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The colour of the soil gives you an idea of its quality -- not great.

Planting the North South Arrow

Last week I wrote about the genesis of the North South Arrow, the new area we are planting at Glen Villa, describing how the concept for the area changed over time. Today I’m writing about the plants I chose and how I decided to arrange them. Jacques had warned me that the soil on site…

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The grassy path around the stone circle would be about 10 feet wide and the planting beds roughly the same.

The North South Arrow

Months ago, when we were rebuilding the foundation wall of Glen Villa Inn, the huge resort hotel that once stood on our property, I began thinking of a new planting area to complement the new wall. A photo taken shortly after the hotel burned down in 1909 showed plants arranged around the low stone wall…

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aqui with spirea (1 of 1)

Flowers, Fields and Food

An assortment of photos shows the variety of what is happening now at Glen Villa, my garden in Quebec’s Eastern Townships. Flowers are blooming everywhere. One that I am particularly fond of is columbine. The native variety, Aquilegia canadensis, grows freely in many spots in the garden. In the photo below, it complements the colour palette…

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cat and hog (1 of 1)

Cats, Deer, Grouse and Hogs

Last week I sent out a single photo as a Wednesday vignette. It showed a groundhog and a cat standing close together, absolutely still.     Lots of people responded to that photo, remarking on how close together the two animals were. But photos can be deceiving. Take a look at the photo below, for…

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Will these bare branches ever bloom?

More Befores and Afters

A sudden burst of hot weather brought out shorts, t-shirts and leaves on the trees. It was only two weeks ago, on May 10, that the Cascade at Glen Villa was looking bare and boring.     Less than two weeks later, boring had become a bouquet of blooms.   Yet three days after that, the…

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