Day Lilies in bloom taken morning of Saturday, June 27, 2020. We encourage visitors. We are open to the public. It is easy to maintain social distancing. There is over 2-1/2 acres of Garden. Please bring and wear your Mask, as needed, when in the Garden.
Here we are in the middle of Holy Week and I haven’t touched the keyboards of an organ or directed a single note from a choir……there have been no public services of worship in Ohio since March 16. It seems extraordinarily odd to not be doing this after something like 56 years of it! Without … Read more
1 APRIL 2020 AND this is no joke! In the past several years, I have often wondered to myself whether or not having a garden the size of Ashdowne was worth it or not. Those doubts have been erased by the COVID-19 event. If one must be sequestered in situ, I must admit that being … Read more
A few weeks ago our neighbor graveled the driveway. When it rains hard drainage is a problem. So over the years original gravel gave way to soil which turned to mud even after a moderate rain. We discussed ways to drain the excess water but given the cost and considerable work and disruption to other … Read more
CATCHING UP WITH 2019 I just looked at the website’s first page and was horrified to discover that I hadn’t written anything since December 30, 2018! So here it is, nearly the first day of summer (and the temperature is 68), so it’s time to update. If by some chance you missed the past post, … Read more
2018 in Review This has been quite a year. Many, many changes including a familydeath, some personal health issues (under control), a stretch of nearly 3 months dealing with the consequences of major poison ivy reaction, retirement as a hospice RN and, as a result, an opportunity to fully consider the garden, its present needs and … Read more
Quercus acutissima (sawtooth oak) – note the trellis on the right, partly covered by downed branches: it is over 6′ tall!
WHEN THE BEAUTIFUL CAN BE HORRIFYING – How often we have heard the phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. I’m afraid I don’t recall where I saw this nor the author but I will never forget the rejoinder: “so is ugly.” Well, sometimes the same thing can be both. Some of our … Read more
The garden has been open for viewing since late spring, but has hardly been in a condition I would condone! Between the near-total absence of spring, some surgery, some family illness and death, much in-the-garden work time has been lost. However, with help from some friends and a lot of grunting and sweat over the … Read more
*Bodacious Herbaceous Border Well, what else would you call it (keep it clean now); it’s nearly 140′ long and started out about 6′ deep, now 8′. It has been a dream for years; 2017 saw the first steps to reality. The area was cleared of weeds and grass during the fall and winter of 2016 … Read more