Parrotia subaequalis in the hamamelis collection....a Chinese parrotia???

That's some crazy fall color. The more common Parrotia persica, or Persian parrotia, is from the other side of Asia. This one is Chinese.

Fern Valley tree removal......and autumn

I went out to see what havoc the tree contractors were wreaking, and they weren't. They were doing a good job....minimal collateral damage. I couldn't help noticing how colorful the entrance was and how nicely balanced the visual elements were. It's been more than 50 years since the original plantings in Fern Valley; this can't be the result of design, but rather continual readjustment, serendipity, and possibly divine intervention.

Acer saccharum 'Reba' Belle Tower....a very nice upright sugar maple

Beautiful upright sugar maple. Ours is young. The largest specimens so far are about fifty feet tall and 1/3 that in diameter. A J. Frank Schmidts & Son introduction. They introduce a lot of good new trees.

Mystery aster in Adelphi Garden

It's sort of cool cause it's six feet tall.

Intellectual paralysis

  In tel lec tu al  par al y sis     Phrase


1.   a state or condition where one is rendered incapable of making even the smallest decisions because of an acute awareness of the breadth of the universe and one's own relative ignorance. This leads to the conviction that one more minute of searching may present an option infinitely superior to the current preference.    occasionally occurring as "Yuppie intellectual paralysis"

In my own defense, the bud is only about the size of a football...

...and it is eleven or twelve feet in the air and I have terrible vision. Nancy and Julie noticed it today, Carole saw it yesterday and Angela noticed it last week. Why is the father always the last to know? Anyway it is cool that this Musa 'Basjoo' is flowering in the open garden in Washington DC. Of course we have last year's non-winter to thank. Maybe next year we can flower Musa itinerans or M. sikkimensis, or both! Probably not both.

Pennisetum orientale 'Karley Rose' and 'Rose Queen' cleome

They don't look like roses to me. I'm enjoying this cleome very much. I notice that as I get older, my youthful distaste for certain plants is replaced by an affectionate fondness.

Acer triflorum at the top of China Valley

You can't see the exfoliating bark from this distance, but take my word for it; it's wonderful. I like this tree for so many reasons, not the least of which is it's precocious fall color. It starts the season off every year. Guess what? Fall is here.