All about spheres

Looking at photos of the garden, you might have noticed cement balls placed in strategic spots. These are chiefly ornamental, although they also serve practical purposes. Their use is even historical.

"Cherry Garden" - Portrait of an Iris

Iris pumila "Cherry garden" is a dwarf bearded iris.

I thought I would write a plant portrait of "Cherry Garden" because what I find in various references simply does not do it justice.

These references all neglect to mention what is most characteristic of it.

"Cherry Garden" a dwarf iris

Smooth Green Snake

The previous post on slugs brought back to mind the smooth green snake, because slugs are part of its diet!

I have mentioned that snake before, but not in detail. I wish I could convince this beautiful small snake to settle in the garden, but that leads me to a conundrum - perhaps it would if I had more slugs!

Smooth Green Snake

A "maximus" we could do without

Slugs!

Through my gardening years, I have had to deal with only two kinds of slugs, both a few centimeters long (I call them the whites and the greys, not having the required competence to identify these slugs by  their proper scientific names).

Cold and Snow

The news are full of comments about how bad the weather has been in the northern hemisphere, particularly in the American Mid West and in Eastern Canada, and we wonder how the snow and very cold temperatures will affect ours gardens. Although the intense cold is not welcome, a great amount of snow is good for perennial plants, if not for humans.

A very snowy winter