The tame, too smug, I cry; There's no adventure in security; Yet still my little garden craft I ply, Mulch, hoe, and water when the ground is dry... -Vita Sackville-West The Garden; 1948 The other day I was looking up odds and ends when I came across a word I have never heard. … Continue reading A Peculiar Fight For Turgidity
Tag: artists
Spiderwort or The Unfortunately Named
It is sufficiently remarkable that a great and powerful noble should have accepted so frank a criticism from a peasant, little more than a child. He was more accustomed to see such people tremble in his presence. Such impertinence must have taken his breath away. Besides, it attacked him in his most private feelings. -Vita … Continue reading Spiderwort or The Unfortunately Named
The Daylily: “The Lord Loves A Working Man”
They used to be regarded as a common old plant, almost a weed, when we grew the type which spread everywhere and was only a pale orange thing, not worth having... Now there are many fine hybrids, which may come as a revelation to those who have not yet seen them. They will grow in … Continue reading The Daylily: “The Lord Loves A Working Man”
Of Honey Bees And Red Clover
I loathe bees myself, one single sting sufficing to send me to bed, quite seriously ill, for nearly a week. Yet I must admit to a romantic feeling for this self-contained world of little creatures, with their extraordinary arrangement of a life entirely their own, but at the same time, dependent upon what we elect to … Continue reading Of Honey Bees And Red Clover
An Ode To The Innocent Ones.
A Dedication To The Innocent Ones Of The Orlando Tragedy.
Deadly Nightshade
This remedy she rejected, saying that she would rather die than do anything that she believed to be a crime or contrary to God's will. -Vita Sackville-West Saint Joan of Arc: 1936 In one of my favorite books (I mean, if I was stranded on a deserted island (touch wood), this would be one of the books … Continue reading Deadly Nightshade
The Object Of My Disenchantment
There are few more repaying plants. Rabbits dislike them; their flowering season extends through May and June; they last for a week or more as picked flowers for the house; they will flourish in sun or semi-shade; they will tolerate almost any kind of soil, lime-free or otherwise; they will even put up with clay; … Continue reading The Object Of My Disenchantment
Ramble On…
He kept them sitting for hours over the dinner table, he who was usually so impatient to move away; he kept them entertained by anecdote after anecdote, reminiscence after reminiscence, observation after observation... -V. Sackville-West Easter Parade: A Novel Copyright: 1953 Allow me, if you will, to ramble a bit? Ramble like a climbing, … Continue reading Ramble On…
Garden Of Roses…
Indeed, I think you should approach them as though they were textiles rather than flowers. The velvet vermilion of petals, the stamens of quivering gold... -Vita Sackville-West In Your Garden May 28, 1950 I have been waiting all year for this. Waiting for the perfect opportunity to purchase my roses. They will be the … Continue reading Garden Of Roses…
Paved Paradise…
...as you grow more ambitious, the blue poppy Meconopsis baileyi, which is the dream of every gardener, will all take happily to a shaded home, especially if some moisture keeps them fresh. -Vita Sackville-West A Joy of Gardening; 1958 The other day, my Grandmother told me one of her favorite memories... When paying her one … Continue reading Paved Paradise…










