Archive | Garden Visits RSS feed for this section

The Special Relationship

About a month ago the leading flag on the ‘flag counter’ on my blog finally tipped from the Union Jack to the Stars and Stripes. So perhaps this is a good moment to reflect on Anglo-American relations in the garden. With the recent visit of Mr. Obama (who we Europeans by the way all adore) there has been yet another spate of politicians and commentators discussing the so-called ‘Special Relationship’. There certainly is one in gardening, and like the political version, it is complex, constantly changing, and sometimes controversial.

During my first few visits to the US (1990s, early 2000s) the special relationship resembled nothing more than a rather quaint colonial hangover. Americans may have flung the tea into Boston harbour in 1773, and then to add insult to injury dropped the ‘u’ from harbour, but so many gardeners seemed to be still so stuck to the English garden as a model. Grande-dames of the UK garden world like Penelope Hobhouse and Rosemary Verey sold vast piles of books to the US. The latter (who remembers her now?) spent Christmas one year with Ross Perot (yes, really, and who remembers him now?)

: When you have a native flora as rich and colourful as this, I don’t understand why the goings-on around English manor houses have any appeal.

Continue Reading →

Comments { 24 }

Finding the Photo

Whenever I travel to make a presentation I try to incorporate some local gardens into the show to better connect with the audience.

Let's find the "good" photo in this border

My presentation in Chicago to the Garden Club of America’s Show of Summer was titled ‘What is a “Good” Garden Photograph’ and The Chicago Botanic Garden was the obvious choice to go find a photo. It is a great botanic garden and has an especially strong focus on home landscaping, so the day before the show I went looking for something to illustrate a “good” garden photograph.

Continue Reading →

Comments { 7 }

What Makes A Garden Japanese?

Written by Jill Sinclair

Alot of GGW readers already know Jill from her popular blog, Landscape Lover, where she gives her personal take on parks and gardens in Paris and further afield. Jill is a British landscape historian, trained in the US and London, and currently living in Paris. Her particular interest is the changing meaning and value of historic places. In 2009, the MIT Press published her first book, Fresh Pond, which explored the shifting significance of a site in Massachusetts. She also contributes regularly to a range of peer-reviewed journals and popular websites, and gives lectures and guided tours on the history and associations of particular landscapes. I’m a big fan of Jill and Landscape Lover….if you haven’t yet read it, check it out. Fran Sorin

What makes a garden Japanese?

When asked by a client to design her a Japanese garden, landscape architect James Rose replied: “Sure – whereabouts in Japan?”
Yet many gardens around the world are confidently described as Japanese. Indeed, James Rose’s own home and gardens at Ridgewood in New Jersey, which I visited a few years ago, were clearly influenced by his great love of Japanese gardens, even though he baulked at anyone describing them as such.

Continue Reading →

Comments { 9 }

Plants at an Exhibition

It is a grand thing when plants become the subject of an exhibit. I don’t mean in the beds of a botanic garden or decorating a designer’s display at a flower show, but an honest to goodness exhibition, in this case ‘Wicked Plants’ at The Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.

Too often we only think of plants as wild things tamed to suit our needs, either aesthetic or utilitarian. Gardeners know the reality – that our gardens go wild beyond our control; but never-the-less we rarely think of going to an exhibit of plants – indoors. Well, we should. Plants are as amazing as any art form, and as intriguing as any science exhibit. Now we plant lovers have a fun show of plants based on the book ‘Wicked Plants’ by Amy Stewart. Continue Reading →

Comments { 5 }

Pathways In The Garden….at Chanticleer

Pathways are the unsung heroes of the garden; they lead us through a unique, sensory experience. They can set the mood for what lays ahead; adding a sense of mystery or opening up a landscape. When designed poorly, the garden feels disconnected and jerky. But when executed well, one garden area flows seamlessly into the other, allowing the focus to be on the gardens, not on navigating through the landscape.

Chanticleer’s paths are an excellent example of being both utilitarian and beautifully designed; with the use of materials chosen with great care. On my latest visit a few weeks ago, I photographed paths in only a few garden areas as shown below.

To read a previous article that I wrote, “Pathways In My Backyard”, click here.