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Our blogging friend Gloria Bonde's house and garden are in a picture in today's issue of the Wall Street Journal!
I was sipping coffee in my garden and looking through the WSJ when I saw a familiar name in the article 'Gardening Without a Sprinkler' by Anne Marie Chaker (WSJ, August 18, 2010). The article is about a growing trend of converting lawns to xeriscapes. Several gardens are featured in the article. Their owners use xeric principles such as using native plants, grouping plants with similar watering needs, using mulches, etc. Some gardeners got the ideas from their trips to Tuscany and southern France. Eliminating mowing, fertilizing, weed-control applications, excessive watering, and saving money are the main pluses of "dry gardens". The article also touches upon the issue of the xeric approach contradicting the landscaping standards of some homeowner associations.
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Congratulations, Gloria, on your garden being pictured in one of the most prominent national newspapers! I was excited to see your name!
Gloria's blog, Dakota Garden, is here: http://www.dakotagarden.com/
I just came back from Phoenix, Arizona where we celebrated the 90th Birthday of my dear mother-in-law, Mary. The temperatures were 107-111 F (38-40 C), but it didn't stop me from walking around and admiring some of the wonderful desert plants and extraordinary landscapes.
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Copyright 2010 TatyanaS
90? That's impressive. Gorgeous pics, reminds me of Noelle's site.
ReplyDeleteHi Tatyana, Congrats to Gloria and to you on those great photos. It's been a year to think xeric, even in Connecticut where it's been hotter and drier than normal...
ReplyDeleteWhat awesome photos. Love the last one with the pretty pink flower. That would be such a neat place to visit. Thanks for sharing your trip.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos.
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot to be said for getting rid of Lawns. We have got rid of about 7/8ths of ours just keep one space to sit on if family visit.
Tatyana - Thank you so much for the write up!!! I was contacted by Anne-Marie Chaker of the Wall Street Journal, but had no idea when the article would come out! So, I was so pleased to see your comment and also the email from Anne-Marie - Gloria
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip about Gloria. Now we can say we knew her before she was famous;)
ReplyDeleteAs for walking in that heat, what's the grand old saying about mad dogs and Englishmen? I'd melt like a pat of butter.
Christine in Alaska
Dar Tatyana, What an amazing milestone birthday for your mother-in-law. And, as you say, what an extraordinary landscape is to be found in Arizona. Welcome back!
ReplyDeleteOh, I had no idea Gloria's garden was featured in the WSJ...well spotted!
ReplyDeleteThe more I see the Arizona landscapes, the more I love them. Who says there's not beauty in the desert? Great photos!
Love your gorgeous pictures. Carla
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful for your friend! And I LOVE your desert photos! Gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteWow, love those cactuses, and the ones blooming... just gorgeous against that lively sky.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous photos! It was only 104 the day I went exploring Phoenix's Desert Botanical Garden last September. I almost had a heats stroke and drank about a gallon of water, but it was worth it!
ReplyDeleteThanks for telling us about Gloria - congratulations to her!
Thanks for the info about Gloria and these beautiful views. The reflection shot for me is the most awesome. BTW, those temperature ranges if you are in the humid tropics will be very very terrible. Last year only the 36C will give you headache in 3 min. Thanks for the marvelous photos.
ReplyDeleteHi Tatyana, Beautiful post. Only a true gardener could venture out in such extreme elements to get a glimpse of the beauty.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the heads up with Gloria. She is a dear, isn't she?
Beautiful landscapes, natural and otherwise. They may as well be another world from what I know.
ReplyDeleteGreat pictures of Arizona. I am becoming more xeric and thinking of ordering some hardy cactus this year. Thanks for letting us know about Gloria's article.
ReplyDeleteEileen
Congratulations to Gloria! Your desert photos are beautiful--isn't this such a lovely place, but so different from gardens we're used to? My daughter now lives in Scottsdale, so I've visited AZ several times and love visiting the Desert Botanical Garden. But I've never seen the desert in the summertime--I'm a wimp about heat:)
ReplyDeleteLove all your creative pots in the last post!
Thank you everyone for your time and kind words! Gloria's garden is great, and we are proud to see it pictured in the WSJ! As for my own garden, it suffered badly while we were in Arizona. I am trying to figure out why I lost a new Japanese maple and my beautiful old Italian cypress. I think I know why, and I feel bad, it was my fault... I am going to visit all your beautiful blogs before school starts. Happy gardening to you, my friends!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures Tatyana. As always they look like photos from a magazine or one of those big coffee table books!
ReplyDeleteWith all that beauty I could walk around too Tatyana. Happy belated Birthday to your Mary Mother-in-law. Gorgeous landscape photography. Yeah! for Gloria too!
ReplyDeleteYou were in my state! I'm glad you enjoyed your stay. :)
ReplyDeleteYour life is rich and photos glorious. Thanks for sharing, Tatyana.
ReplyDeleteWow- 90 is nothing to sneeze at! Cheers
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing these beautiful dry gardens and their magical landscapes!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you had a good time in Arizona. You sure got some great photos! My favorite is the one with the reflection of the plants and sky in the water.
ReplyDeleteI just met Gloria last week. That is, I just discovered her blog. How cool she got in the paper. I received an email from a local newspaper reporter, saying she liked my blog, and asked if she could interview me for an article in the future. She said she was working on an article about plants that attract hummingbirds, and wondered if I ever saw them.