Spring is here, finally, with the promise that summer is a-comin’ in. Or so it feels today. And maybe it will feel the same tomorrow, but who knows? Oscar Wilde said that conversation about the weather is the last refuge of the unimaginative. Not so for gardeners in the Eastern Townships of Quebec where I…
Saturday, July 20 is the day and you are invited! Come and explore the wonders of the garden and landscape when Glen Villa opens to the public as a fundraiser for the Massawippi Foundation and Conservation Trust. All proceeds from your admission fee go to support land conservation, community projects and a network of trails…
You may have received a blog post earlier today with a BUY NOW button. This post should not have gone out… there are a number of bugs in the purchase option that I haven’t worked out. SO: my apologies. I hope to have the tickets sales up and running within a week.
I’m speaking twice this month to groups in and around Montreal. Both events are open to the general public, so do come if you can. Learning to Look: the Art of Garden Observation On Saturday, May 11 at 2:30, I’m speaking in Georgeville, Quebec at the Murray Community Hall. This talk about how to get the…
On Saturday, July 20, you are invited to visit Glen Villa — to explore the gardens, fields and forests and to help support an important community cause. Visit the China Terrace, where an old resort hotel has been delightfully re-imagined. Enjoy the rich assortment of wild life that lives at the Skating Pond. Walk alongside…
This winter feels interminable. Surely in earlier years daffodils have been blooming by now, snowdrops long gone. Well, no. It’s true that in some years snowdrops have appeared by this date. Crocus have bloomed. Pulmonaria have added their touch of colour. But it is also true that this April…
March is not leaving like a lamb. Lake Massawippi is still frozen solid, snow still covers the ground and today the wind is blowing fiercely. These unusually late winter conditions are discouraging, to say the least. But on the up side, they are giving me time to review some of the blogs I’ve written since I…
According to the official calendar, spring arrived four days ago. Yet two days ago we received the largest dump of snow we’ve had all year — 40 centimeters, or almost 16 inches. A late winter snowstorm is not unusual in the Eastern Townships of Quebec, where my garden Glen Villa is located. Snow tires are required…
Long winters like the one we are experiencing this year in Quebec’s Eastern Townships make life difficult for animals. Deep snow that persists for months makes it hard for deer to find food in the woods and as time passes they come closer and closer to barns and houses. Yesterday I glanced out a window, disrupting two…
Yesterday the temperature in Quebec’s Eastern Townships was hovering just above freezing. The sky was brilliant blue and the sun glinting off clean, fresh snow brought out dozens of people, walking and talking — and fishing through the ice. We live next door to Manoir Hovey, an outstanding resort hotel and a member of the…