It’s been 180 years since Thomas Jefferson’s American consul in Florence, Italy, Thomas Appleton by name, sent him some fennel to plant at Monticello. Jefferson did, and the crop has thrived over here in peaceful obscurity ever since. In California, where the climate is something like the plant’s native Mediterranean region, it has naturalized and …
There is nothing subtle about a sunflower. Poke a seed into the ground and a thick stalk will zoom up, with broad leaves at the sides and a huge flower on top, a gentle giant wearing a sporty grin and sending a message of affable openness. All pollinators welcome. All birds invited to supper. Sunflowers …
In my neighborhood, the first asparagus in spring are cheered just as much as the first snowdrops, but very quietly. When our own have started to poke up their miraculous spears, we know the same thing is happening in other yards, most notably the ones where the owners are out of town. When these absentee …
It’s dark in our root cellar in wintertime. Ideally, it’s a bit clammy down there too, as the temperature hovers around 33 degrees with a humidity of 90 percent. It smells earthy and maybe a little cabbagey — not a fun place to hang out. But grab a bucket and something from every bin, bring …
Gardeners sound like warriors when they talk about their weeds. After all, a grower’s reputation rests on having an adversary of stature, a foe worthy of one’s determination and skill. Don’t tell a Californian you envy her climate. Listen to her epic tale about battling wood sorrel. The green-thumbed Vermonter might acknowledge the leg-up he …
The holidays, fun as they are, can be guilt-producing. Too much rich food, too much champagne, too many family expectations to be met. And then there are the gift plants. Your boss gives you a poinsettia, your neighbor gives you flowering bulbs, your mother gives you an azalea, covered with festive red blooms. Only a …
ELLSWORTH — The Hancock County Office of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension is now taking applications for its 2019 Master Gardener Volunteer training. The training will run on Friday mornings from Jan. 25-May 17, as well as two Tuesday evening classes. The purpose of the Master Gardener program is to prepare you to do …
ELLSWORTH — The Hancock County office of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension is now taking applications for its 2019 Master Gardener Volunteer training. The training will run on Friday mornings from Jan. 25-May 17, as well as two Tuesday evening classes. The purpose of the Master Gardener program is to prepare participants to do …
It’s a cook’s nightmare. The table is set, hungry diners hover, and the beans still aren’t done. They’ve been cooking for six hours, but still haven’t softened and never will. For those of us who have foresworn canned beans in favor of the real thing, the unpredictability of dried beans’ cooking time can turn a …
DEER ISLE — Intricate, miniature trees growing out of shallow vessels look challenging at best if not downright difficult to replicate. But, you too, can create bonsai trees with a little care, says Deer Isle bonsai enthusiast Greg Mekras of Deer Isle. “You have to like plants and you have to, as my wife says, …
Summer may be the sweet season, as strawberries, melons and peaches appear in a delicious progression of ripeness. But the sweet tastes of winter are treasured too. After the first frosts, something magical happens to the vegetables that remain in the garden. It’s quite different from the sugar buildup in summer fruits, designed to entice …
How do we learn to garden? Those of us who write about the subject do our best to give useful information, just as favorite authors have done for us. We hope our pages end up dog-eared and mud-smeared, sharing shelf space not with Dickens and Proust but with pruners, and twine. Even then, we help …
