North Coast Cafe, South

The Price of Seeds

What's the price of gold these days? It can't be any higher than the price of these seeds I got from Guerney's.
Four seeds a little larger than poppy seeds...$2.95. I hope they're hearty, I'd hate to lose my investment.

Snow Garden

I keep telling myself: It won't be too much longer

“The garden, in every language, speaks of seclusion. To flower and plant and tree it is a cloistered battle from the refuge of life, a paradise where free from the pinch of poverty and the malice of their enemies, they may turn their thoughts and their strength from war to beauty . … So, to man, the garden should be something without and beyond nature; a page from an old romance, a scene in fairyland, a gateway through which imagination lifted above the sombre realities of life may pass into a world of dreams.”

--On the Making of Gardens, Sir George Sitwell

Clem-MAH-tis

As I've continued to explore the blogosphere I am ever more gratified when I find folks whose interests, and combination of interests match my own. Garden writing is one of them.

Here is as good an example as I have yet found.

The post about Clematis reminds me of the time I drove 20 miles or so to a nursery recommended to me for it's collection of these wonderful vines. On arrival I went first to the office to ask where I might find 'clem-MAH-tis." The woman I spoke to looked at me curiously and seemed about to tell me she didn't carry them. Finally, it dawned on her what I was asking for. "Oh!," she said. "You mean 'CLEM-a-tis." and pointed me to a building in the back.

Failing to find them I asked a worker near by where I might find the "CLEM-a-tis." He frowned and shook his head. "Dunno," he said.

"Oh, wait!," he offered. "Do you mean Clem-MAH-tis?"

I swear! I did not make this up.

Gardener's Question Time

One of my greatest pleasures since the advent of the Internet is listening to radio from all over the world. One of my very favorites is Gardener's Question Time on BBC 4.

Today's programme began with an introduction from Lincolnshire which included an improbable anecdote about Margaret Thatcher and vegetables.

It seems Mrs. Thatcher took her entire cabinet out to dinner. When they were all seated around the table the waiter began to take the order.

"I'll have the steak," Thatcher said.

"And what about the vegetables?" the waiter asked.

Thatcher said, "oh, they'll have the steak too."

If you're a gardener, or simply enjoy congenial conversation, have a listen.

Chrysanthemum

My favorite season is autumn, my favorite month October. How convenient then that in October my favorite flower comes into bloom. Oh, what perfect flowers these are. Colors so pure and vibrant. So handsomely formed, in so many shapes and sizes. Chrysanthemums have a fragrance that I find stimulating, never sweet or flamboyant. No perfume was ever crafted with chrysanthemum high notes, although pyrethrum is derived from the dried flowers of chrysanthemums and is used as an organic pesticide.
The chrysanthemum was first cultivated in China about the 15th Century B.C. The Chinese valued the mum for its medicinal and culinary uses. They used the roots, which they boiled for a headache remedy and the young sprouts and flower petals for salads.
The Japanese brought chrysanthemums into wide cultivation and have guided the popularity of the mum round the world by their superb breeding and cultivation techniques. The official seal of the Japanese royal family contains a chrysanthemum, and modern Japanese celebrate a National Chrysanthemum Day, also known as the Festival of Happiness.
After its introduction to the West, around 1750, gardeners in Europe started hybridizing the Asian chrysanthemum bringing into existence the large, showy, colorful flowering plants we know today.
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The Zen of Weeding

I've lived on this third of a suburban acre for nearly a quarter-century, and yet I've rarely taken the time to check out what's sharing it with me. Besides a vast assortment of insects that reside on my property (given the bug-to-human ratio, I appear to be residing on theirs), there's a bewildering variety of flora, most of which I couldn't identify until I set about uprooting them.
Getting down and dirty is a humbling experience, if only because it reminds me that life -- and nature -- goes on without me whether I do anything about it or not. The grass grows whether or not I'm around to care for it, and if I don't fill in the bare spots, something else will.
The seasons progress on their own schedule, and if I fall behind in my landscaping duties, the landscape moves on without me. Weeding gives me the satisfaction of bringing order, however momentary, to one small corner of the cosmos. With pruning shears in hand, I can even reshape that corner, trimming an overgrown bush, balancing a lopsided flowering tree. If I have time and vision and fertilizer enough, I can create my own backyard arboretum.

John Powers The Boston Globe 9.21.03 More

North Coast native species Q & A

Question: I have a huge yard that I would love to NOT mow.
I was thinking of putting in a cottage type garden, but don't know how to start.
Answer:

I would start by reading Sara Stein's Noah's Garden: Restoring the Ecology
of Our Own Backyards.

Then I would observe carefully, with purpose, what grows naturally around
you, along roads, in pastures, creeks, wasteland areas. There's much beauty
there once your eye adjusts to the subtle colors, textures, shapes, etc.

Cottage gardens are nice. I keep one myself. But even cottage gardens are
contrived -- by custom, tradition, the nursery business that promote their
wares-- and the media.

Finally, gardening is a process. No garden is ever finished. The only time
I've seen a perfect garden is at a flower show or in a magazine/book photo.

Right now my garden at the front door is in bloom with blue asters,
goldenrod, white roses, chicory, hyacinth bean, nasturtium, hot peppers,
Peruvian purple potatoes and a watermelon! We've eaten nearly all the plums

Cottage garden style

North Coast Gardening

Gardening along the North Coast can be tricky because of the influence of the Greak Lakes on temperatures. When identifying zones either 5 or 6 can be accurate depending on what local conditions prevail and what 'micro-climate' might influence your garden.

I've been told that the lake's influence, on average, extends 40-miles from shore. But I have no confidence that total protection in winter or delay in spring is dependable. Still, apple, cherry and peach orchards are so successful here for good reason, and proximity to the Great Lakes is probably, at least in part, why.

North Coast gardeners interested in exchanging information can join NY Gardners group on Yahoo. To join click here