Sick of pesto pasta salad? Me too! That’s why I trolled around for an alternative delivery system for all the pesto I need to make before this weekend, when the temperature’s likely gonna drop way below basil-tolerance parameters. Marché does these tasty little tartines for lunch–which sounds fancy, but is really just an open-faced sandwich…
From August through the end of the growing season, the lazy gardener grows ever lazier. And seriously grumpy. In August, syrup-thick ninety-five-degree days broil hosta, lilac (Yes, there is one that’s hardy here-it’s called ‘Miss Kim.’), and heuchera leaves to a crispy, rippled brown. The echinacea are a wave of burned black seedheads, and the…
Last Saturday, Cheekwood Gardens in Nashville opened at 6am so amateur photographers like me could enjoy the loveliest light of the day–all free of charge. I enjoyed myself immensely, lying in the grass to snap dozens of flower photos as the sun rose and ignited the reds and yellows to a ramped-up crackling brilliance. The…
I wrote something vaguely resembling the following post, after consuming two daiquiris at a neighbor’s pool about two weeks ago. After relishing the rainstorm for a few minutes in the backyard a la naturale, I channeled this strange rant while still dripping with chilly raindrops. This is a warning to all those who think chemicals…
On rain, as an excellent excuse to stay in bed
Have you been paying attention so far? If so, you might not exactly ace this quiz, but you probably won’t goose egg it, either. Here goes: take a look at the following perennials blooming in my back yard today and take a guess at what each one is. Extra credit if you know the scientific…
It’s springtime! Plant a tree. (Not just any tree.) Here’s how…and why.
Last night, the first Asiatic lily bloomed. By morning, three yellow lily blooms had appeared behind the old millstone in the sunny cottage garden section of the backyard. Such a beautiful, complicated thing, I thought–it should take longer than a single night to take shape. I wonder: if I had the patience, would I…
The Greenery 