Garden Muse March-April 2020
March-April...Garden Muse January 2020
January 2020 Enjoy a surprise in the bleak mid-winter: paperbush. I remember my first encounter with this curious and delightful plant on a January walkabout. I was drawn to the shrub’s silvery-white, globe-like clusters atop its bare, cinnamon-colored forked stems,...Garden Muse October 2019
October 2019 The camellia’s refined blossoms rival the exquisite beauty of roses, but its handsome, glossy foliage is evergreen and its blooms are prized for coming in fall and winter when flowers are rare. The shrub’s variety of shapes and sizes offer versatility in...Garden Muse August 2019
August 2019 Basil, one of the most aromatic of herbs, tickles the taste buds in culinary pairings, especially with tomatoes, as it grows bountifully in August. It can also be one of the most ornamental herbs, producing large, interesting forms of densely packed leaves...Garden Muse June 2019
June 2019 June is time to splash around — splash color, fragrance and form throughout your garden. Large pots can enliven a patio or deck with sizzling summer color, lighten up a shady area, punctuate entries, perfume the air in high-traffic areas, or make harvests of...Garden Muse March-April 2019
March-April 2019 Pendant purple chains of wisteria blossoms on romantic sweeping vines put garden lovers around the world in a springtime swoon. They conjure delightful impressions of floral cascades as seen on Monet’s arching bridge at Giverny or draped across...Garden Muse January 2019
Pick-up Sticks January 2019 Looking out the window in winter, we see bare limbs that only recently were covered in leaves gleaming like jewels. Nature rests in January to gather energy for the next cycle of exuberant growth and color. This downtime invites...Garden Muse October 2018
Gingko, for the Most Spectacular Fall October 2018 Gingko biloba (meaning “twolobed,” in reference to its distinctive, fan-shaped leaf) is an incredible deciduous tree. A native of China, the gingko was introduced into the western horticultural world in the mid-18th...Garden Muse August 2018
When the heat’s on, light up the night August 2018 Perhaps you are not familiar with this magnificent flower that bursts forth from an unlikely source — a cactus. I had heard of it, the fabulous bloom that appears for one night only, causing quite a sensation. My...Garden Muse June 2018
June 2018 You can have so much fun playing with geometric shapes, figuring out how to blend form and function in hardscape and plantings. Design possibilities are endless. Work a checkerboard of pavers into the edge of your patio with herbs in the alternating soil...Garden Muse March-April 2018
The French term potager means ‘providing vegetables for the pot.’ March-April 2018 Food gardening has been on the rise in America for the last decade for obvious reasons: homegrown food is better tasting, is the freshest possible, saves money and is safe from undue...
THAT STORM WAS RUFF. Joni Butler of Smithfield, a member of Community Electric Cooperative, sent us this photo of her bulldog, Gracie, modeling her rain gear before the arrival of Hurricane Isaias.
Thanks for sharing, Joni! And, more importantly, thanks for reading Cooperative Living!
"Discovery Channel’s Shark Week starts Aug. 9th. We’re ready." --Aleta Shelton, Powhatan, Va. (member of Southside Electric Cooperative)
We are sad to report that our upcoming August advertiser, the Belle Grove Wine Fest, has had to cancel their event set for August 29.
Belle Grove is still open to visitors and in August will be open Monday-Saturday 10-4 and Sunday 1-5 for guided Manor House Tours (with a limit of 10 guest per tour and some restrictions for physical distancing). And the grounds are a great place to visit and have a picnic! All information at www.bellegrove.org. Belle Grove Plantation
