For the last few days, our feeders have been bombarded by countless goldfinches. They perch on a small dogwood in the back like so many Christmas ornaments waiting their turn at one of the feeders we have scattered around the property. This morning their numbers seemed to increase with a dusting of snow that added to their spender. Then like this coating of ephemeral snow, they too vanished without a trace. The post Golden ornaments appeared first on GroHappy ..read more

It’s another year where we will start serving up Spring salads from the garden. I had pre-seeded both cold frames last Fall. Both had been doing well though December delivering delicious salad greens. But by mid-January a combination of extended temperatures in the teens and a rodent invasion basically stopped the harvests. Leaving for Florida, we didn’t know what we would return to. It was with great surprise when we returned a few weeks ago that not only the greens had resprouted but new seedlings had emerged from the rodent-ravaged cold frame. In one frame, leaf lettuce, arugula, Swiss cha ..read more

Returning home after five weeks in warmer climes, we didn’t know what to expect. It appeared that we missed only one major snow storm. So we were pleasantly surprised on what we discovered. The hellebores, aptly named Lenten Roses, have started to bloom reminding me to remove their desiccated leaves from last year. Not too far behind with flowers ready to emerge are the daffodils, whose green spears are slicing through the rotting leaves we left behind last Fall. Clumps of snowdrops are in their prime all over the property. They are the most prolific of bulbs as between the squirrels and myse ..read more

The winds have changed this past week from north to south. And with this change comes new visitors to the beach. The most obvious are the lines of sea detritus washing up with each successive tide. A mash up of grasses and seaweed lines the beach as would an intricate necklace around the neck of a woman. Within these green and brown chokers sit tiny blue-purple jewels with a crimped top looking like a iridescent Chinese dumpling. This is not a delicate treat, unless you are a loggerhead sea turtle, but a Portuguese man o’ war. Its inflated body and ruffled top act as a sail, floating across th ..read more

Late in the day, we see osprey and pelicans dive in the ocean looking for their last catch of the day. They are rarely close or still enough to get a good shot. On my bike ride yesterday afternoon, I noticed this osprey perched on a high branch next to the ocean. I backed up a bit and just watched it scan the horizon for a meal; perhaps it was just taking a rest. After a few minutes I continued my ride while it continued its surveillance. The post Opportunistic osprey appeared first on GroHappy ..read more

The days in the Keys are blissfully the same. We awake at first light as the sun streams through our bedroom window. Initially it is a bit nippy with a touch of wind but the outside soon warms and we head out to the beach for our morning walk. Flocks of birds beat us to the sandbar that has formed in front of our apartment but they pay us and we pay them little mind as we both scamper about. Each day we discover new surprises some large and others quite small. The biggest surprise this year is the lack of garbage washing up on the beach. In prior years we would take two shopping bags with us a ..read more

Coming to the Florida Keys, I always feel as if we are entering a foreign place with strange and wonderful sights. My years of being a bit of a plant nut and Master Gardener are thrown to the winds as I spot plant after exotic plant that I cannot even begin to identify. This diversity is always brought to the forefront when Juana and I attend the Upper Keys Garden Walk, which occurred last weekend. We visited five different gardens, each with a different focus. The first was more a hermit crab sanctuary than a garden as the owners described their move to the house as more a cohabitation with ..read more

Lands of different climates make me appreciate the diversity of plants. My niece Annie recently purchased a 10-acre farm in Northern Florida that is anchored by a magnificent live oak (Quercus virginiana). Its spreading, pendulous branches are quite different from the oaks that I am familiar with in New England. Its shiny and oval leaves remind me more of a rhododendron that than of this hard and stately wood. Many of the lower branches are propped up so they will not collapse or split under their respective weights. Michael, Annie’s husband, takes me to the corner of their property to show m ..read more

There are some plants that are easily fooled by brief changes in the weather. In my yard, the butterfly bush (Buddleja davidii) is that plant. When the first hint of warm weather arrives, as it did this past week, the leaves explode with abandon. Every warm day above 50 degrees, these appendages appear to double in size. Their emergence from slumber beats that of snowdrops or muscari with unfortunately bad results. Because we are still in January, I know that this bush will get slapped down in the coming days. It can often recover from one or two false starts but more than that becomes a death ..read more

In New England, you never feel that Winter has arrived until it snows. Cold is always expected but until the brown and gray ground is covered with the first blanket of clean, white snow, Winter is just a date on the calendar. A layer of snow on the ground is proof that the temperature is below freezing and the cold will allow this new cloak to persist. The skeletons of the garden are now donned with a form-fitting fabric giving them a girth many have not seen since they shed their leaves months ago. Their bodies are distinctly outlined in white for everyone to see and examine. The Buddha by t ..read more