A Life of Its Own: Musings on the Parterre Bench
It’s been an exciting past three summer months — not only for me but for the Parterre Bench as well. After her formal introduction following the Newport Flower Show in… Read More
Design
Ode to the Autumn Clematis
Vivacious… embracing…enveloping…a bit free with her favors…and goes by the honeyed name, Sweet Autumn Clematis. Am I describing a lady of questionable behavior or a trailing vine that appears with… Read More
Planted Containers: Horticultural Delights for an August Garden
It’s about this time of the summer that planters are “strutting their stuff,” full and bounteous with mature horticultural offerings. From breathtaking and dramatic (repeating the planting around the gates… Read More
Bunny Williams: On Garden Style
The Newport Flower Show is always a much-anticipated start to the “summer season,” but it was especially so this year! Bunny Williams was a guest speaker, an esteemed designer that I’ve… Read More
A Must-Have Garden Accessory: The Parterre Bench
From that long ago Thanksgiving weekend in Ireland…to the house-building, garden-creating project in Newport…to the first published coffee table book that prompted the creation of this bespoke garden accessory…the Parterre… Read More
The Sakonnet Garden: A Singular Sensation
Across the Sakonnet River from Newport — a ten minute boat ride but an hour drive — is Little Compton, Rhode Island, the quiet countryside contrast to the “bustling seaport”… Read More
A Tale of Two Orangeries
Part of the pleasure of building your own home in Newport is the ritual of naming it (very de riguer — taken so literally that one witty friend tagged their… Read More
Euonymus, an Overlooked Garden Design Asset
It’s always insightful to hear someone else’s “take” on one’s garden, especially if it’s Martha Stewart. Her interest in our use of euonymus (pronounced u-on-a-mus) as a design element caught… Read More
Outstanding American Gardens: A Celebration
What better way to spend a cold February day than curled up before the fire with a new, exceptional coffee table book on gardens – “Outstanding American Gardens: A Celebration-… Read More
Shadows in the Garden: a Winter Revelry
It is about this time of the year– after the first snow and while my Christmas tree is still up — that I start dreaming about the gardens that I visited… Read More