One of the most endearing wild flowers is the dogtooth violet also called trout lily. The yellow nodding flower with its recurved petals and long brown stamens is borne singly on a leafless scape above 3-6 soft green marbled leaves. Wheather it is the leaves or the flower that captivates my heart, I don’t know, but it is one of my fondest memories from childhood when my playground was the wooded lot next door. As a child, I learned the name ‘dogtooth violet’ but am trying to switch to ‘trout lily’ now because the plant is certainly not a violet and IS a lily. The dogtooth violet name came into being because of the tooth-like shape of the bulb (actually a corm); trout lily describes the resemblance of the leaves to the side of a brook trout. No matter what you call it, the plant is a joy to find in early spring, usually growing in large colonies where the leaves from the trees above make a rich, humus soil. An excellent plant for both woodland and rock gardens. [click to read full post]
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To most people watching the Olympic Games, the bouquet of flowers that the medalists receive is of little interest. To me, they are one of the most interesting aspects of the games perhaps sort of like the dresses celebrities wear at the Golden Globes or Academy Awards. A lot of planning and work goes into the bouquets and sometimes controversy about them even rears its head. The florist who wins the bid for the bouquets from the Olympic Committee has many criteria to meet and many factors to consider when designing the bouquet, one of which is the Committee’s desire to have the bouquet represent the region where the Games are being held. Other factors such as flower availability, durability, and cost also figure into the design but all of the bouquets should be a reflection of the culture that produced it to some extent. 
Glamis Castle, known for being the childhood home of the mother of Queen Elizabeth II and the birthplace of her sister, Princess Margaret, has been in the Strathmore family for over 600 years. The garden was first planted in the second half of the 1600s and included a walled garden but in 1760 and it was replaced by the landscaped park type of garden that was popular at the time. The garden was changed again in the 19th and 20th centuries to include the Pinetum, featuring many native American trees, the Dutch Garden, and the formal Italian garden that is the high point of a visit to the castle gardens. 
This crossword puzzle tests your knowledge about trees grown in North America. All the answers are common names of trees. To complete the puzzle click on one of the Across or Down clues, type the answer into the box, and click the OK button (or “return” on your keyboard). Have fun!!! 
If you want a fabulously fragrant shrub for an entryway consider Wintersweet. Its cheerful yellow blooms appear on leafless stems in late winter to early spring filling the air with a spicy fragrance. As spring progresses the lustrous, dark green, almond shaped leaves emerge creating a good background for other spring or summer flowering shrubs or a perfect place for summer flowering vines to ramble. In autumn the leaves turn yellow-green before they fall. Branches of wintersweet can be forced into bloom in winter and will fill the whole room with their wonderful scent. 
When the winners are given their medals at the Olympic Games, do you look at the bouquets? I do. Every medallist gets one and this year at the winter games about 1800 bouquets will be given out. Since there are more participants in summer games, the number goes up, probably to about 6,000 in 2012. That adds up to a lot of flowers and foliage. Have you ever wondered what goes into choosing, growing, and transporting all those flowers and foliage and then designing, making and delivering the bouquets? Read on… 
Early blooming evergreen shrubs are very special for year round interest in the garden and Pieris japonica is one of the best. Its large drooping clusters of small, waxy lily-of-the-valley-like flowers cover the bush in late winter or early spring when little else is blooming The color depends on the cultivar and can be white, pink, or red. Equally attractive is the new growth that can be bronze, pink or bright red, depending on the cultivar. Although most andromedas reach considerable size, they are slow growing and take years to fill their garden space. In addition, some smaller cultivars have been developed that are suitable for gardens with limited space. Andromeda is equally at home in a mixed border, woodland edge, or foundation planting especially when accompanied by other winter and spring blooming shrubs, tress and bulbs. 
Perched high on a hill Scotney New Castle overlooks a beautiful view of the ruins of Scotney Old Castle in the valley below. The Old Castle was built c.1378-80 and was partially dismantled in 1843 to create garden ruins after the New Castle was built. The idea of ruins in a garden was popular at this time as part of the “Picturesque” style of gardening associated with the Romantic movement popular in England in the 18th century. The picturesque style favored natural landscapes over manicured ones and included architectural follies like rustic cottages and the castle ruins seen here. The castle ruins with its moat are the focal point of the garden that includes an herb garden, parkland, woodland, a fabulous azaleas, rhododendron and kalmia display in spring, and spectacular fall coloration in autumn. The garden was first planted in the 1840’s according to an overall design created by Edward Hussey, owner, with the help of William Sawrey Gilpin but more recent additions were made between 1952 to 1970 to create year round color in the garden. 
This simple game tests your gardening knowledge by identifying five plants shown in photos from a list of possible names. Two photos of each plant are accompaned by a clue describing the type of plant or its broad characteristics. 
