Terra Bella Tales

The Plants

I am grateful to have found something I love so much-this fascination with plants which gives my mind a good place to go and my gardens that insist I get out there and bend, stretch and lift, keeping me strong.

I’ll never know all there is to know about plants, but that just means I’ll be busy until my last days. From the subterranean seeds of violas to the secrets of the bristlecone pines high in the mountains of Nevada and California, every plant has its story, a story of survival and that of invention when people are involved in creating new plants. Lucky us to always have something new to learn.

Wild Things

Terra Bella means beautiful earth and though most of the plant stories here have been about my gardens, the bigger picture is all of nature, of which my gardens and I are a part. I am endlessly astounded by the myriad and intricate wonders all around us. I am also fortunate to live close to and surrounded by nature and a favorite pastime is to take the Jeep and head out to the mountains, the prairies, the lakes and rivers and soak it all in. Not only the plant life, but the birds, animals, the rocks-when I begin to understand how all these things are tied together, how the weather, the seasons and time itself affect each and every thing out there; then I can see that I am a small cog in that great wheel of life. A wonder in itself.

Frequently, just a walk in the back pasture will suffice-in this case the wild roses were blooming and if that weren’t enough, the Cedar Waxwings were decorating the bush, probably eating last year’s rose hips. So whether you have a garden or not, there’s a bigger one out there and Mother Nature takes care of it. Beautiful earth indeed.

The Gardener in Chief

I am hopelessly besotted with the natural world; every day I can be outside is a better day than one spent in the house, though even my house is filled withplants, and rocks and pictures of plants and nature. The gardens are my sanctuary, my safe place and one filled with endless delights. Thomas Jefferson wrote ‘But though an old man, I am but a young gardener.” Perhaps he was talking about that childlike awe we can still feel at even the smallest wonders that the gardens present to us every day. It keeps us young at heart, even when old age is knocking at the door. Just slip out the back, shovel in hand, and get to work. Life is good in the garden.

Garden Design

When it comes to ideas for my gardens, I have no stop button-that’s ok, I don’t want one, I don't want to be finished. Creating something new is just so much fun, whether it’s designing a new perennial bed or a garden gate, the flood of new ideas is euphoric-indeed, my friend calls it ideaphoria!

My design philosophy is simply that I love it, that whatever I put out there in my gardens makes me smile. I don’t mind if its not perfect-nature, my gardens and us, too-with all our imperfections are still achingly beautiful.

Observations of a Plant Geek

For some of us lucky souls, random little plant facts roll around in our heads looking for a place to land. All those little botanical factoids that make our friends roll their eyes and say “she’s at it again”. So if you're reading this, you may be one of us, you could be a plant geek. If you’re handing out unsolicited little tidbits, just go with it, resistance is futile. Your true friends will understand.

So here’s one to get you started, the Ross Cedars in northwest Montana are not really cedars, they’re Thuja plicata, or arborvitae, a member of the Cypress family. In fact, there are no native true cedars in North America. But go ahead and call them Western Red Cedars, most everyone does.