Flowers in the Tetons, Wyoming

The majestic mountains are so big, the sky so wide and the view in every direction is spectacular.  Exploring the Grand Tetons is an experience of grand proportions.  It is easy to miss the wildflowers  surviving in this dry climate under a bright summer sun. Yet the flowers are there, in yellow, purple, red and white....   Continue Reading

Trees A Visual Guide

Bookshelf space is precious ground for gardeners so I choose my volumes carefully.  Trees, is a reference book supremely worth the full inch it requires!  Every photograph is worth framing and clearly connected to the interesting and informative text provided alongside.  The book is divided into sections including: Form & Function, Diversity and Design, Communities of Life, Trees and the Human World and the Indispensable Resource of Trees....   Continue Reading

An Island of Flowers

In Bavaria, a land of fairytale castles, there’s a fantasy island of flowers. Mainau Island of Flowers is located on Lake Konstanz, a body of water spanning the borders of southern Germany and Switzerland. This temperate climate provides ideal growing conditions for this garden of floral beauty, fanciful creations, and unique features....   Continue Reading

Garden of Hearts

The Van Buuren Museum and Gardens in Brussels, Belgium was once the private home of David & Alice Van Buuren, two creative spirits sharing a life of art, music, culture, and gardens. They married in 1922; he of Dutch Jewish heritage, and she a native Belgian. Together they built their Dutch-style brick home just as the Art Deco influence blossomed....   Continue Reading

“A not good enough garden” Linderhof Palace

Linderhof Palace is nestled in the Bavarian Alps in southern Germany. King Ludwig II’s love of Versailles inspired the formal Baroque-style gardens surrounding the small palace. Versailles exerted enormous influence over European garden design, and Ludwig was determined to create his own majestic garden.  ...   Continue Reading

Floriade 2022–Hope for the Planet

Returning to Floriade this year was the culmination of a ten-year goal.  The last one was so exciting, so beautiful, and inspiring I was determined to return. ...   Continue Reading

Floriade, Almere, The Netherlands

Once a decade, the Netherlands Horticulture Council organizes an exposition celebrating and highlighting horticulture’s contribution to life. The event is a World’s Fair of horticultural products, innovations in food production, and the beauty of plants in all forms. Participants from around the world showcase their garden style and their premium exports from their part of the planet....   Continue Reading

Summer Color from Rich’s Workshop

The day began with the promise of an early morning storm; no rain, but a cool breeze and an overcast sky made it so wonderful to be outside this July morning. There were clouds in the sky, heavy clumps of gray at varying levels and in shades from light to dark. We have only a few days of cloudy skies in Arizona, so when they occur, we talk about it, noticing, watching, and photographing them. The forecast promised rain, but it missed us. We stay dry. Here the water supply worries are real....   Continue Reading