new orleans! (the green edition)

last week, i spent three days in new orleans. it was timed perfectly to avoid the sub-freezing temperatures in new york, but sadly, the polar vortex (or whatever they are calling the latest cold front) reached even louisiana. it was in the 30s and 40s though, so that's something. it doesn't really look that cold in these photos, since the plant life seems to be thriving, but all i can tell you is that maybe even sub-tropical plants can survive a night or two of frost. 

as i noted on my recent trip to taiwan, the greenery in new places is now one of the highlights of travel for me. so in an attempt to counteract the effects of eating five times a day (so. much. eating.), we walked for hours through several different neighborhoods as well as the new orleans botanical gardens and lafayette no. 1 cemetery.     

the cemetery, it turns out, is the oldest municipal cemetery in new orleans. at a single city block, it's not as big as some of the others, but it was the perfect antidote to all the butter and oil we ingested at commander's palace (hhh had a crock of chowder and oysters; i had shrimp and grits). i was especially taken by all the ferns bursting out of the brick and rock. there was also this - hugh grant's (and his family's) tomb. funny how there are no dates on the stone. or maybe this is typical? i am no antebellum cemetery expert.

the cemetery sits between washington, coliseum, prytania, and sixth streets. it's in the garden district, which is full of lovely old homes i could spend all day looking at. (you could try this self-guided walking tour.) if you get tired, there is coffee and a bathroom, a bookshop, and a shop of turkish cotton textiles worth checking out at 2727 prytania street.

on our second day in new orleans, we ventured into mid-city. between meals, we did more exploring and ended up at the botanical gardens. despite the low temperatures, the plants generally seemed pretty happy. there were also several enclosed areas housing tropical and desert varieties. outdoors, there was an edible section with raised beds. i recognized rosemary, rainbow chard, and several types of lettuce. there was also something that hhh thought looked like giant purple basil, but i think it must have been an entirely different kind of plant...right?

all this botany gets me excited about spring planting! i've already gotten a bunch of paperwhites that i'm forcing indoors, and i came home from california with clippings from the heirloom jade plant in hhh's mom's garden. (more on that later.) i also got a dozen air plants! (hhh: why do you need so many air plants?) 

anyway, all this is to say that i am ready for this ridiculous frigid weather to be done already. okay, a few more green shots to tide us over until it's really springtime.... 

stay warm!! xoxo

summer forever

there's something really lovely about the overgrown greenness of late summer. everything is filled in and climbing everywhere...

my neighbor's climbing vines are coming over the wall (free plants!).  i think these are clematis? 

the climbing hydrangea is hanging in there, despite its scale infection. the polka-dots are so hardy and cute (and cheap). 

i'm growing a baby fiddle leaf fig. it's thriving! but i'm a little concerned about it transitioning to the indoors. i hear it's finicky. (not sure what that other gorgeous tropic thing is, but it'll have to come inside too.)

still willa's favorite corner. she spent hours sunning herself there this morning. 

julie brought me all these terra cotta pots. all lined up for the next planting season...

where i read the sunday paper and ponder an alternate career as a gardner. but first i put out the cushions, which i was too lazy to do for this photo.

summertime

this is what summertime looks like around here, at least on weekends. during the week, there's still construction in our neighbor's yard, so all the cushions get put away and it's pretty dusty out.  let's start with the patch of fake grass...

looks good, doesn't it? hhh had a lot of doubts, but he's a convert now. :)

this is the shady part of the yard. there are ferns, hydrangea, a rubber plant, and some ivy. 

a tall planter with coleus and korean feather grass.

all the furniture is from ikea. it's pretty beat-up but is definitely good value.

the climbing hydrangea is fighting a scale infestation in the corner. scale is really gross. :(

this is how the yard was arranged for hhh's birthday bbq a few weeks back. there some small pots of thyme and polka dots on the table.

another view of the picnic table area.

willa enjoys the fake grass too. she loves how warm it gets. 

the plant sale!

the brooklyn botanic gardens had its annual plant sale this week. the weather was totally uncooperative (i.e., gusty winds and flash floods), but it cleared on the last day so i went to check it out. i'm glad i didn't let my laziness get the better of me, because it was awesome. i know my love of plants is old news, but i get seriously giddy around all this green. 

plants on plant on plants.

i really wanted to eat that rainbow chard right then and there.

it's almost better than the regular gardens, because if i like it, i can have it. (within reason.) the bbg sale was a lot cheaper than going to a regular nursery. there were a bunch of japanese maples, red clumping bamboo, peony bushes, loads of herbs and lettuces, succulents and orchids, and hundreds of other plants i have yet to make friends with.

a big bowl of hens and chicks. 

also, they had these little red wagons in lieu of shopping carts! it was cute to see all the little old ladies pulling these radio flyers around. i kind of want one now. they seem handy for all kinds of things. 

my little red wagon of plants: blue grama grass, coleus, lemon-scented geranium, and yarrow. 

this yarrow (achillea) has fuzzy fronds.

this geranium is deliciously lemony.

thanks for coming along, sarah! who wants to go next year? 

the giant tent, set up on the cherry esplanade. 

yardwork

it's an incredible fortune to have outdoor space in new york city. the yard, which is roughly the same size as my last studio apartment in astoria,  really sold us on the place. even though i knew i'd be leaving soon for china - and be gone an entire year -  i couldn't help but dig in (ha!). my obsession with plants grew quickly, now that i had all this square footage to work with. 

previously, i channeled my energies into much smaller gardens.

that first summer, i planted a butterfly japanese maple, a profusion of ferns, a few hydrangeas, clusters of coleus, some ivy, a few herbs, and called it a day. i had no idea which plants would grow back the next year and which wouldn't. if there are plants in the photos i haven't mentioned, it's because i no longer remember their names. i didn't know what i was doing, but i still had a good time.

this is what the yard looked like our first summer here.

i also had a 2x2 patch of herbs (citronella, parsley, mint, basil, and rosemary) right by the door. 

and then, i went to beijing and winter came. while i was away, i did a lot of pinning in lieu of planting. and now, it's almost spring again. i am so excited. technically, it's already spring. but there are no leaves on any trees along my street, so i'm pretty sure spring has not yet come to my part of brooklyn. in the next few weeks, i'm going to be taking it to a whole new level. stay tuned.

it's been a brutal winter.  

now, it looks like this. no snow, but still pretty barren. 

okay, so it wasn't as if i did no gardening at all while in china. an old instagram from my beijing sill.