Woodland Waterfall and Stream

I've longed to add the movement and sound of water to my garden, but with young children in the household, adding a pond is simply out of the question. While searching for alternatives, the idea of installing a Pondless Waterfall began to take hold, and now I am gathering ideas for inspiration. It would look so natural in my Woodland Garden, viewable from the deck and serving as an enticing shady retreat for both the birds and my family. I'm not sure how feasible (or costly) the project would be, as it would require adding a power source and perhaps lighting, but definitely this is a path worth exploring.

Probable Site for Water Feature:



Design Ideas (Google Images):

A Pleasure Garden

I recently attended a fundraiser for Brookside Gardens in Maryland. For a modest $5 donation, the public got a chance to tour one of the most spectacular and jaw-dropping private gardens in the area, a magical garden with a vast plant collection set amongst three acres. The Peony Collection was promoted as the tour highlight, but I found the trees and shrubs and shady nooks to be equally impressive. There was just so much to take in, so much beauty to soak up, and I took away loads of inspiration that I can now apply to my own Pleasure Garden.

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens

The Washington D.C. metro area has many beautiful public display gardens, and I am making it my goal this year to visit as many of them as I can. Over the Mother's Day weekend, I had the pleasure of touring Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in the Northern Virginia suburbs. Oddly enough, I found myself caught in the lull between Spring show stoppers such as Flowering Dogwoods, Tulips and Daffodils, and the start of late-Spring/Summer blooming Peonies, Daylilies and Roses. And so I lucked out this time and missed the flowers, but the landscaped grounds were entirely beautiful nonetheless and the shade gardens infinitely inspiring. To see the true greatness of a garden, it is essential to visit multiple times during different months and seasons, and I am really looking forward to my next visit at Meadowlark.

Perennial Sun Borders







Shade Gardens







Children's Garden

Charming Charleston

I spent Easter Weekend in Charleston, the city of my birthplace, and was very impressed with the lovely traditional architecture and well-preserved historic downtown area. The weather was perfect, the food was terrific, and the many hanging baskets were beatific. I toured seven lovely properties as part of the 63th Annual Spring Festival of Houses and Gardens, and definitely Charleston is a must-see destination for the garden lovers out there.

Washington Gardener Magazine

I'm the organizer of a local Garden Club, and last month some of us attended a talk by the Editor of Washington Gardener Magazine. Since I am always looking for ways to get my Gardening Fix, I decided to subscribe, and I loved the issue that arrived so much that I went ahead and ordered a dozen back issues. What a wonderful great local gardening source! The magazine is put together so extremely well and is a verifiable goldmine of useful information, with loads of ideas & tips all throughout. Best of all, the magazine is tailored precisely to a local audience of passionate gardeners like me. I am so happy to have discovered this gem, and look forward to expanding my gardening knowledge and know-how with the help of Washington Gardener.

Shady Heaven: An Internet Tour

Lush and Lovely

--Courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens

Pretty Norfolk Harbor

I spent the 4th of July weekend in Hampton Roads, where we attended the 33rd Annual Harborfest and watched the fireworks over Norfolk Harbor. During the day we strolled the Waterside Walk, and I was impressed with the wide array of interesting flowerbeds all along the way. Summertime in Virginia can be so hot and brutal that many flowers wilt, but everything in Norfolk seemed so fresh and lively, almost "Spring-like" especially with the Crape Myrtles blooming. This all served as a wonderful inspiration for me, and now I hope to implement a better strategy in my home garden to achieve applause-worthy results. Mainly, I need to always be careful to match the plant with the light that is available, LIGHT IS GOD in a garden. My shady backyard simply won't support petunias spilling from baskets or rose bushes and lilies (my heart is breaking), yet my front yard gets so bright that even the vinca are scorched! Next season, I hope to get it right.