Philadelphia Flower Show 2017
The PHS Philadelphia Flower Show is the nation’s largest and longest-running horticultural event, and features stunning displays by the world’s premier floral and landscape designers.
Started in 1829 by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the Show introduces the newest plant varieties, garden and design concepts, and organic and sustainable practices. In addition to the major garden displays, the Flower Show hosts world-renowned competitions in horticulture and artistic floral arranging, gardening presentations and demonstrations, special events, a mammoth indoor Marketplace, and the Bloom Philly Festival in the weeks leading up to the Show.
The Philadelphia Flower Show has been honored as the best event in the world by the International Festivals & Events Association, competing with events such as the Kentucky Derby Festival, Tournament of Roses Parade, Indianapolis 500 Festival, and other international celebrations.
Enjoy some of my own photos from my incredible experience at this year’s event, which carried a Holland theme, celebrating the flowers and culture of The Netherlands.
Want to know more? I’d love to tell you all about it.
Comparison is the Thief of Joy
“Comparison is the thief of joy” – Theodore Roosevelt.
True words. Especially nowadays with all the opportunities social media provides to make you feel inadequate.
Anyone besides me compare your life, marriage, kids to all those trumpeting their successes on Facebook?
Another interesting quote from Steven Furtick, “The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel.”
Wouldn’t life be so much better if we stopped comparing and just focused on doing our best? Give each day, each opportunity, 100% without worrying about what everyone else is doing? I find that when I do that I end the day feeling profoundly grateful for what I have.
The same can be said of our gardens. Instead of lamenting a small city lot, be grateful and incorporate dwarf plants that will be beautiful in your space. Instead of complaining that your green thumb is being thwarted in your small apartment, use containers on your balcony to grow everything from perennials to veggies. If you are overwhelmed by a large garden, create “pollinator habitats” and leave some areas alone.
Your garden should bring you joy.
If it’s not, spring is the perfect time for an adjustment.
Turn on the Light.
I have seen many gorgeous gardens fall off the radar at night. Beautiful and breathtaking by day once the sun sets they become black holes. Which is why, when I design gardens, I always recommend landscape lighting – it allows your garden to be a source of enjoyment even after the sun has gone down.
Imagine sitting in your living room looking out at a beautiful specimen tree which is uplit so the branches seem to shimmer. Now imagine looking out that same window and seeing only darkness. Picture a romantic dinner on the patio with soft mood lighting versus having to turn on the outdoor floodlights.
Read More»The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
I have a distinct memory last summer of enjoying a meal with a friend in her newly constructed screen house. I kept thinking it was raining due to the incessant pitter patter on the metal roof. When I later realized that it was gypsy moth poop, I had two thoughts. First, gross! And second, thank goodness for a roof! Gypsy moths seemed to be everywhere.
If you thought last year’s invasion of gypsy moths was of biblical proportions hold on to your hat. According to experts, this year could be just as bad, if not worse.
Read More»Inside Out Design.
There is one very important thing you should do before starting any garden design project.
Stare out the windows. I mean it.
Really stare, or at least look very closely.
Too many designers start outside the home with no thought given to how the garden will look from inside. For many of us in colder climates a good deal of time is spent enjoying the gardens from inside so designing from the inside out just makes sense.
Read More»The Garden. A Love Story.
It’s Valentine’s Day and love stories abound.
The one between me and my garden is one of my favorites.
And like love, it has its seasons.
The spring garden is ripe with promise.
Yet, like new love, it is fragile. A time of emptiness surrenders as an opportunity for hope springs up, like the snowdrop bravely pushing itself through the snow. Or the crocus straining towards the sun. Still, the spring garden can be full of worry and concern.
Will that late cold snap kill ripening flower buds? Will the deer munch the tulips? Will the snow load prove too much for the small snowdrops? Anything too weighty, at this point in the development, could prove disastrous. So much promise, yet so much risk.
Read More»Beauty and the Bees – A different way of looking at garden design
One of my favorite lecture topics:
Beauty and the Bees – A different way of looking at garden design
Time was when we wanted to design gardens that were beautiful.
Planting trees, shrubs and perennials together to create a space that was aesthetically pleasing was the goal.
Now we know better.
Gardening just for our own pleasure is not only selfish, it’s dangerous.
Colony Collapse Disorder and the plight of pollinators have made us aware that we do not garden alone.
We need to be designing landscapes and gardens with a mindful eye to the environment around us.
Join garden designer and beekeeper Deborah Trickett, owner of The Captured Garden, as she shows you how with a few tweaks we can create spaces that are not only beautiful but beneficial to bees and other pollinators.
Contact Me Regarding Speaking for Your Organization
Bee Resources:
“Bee the Change – Plant for Pollinators” – Plant Something, MA
Protecting the Life That Sustains Us – Xerces Society
Massachusetts Beekeepers Association
Bee School – Worcester County Beekeepers Association
Bee School – Norfolk County Beekeepers
Ten Interesting Facts About Bees – Massachusetts Master Gardeners
Truth Is … Bittersweet
No doubt bittersweet is beautiful in fall arrangements. Just search Pinterest and you’ll see it featured in many fall container gardens.
While I understand bittersweet’s appeal I NEVER advocate it.
Oriental bittersweet (celastrus orbiculatus) is invasive.
Our feathered friends feast on the orange/yellow berries and then do their business in the woods. Bittersweet is a thug. Once it starts growing it takes over, monopolizing light and water, and choking out native plants. Bittersweet will either climb over plants and smother them or twine tightly up the plants and constrict them. If you like the look, consider using artificial. You’ll not only help save native plants you’ll save money by having a garland you can use for many years to come.
Sayonara, Summer
As Fall approaches, we take a final look at some of our favorite summer projects.
Houseplant (sansevieria), perennial (heuchera) and million bells. Who says only annuals can go in containers? This mixed container is looking good 7 stories up!
This riot of colors on a South End balcony gets tied together with coleus ‘The Flume’.
Read More»Landscape Overhaul
Sometimes it’s time for a fresh start. And for this project, we knew it was that time. Our client, a member of the local garden club, was frustrated with the old, tired overgrown plants that were not contributing to the landscape and wanted to completely renovate her gardens. The area around the home had become overgrown, threatening to obscure its classic Royal Barry Willis lines.
So where did we start?
While some designers might favor a “blank slate” approach I prefer not to destroy material that is viable. Maybe it’s my frugal Yankee nature. If a plant doesn’t work where it is we can often move it and give it a second chance. After a thorough plant assessment, decisions are made as to what stays and what goes. When it comes to the “what goes” part all I can say is THANK GOD FOR A GREAT CREW.
Read More»
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