Welcome to the GVAG Blog

A froth of white dresses the fields and roadsides in Hertfordshire. What do you call this wildflower -- Queen

A Change of (Ad)dress

  The weather at this time of year does strange things to the mind — and to the wardrobe. One day is cold, the next is hot. Changing locations makes the uncertainties even worse. What do I pack? Summer dresses or winter woolies? I arrived in England a few days ago on a chilly morning that…

Read more
Screenshot 2016-05-15 14.07.48

Open Garden Days, New Talks and Garden Tours

  For a year or more I’ve been thinking about opening the garden to the public. Last week I bit the bullet and announced  that on August 4, I’ll be holding an Open Garden Day. The Open Garden Day is a fundraiser for Fondation Massawippi Foundation, a community organization that supports land conservation and special projects in the communities…

Read more
Triliums go by many common names: Wake Robin and Stinking Benjamin are two.

Wild Names Flavoured with Wild Garlic

  NOTE: Several readers have let me know that this blog post only had photos without any words so I’m posting it again.   A walk in the woods at this time of year is a journey of discovery. So many things are there in miniature, waiting to be spotted if you take the time…

Read more
Border art

Much Ado about Nothing

My friend, the film-maker Tony Girardin, sent me a photo he took a few days ago when crossing the border between Vancouver and Seattle. He thought I might like it. And I do. A lot. At first I couldn’t figure it out. Was it a drawing? A painting? No, a sculpture, Tony said. A quick…

Read more
Cornelian cherries are not very photogenic. Getting a photo even this good wasn

Cornus Mas: A Shrub with a Golden Glow

Not much is blooming in my garden now. The snowdrops are almost gone, the grape hyacinths are just beginning to open and the pulmonaria by the front door are slowly showing their spots. There is a star in the garden, though, although that star isn’t a show-off. My bashful star is Cornus mas, a shrub…

Read more