Gardening
Ruby Tuesday
The summertime ritual of picking and eating warm, luscious raspberries right off the bush, without fail, returns my mind to fond kidhood memories of growing up in Connecticut. For what…
Keep ReadingFresh Greens
The chartreuse flowers of my bed of lady’s mantle, have been in all out, full bloom, fluffy mode for a while. Time to encourage new growth by cutting a bunch,…
Keep ReadingMy Kitchen Garden
I love to stroll across the lawn, open up the kitchen garden gates wide, and poke around to see what’s new. Change happens so quickly this time of year. There’s…
Keep ReadingThere She Grows
When we added on our master bedroom, a relocated and repurposed chicken coop, its backside wall was an unremarkable canvas. Flanking one side of the stone pathway that serves as…
Keep ReadingA Summer’s Bouquet
The gardens are just exploding with color at Connecticut Country House! Everywhere you look, something is in bloom. Whether making a bouquet to brighten someone’s day, or putting together something…
Keep ReadingFluffy Stuff
I love, love, love how the downy plumes of astilbe brighten up the borders at Connecticut Country House. Rising above their beautiful fern-like foliage, their feather duster blooms are just…
Keep ReadingPot her up!
When I see a gorgeous flowering plant, I can’t resist taking her home with me. A couple of my faves that are sporting glorious blooms right now are the delphiniums…
Keep ReadingSupport Systems, Check!
In the Connecticut Country House gardens, I rely on a wide variety of support systems to keep my plants at their best. Whether in the form of simple stick teepees,…
Keep ReadingHomegrown Haricot Vert
Haricot Vert is French for green bean, and I just can’t get enough of them! They’re a more slender green bean than its American counterpart, and in my opinion more…
Keep ReadingIsn’t she lovely?
She’s in full bloom, my beautiful Eden. We’ve been together for a long time now, ever since I first planted her at our former home. When we moved to Connecticut…
Keep ReadingThe Connecticut Country House gardeners
Tending the gardens at Connecticut Country House, that’s what we do. And I guess you could call it a labor of love. On one hand, that labor of love comes…
Keep ReadingJust a pretty face
This is one of those posts, where I would love you to just take a minute, sit back, and enjoy the show! (P.S. If you do grow peonies, remember to…
Keep ReadingRosa Rugosa
“A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all, it teaches trust.” ~ Gertrude Jekyll Plant a Rosa Rugosa. They’re…
Keep ReadingTaking care of business
This is no ordinary straw hat. You see this wonderful old hat is right on par with any one of my hardworking aprons. When I put it on, it means…
Keep ReadingThink pink!
The rhodis (rhododendrons) at Connecticut Country House are on their final burst of the Spring 2015 season – and I think this year they’re definitely bigger and better than ever!…
Keep ReadingSimple & Scented
A simple way to freshen any sightline is to fill an antique basket with potted annuals or perennials. Here in the parlor, I stuffed my old whitewashed basket with potted…
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What’s in a name?
A beautiful shrub grows in our gardens down by the old stonewall at Connecticut Country House – and has gone nameless until now. Meet Fuzzy Deutzia (pronounced Doot-zee-uh). She’s quite…
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A basket of petunias
Marrying two simple things…is almost too simple! The perfect springtime marriage for my doors is made up of large wicker or rattan hanging baskets and hanging potted petunia plants from…
Keep ReadingGetting Hammered
There’s a relay race going on right now at Connecticut Country House, with one (or 2 or 3) woody-stemmed shrubs blooming at the same time. Their volume, color, and scents…
Keep ReadingThe Understated Filler
Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla Mollis) is one of my favorite perennial cottage garden plants. These low maintenance plants are a perfect solution for edging your garden in a full sun to…
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A bank of gold
If you were to ask me what one of my favorite plantings at Connecticut Country House is, I would have to start with the forsythia. I think my love of…
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The Governor Stephen Hopkins House gardens
A walk through the gardens of the Governor Stephen Hopkins House is well worth it, even if it’s early in the season. On a recent trip to Providence, Rhode Island,…
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Winter’s eye candy
I came upon these photos that I took last year of some very gorgeous Amaryllis I was growing…and realized that if I want to repeat this for the new year,…
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Simply sunflowers
I have to confess I can never resist a sunflower. Whether they’re from my garden or local market, just one look at them and they make me smile. I’ve found…
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A Late Summer Show
The entrance to the old house was lingering in an in-between state. All summer the rustic twig basket hanging by the door was the perfect scale and spot for a…
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