The First Flower of Spring

The First Flower of Spring

April 11, 2015

Skunk cabbage, aka Symplocarpus foetidus, is sometimes called the first flower of Spring. It’s not surprising that its flowers never fully emerge from their protective hoods (spathes)- because we know how cold and damp it STILL is in New England. Skunk cabbage has always been something I’ve alternately ignored or feared- especially if it’s encroaching on my gardens. It smells awful (exactly like a skunk) and lives in muck. My friend and nutritionist Alison Birks describes its habitat well in her poem: Symplocarpus Flowers in Spring– “A fetid odor wafts over tangled root masses– over dead leafy thick mats– over
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The Lily Leaf Beetles Are Coming

The Lily Leaf Beetles Are Coming

March 28, 2015

It won’t be long before plants will be poking their heads up through the crumbly leftovers of the Winter of 2015. It’s always good to get outside, and clean away the debris. We just got home from our trip south and I can begin to see ground where the snow is starting to melt. Are we done with that yet? Related Images:
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Morning Glory

Morning Glory

March 7, 2015

Photography is an art form I use as a conduit for translating my garden into home décor. As a child I immersed myself in the great outdoors and was continuously absorbed with all kinds of tactile art media like paints, crayons,pastels, clay and paper mache. Technology for art purposes Related Images:
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Fighting Off Cold Weather Naturally

Fighting Off Cold Weather Naturally

February 28, 2015

Frigid outdoor temperatures, indoor heating, crackling fires in the hearth -these hallmarks of winter can take a toll on skin and lead to dry, cracked hands, flaky, itchy bodies and rough red faces.  Enough! You too, can beat winter dryness with a few changes to your daily routine and proper nutrition. Alison Birks is my nutritionist and sometimes I twist her arm to give me health tips. I was whining the other day about my dry hands and feet and here’s what I got…Thanks Alison! Related Images:
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Springtime is Around the Corner

Springtime is Around the Corner

February 19, 2015

Today was Ash Wednesday- the first day of Lent. The word “Lent” comes from the Middle English word ‘lenten” meaning Springtime.  These flowers were blooming in my Connecticut garden at the end of last Spring. Do they make you feel warmer? Yes! Like many people in the NE, we’ve been inside a lot. The wood stove’s been acting up so we shut it down until we can get it looked at -which means no more wood gathering. (Not all bad..) The stove guy is busy rescuing people with no other heat source (we have oil back-up) whose pipes have frozen.
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Sunflowers Warm

Sunflowers Warm

February 16, 2015

As I was working on my photo for this post, it was especially hard to figure how to graphically separate the flower from the pillows. I like them to relate since each Paola pillow original is taken from a real photo, shot in the last three years. I never got to it- until today… Related Images:
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