.) read more

 The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has received a grant from the National Science Foundation to create a new citizen science project called The YardMap Network . This project invites the public to map their yards, sharing the habitat-types and conservation practices happening in yards and green spaces across the country. We are looking for gardeners and birders to participate in focus groups on Thursday March 11 from 4:00-6:00pm and Friday... read more

Ithaca, NY --- Do you love spending time in the forests, meadows and other natural areas of the Finger Lakes region?  Do you care about preserving the integrity of the natural world and do you want to share this love with others?  If so, consider joining a new educational program at Cornell Plantations: the Natural Areas Academy.

The Natural Areas Academy... read more

News flash: upstate NY has its own flower and garden show, and it’s this week in Syracuse! There will be “10-12 competition gardens, local college participation, and garden clubs. With an emphasis on education, there will be many horticulturally relevant seminars and presentations.” Tickets are a reasonable 10 bucks per day or 20 for a weekend [...] read more

It’s a sluggish Sunday, heavy wet snow is sliding off the branches, and we’re all in danger of sliding onto the couch for the duration. Putting seeds in baggies in the kitchen is not exactly gardening, but I’m making myself do it. Thank God there’s Junior Brown. oh, that’s right, you’re not from Texas. Filed under: music [...] read more

Nothing major. Just a couple inches of the heavy wet stuff weigh to down the deer fence, cap the coneflowers and coat everything. Some early morning shots. Full-screen+ panorama read more

After the blizzard, here’s what we woke to. Someone was none too pleased at first. But you can’t cure a scent hound of being curious. Out on our walk, he led me into the field and cut trail in snow I was postholing in past knee height. Don’t let him tell you he’s no snow dog. Filed under: Uncategorized [...] read more

Actually, I kind of like snow. But after shoveling a foot Thursday night and spending a couple hours this morning to free things up, it’s getting kind of old already. Especially when you have to actually shovel a path so the dogs can get off the porch to do their thing. Here’s the view [...] read more

Here’s my entry in the February Gardening Gone Wild photo contest. To be clear, the top image in this post is my entry. The rest are other winter images I like, but didn’t make the cut. I chose that one based purely on emotion. Nothing beats interest like a Dalmatian in the snow. And [...] read more

Nowadays Breck's and Spring Hill are pounding my mailbox and my inbox with special offers and bright pictures of the latest double hybrid flowers at one penny prices. I did fall for some hellebores and heleniums that will serve next year to shorten the winter. I do not find myself otherwise flipping through the pages dreamily: something about double hybrids takes the natural out of the gardening.

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Scenes from a walk on a late January afternoon in Slaterville. Filed under: excursions, Slaterville Springs, the trees Tagged: excursions, low light, mostly Beagle, snow, the trees, winter read more

We have life! (and sun!) we have texture we have nuance we have a warm muzzle and one lonely little Begonia for a February Bloom Day Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. Go visit to see what’s in bloom all over the world. Filed under: bloom day, Lucky Buddy Jake Tagged: bloom day, mostly [...] read more

Classic Prine duet with Iris Dement. John’s at the State in Ithaca tomorrow. Good luck finding a ticket. read more

The bulbs that I am forcing have started to bloom. I put one hyacinth in a forcing glass into the basement on November 29th. I potted the rest up on December 5th. I brought them all up when I saw green tips emerging from the bulbs. I now realize this was too early. According to [...] read more

I had long considered flowers from a florist to be a frivolous expense. You couldn’t plant them, and had nothing to show for it when they finally shriveled up and died. Spend the same amount on groceries, and at least you’ve fed your family, even if it still seems like you’ve got nothing to show [...] read more

Apologies for the sporadic blogging this winter, including taking off two months on the bloom day scans. (Life’s been hectic, especially on the doggie front.) Figured February would be a good month to get back in the saddle with some dark, broody bloom day scans of the seeds and stems variety. We’ll [...] read more

Close to six months ago, my older sister sent me a card with this painting of her front yard. I promised to scan it for her, but it got lost in a pile until today. I’m jealous of her Pacific Northwest Zone 8 climate, but she always reminds me that that means weeding [...] read more

Last month, the U.S Postal Service issued this stamp to celebrate the Year of the Tiger. Read more about Narcissus and Chinese culture at The Human Flower Project. I also love this lawn illustration by Kam Mak, the artist who created the stamp.  This magnolia and monarch, too. read more

Horticulturist and best-selling author Anna Pavord will speak on “A Luxuriance of Bulbs” at 11 a.m., Saturday March 20 at the Statler Hall Auditorium on the Cornell University campus. The talk is free and open to the public. Pavord has been the gardening correspondent for The Independent (UK) since 1986 and has written eight books, including [...] read more