This Month in the Garden: Long Island Places and Garden Memories-A Few of my Favorite Things II

This Month in the Garden

Welcome to This Month in the Garden! Last March I was was feeling nostalgic and dug into my soul by sharing some of my favorite things that I had captured with photography over the years. The post was well received while generating lots of smiles, so I decided to post a Part 11 for this March to celebrate past memories and bring in spring. Come along on a photo tour of some special memories. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Spring Crocus

Nothing speaks spring more than the appearance of crocus. This was one of the nicest photo captures I have ever gotten that was taken last spring. Every time I look at it, it gives hope that spring is not too far away, so I am sharing some of that hope with you!

Garden Statuary

I have several garden statues throughout the property, but this one by far is my favorite. It is a reminder of when I was a little girl and playing in the garden would bring so much joy. We didn't have a kitten at that time but I would play with our dog Specky, who was so gentle that he allowed me ride on him like a pony, with not a care in the world on his part, except to make me happy and hear my laughter. In my more mature years, my husband and I are the parents of two Himalayan cats so this statue certainly touched my heart. 

Allium 'Globemaster'

Giant Globemaster Alliums speak for themselves. I started with three bulbs mainly as an experiment and now they have multiplied to make this perfect grouping of color in the late spring garden. They are positioned between clumps of golden Daylily with Spirea Magic Carpet in the backdrop, so I look forward to their display every year, but in the meantime I can enjoy this photo!

Monarch Butterfly

The late summer blooms of Butterfly Bush bring the Monarchs, something I treasure, as the population of Monarchs has been decreasing year by year. I was able to get this capture last season.

Iris Garden

This is a photo of my mother's iris garden, which she planted back in the 1960's and still exists today. I have never left my childhood home and while I have redesigned 99 percent of the property, this little piece of the past simply has to stay.

Echinacea 'Cheyenne Spirit'

This is Echinacea 'Cheyenne Spirit', which I discovered some years ago. The thing that is unique about this perennial is that it can have multiple colors of flowers on one plant. It's always a surprise to see which colors appear in late summer, and every so often, you get multi-colored petals like this one, which I was able to capture.

Mattituck Sunflower Maze, Long Island, NY

As you may know, sunflowers have a very special meaning to me. I will repeat the story just in case you hadn't seen the post from last March. If you are familiar with my third book, Dream, Garden, Grow, there is an entire chapter about the meaning of sunflowers, and it was sparked by a single visit to Mattituck, Long Island in 2018. I had childhood memories of taking car rides out east with my parents and seeing huge fields of sunflowers, and always felt a need to stand among the huge flowers. During the summer of 2018, the first sunflower maze became open to the public and a childhood dream came true. The emotions were so strong that it was something I wanted to share, so I started writing and the memories flowed out onto paper.

Mattituck Sunflower Maze, Long Island, NY

There is another special meaning to sunflowers which I was made aware of just this past week. Sunflower is the national flower of Ukraine.

Red-Headed Woodpecker

Sometimes you just need a Red Headed Woodpecker to make your day and this one appeared not to long ago on the feeder in the back garden. Every so often we can hear a continuous pecking sound, usually in the early hours of the morning right from the street median outside our window. Timing is everything!

Bayard Cutting Arboretum, Great River, Long Island, NY

This is a memory that just makes me smile. This photo was taken at the Bayard Cutting Arboretum this past fall. The vibrant colors of autumn foliage, a bridge which crosses over a small dappling brook and the silence, except for the sound of rippling water, was so calming. This moment which just whispered the true essence of the season, is now captured in time.

Autumn Landscape

Autumn this year was magnificent and resembled an artist's palette with an array of vibrant colors. Here is one of my favorite captures of the driveway garden with the yellowing foliage of Coral Bark Maple against evergreens Skyland's Spruce, Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar and Weeping White Pine.

Autumn Landscape-Weeping Japanese Maples

I do enjoy the changing seasons where we live on Long Island. In the front yard are the two Weeping Japanese Maples, each over 30 years old.  This is the view in late October-early November...

Winter Landscape

and here they are in January. Welcome to a winter wonderland!

Container Planter

Back to scenes of springtime, soon it will be time to bring out spring-summer bear with his basket of live plants. I can't believe how much I love this purchase from the local nursery last year, so it had to be included as one of  my favorite things!

Cottage Garden

There is a story behind this small cottage. This was one of my first clients when I started up my landscape design business. The lady had contacted me and explained that she had a cottagey looking shed that she wanted to plant a garden around. She also informed me that she didn't know much of anything about gardening. Well, twenty-six years later with a treasured friendship and a property which consists of gardens everywhere, she blames me every time she has to go outside and weed!

Canadian Geese

Life is full of adventures and it is always fun to run into some of the local wildlife. These Canadian Geese often occupy the nurseries I go to since they enjoy the plants and constant irrigation that supplies them with food and water. I always smile and chuckle when they feel so comfortable that they will not even move when a truck is passing through, so I just have to sit and wait and have a photo moment. This capture goes under the category of favorite creatures!

Sparrow Love

Another recent addition to favorites is this perfectly positioned pair of sparrows sitting upon the Weeping Pussy Willow by the back patio. This yearly tradition signals the time when they start seeking places for nesting and means that spring in on the way. I was happy to have this photo moment just a few days ago!

Sunflower Love

Sometimes it is that unexpected encounter with something as simple a garden ornament in the garden of a friend that can prompt a smile every time you look at it, so I captured it in a photo and revisit it often.

Helleborus 'Shooting Star'

Finally, my garden writing has been inspired more often by unexpected encounters than planned. Helleborus was the inspiration behind my fourth book, Gardening By Month. Seeing this garden addition blooming in the midst of wintertime sparked me to create a reference that could prove something to gardeners, that there can be interest during every month of the year. Yes...a picture is worth a thousand words.

Thank you for Visiting!

I hope you enjoyed This Month in the Garden for March. Be sure to stop by on the 1st. and 15th. of each month as I continue to share gardening tips, information and horticultural adventures! (Linking up with: Floral Fridays, Macro Monday 2, Ruby Tuesday and Image-in-ing Weekly Photo Link-Up.)

For gardening information: My Author Page and Books

A Guide to Northeastern Gardening: Journeys of a Garden Designer Zones 3-9

Landscape Design Combinations 

Dream, Garden, Grow!-Musings of a Lifetime Gardener

Gardening by Month: A Monthly Guide to Planning the Northeastern & Mid-Atlantic Garden. 

As Always...Happy Gardening and Be Well. 😊

Author: Lee @A Guide to Northeastern Gardening,© Copyright 2010-2022. All rights reserved.