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TODAY'S NOTES
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Quick Takes....
Abraham Lincoln was known for wisdom, depth of character, and eloquence, as in this quotation:
We can complain because roses have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.
Those who see gardening as a mighty metaphor for all of life will appreciate Mr. Lincoln's insight.
Now, if we can just remember those words the next time we have to talk to AT&T.
Everybody's roses will be budding before long, as the official first day of spring, March 20th, approaches. Our real spring in the Ozarks, however, comes only after our last frost. In the Springfield area the average last-frost date is May 5th, the reason that gardeners unwilling to risk losing any plants to a late freeze wait till as late as May 10th to plant outdoors.
If you're antsy you can always start seeds indoors, and now is an okay  time for that
Moving on, we'd heard the small town of Republic, Missouri, had a new library, so we checked it out this week. It's really beautiful, has an unusually friendly and helpful staff, and, we're happy to say, also has a nice gardening book section.
The pictures you see here all come from our favorite backyard garden. It's in Springfield, Missouri, and its  creator, Shirley Anderson, just sent us more info on it, such as plant names that eluded her on our first visit in part because they'd been in the garden 15 years. We've added all that new info and really appreciate having it.
A click on any of the pics leads to a page where you can enlarge it and also link to everything we have about this remarkable garden.
It's our hope this year to add more and more of these backyard gardens to the  website, and we will. They're just great for learning about plants that really thrive in the Ozarks and the kind of wonderful design people can come up with in their own yards.
Let's see, what else.... Oh, we have to remind you about the terrific lists of gardening to-do's to be found on Mark Boernsketter's excellent www.gardenonthe.com website. Just click here, find the Monthly to do garden list box, and pick Feb. or any month you like. You won't be sorry.
That's it for now.
Stay warm....
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Enlarge photo | | A Jolly Good Tip
Mike Kohr, who we're told loves English Gardens and has visited a good many, will be taking visitors on a visual tour of English Gardens and tell makes them so special. It happens this Saturday, March 13, at 1 p.m. at Wickman's Garden Village, 1345 S. Fort in Springfield, Missouri, and you're invited.
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Enlarge photo | | More Beautiful Hostas....
The two striking hostas at left, 'Emerald Tiara' and 'Grand Tiara,' are new to our page on the hosta botanical garden in Springfield's Close Memorial Park. There are more coming, too, to provide you even more plant choices to help with garden planning for 2010. To see them, go to
The Hosta Garden
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Enlarge photo | | Two New Botanical Gardens
Come spring, two new gardens will join the 21 botanical gardens in Springfield, Missouri's Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park. The volunteer group Friends of the Garden says the Native Shrub Garden will be a co-effort with the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Redbud Garden will have 37 redbud varieties. At left, Ninebark, one of Missouri's prettiest native shrubs
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Enlarge photo | | Great Reading for Missouri Gardeners
The nearing of spring is prime time for good garden reading and we can't recommend a better resource for folks who really want to create their best gardens in our state than The Missouri Gardener's Companion. America's premier garden guy, P. Allen Smith, says, This is a great go-to book for every gardener in the state. Becky's easy-to-read style and thorough listing of resources make it a superb guide. "Becky" is author Becky Homan, who here shares with readers the best of the knowledge she gained in 26 years as garden editor of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
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Enlarge photo | | Another Winner
Another sure winner is the latest edition of Edgar Denison's classic Missouri Wildflowers. Published by the Missouri Conservation Department, it arranges wildflower entries by flower color and bloom time, along with detailed descriptions and 297 beautiful color photos, 200 of which are new. The perfect book for anyone who loves wildflowers and would like to learn about them, it can be found at the Conservation Nature Center in Springfield, Missouri, and most bookstores.
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Enlarge photo | | More Good Winter Reading:
How a Beautiful English Garden Came to Be
Among the loveliest of the botanical gardens in Springfield is the English Garden, which you can see on this website here. We're very fortunate to be able to share with you a most valuable article on this garden written by its creator, Peter Longley. Peter, novelist, theologian, lecturer, and horticulturist, lives in Springfield. His article The English Garden at Close Memorial Park is in two parts. Just click on The English Garden Part One and The English Garden Part Two.
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Enlarge photo | | 2010 All-America Selections
Seven beautiful garden flowers and a very special watermelon are the All-America Selections winners for 2010--all rated the best in nationwide garden tests. Have a look.
2010 All-America Selections
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Enlarge photo | | A Winter Wonder
Springfield's Close Memorial Park is one of the Ozarks' loveliest outdoor places to visit, even in winter. Click below for proof--snowy photos from Friends of the Garden President George Deatz.
Close Park in Winter
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Enlarge photo | | A Big, Big Thank You...
...to Carmen Jolley of Lebanon, Missouri, who responded to our pleas to help identify the unlabeled daylilies in the Daylily Garden in Springfield's Close Memorial Park. She named several, including the 'American Revolution' daylily at left. Carmen herself grows about 300 daylilies herself and says she's excited at the prospect of visiting the Daylily Garden this summer. Note: If you'd like to help identify the mystery daylilies, please go here.
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Enlarge photo | | Botanical Center Taking Shape
The walls of the new, $4.3 million Springfield-Greene County Botanical Center are on the rise in Springfield's Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park. Click here for more on the Center and the many benefits it will bring all of us in the Ozarks and, indeed, the Midwest.
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Enlarge photo | | A Guy Who Keeps On Giving
The gent explaining to a young lady how butterflies are shipped is Dr. Bill Roston, creator of the Butterfly House in Springfield's Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park. Dr. Roston's contributions to life in Southwest Missouri have been many and include creating many of the park's botanical gardens. Note: The Butterfly House drew more than 12,600 visitors in 2009 and will be expanded in size for 2010.
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Enlarge photo | | Good News for Gardeners--the Fog Blog
The Friends of the Garden, the volunteers who help create the botanical gardens in Springfield's Close Memorial Park, have a newsy, highly enjoyable, entertaining garden blog here. Gardeners, garden lovers, and, well, just about everybody, will like this one.
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Enlarge photo | | An Outstanding Ozarks Garden--on YouTube
Charged with developing the Master Gardeners Vegetable Garden in Springfield, Missouri, Christine Chiu made it as beautiful as it was nourishing. She and her fellow gardeners fashioned it as a jardin potager, or kitchen garden. You can see it in this beautiful YouTube video. Even better, when the 2010 garden is ready, you can visit it in person at 2400 S. Scenic Avenue in Springfield.
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Enlarge photo | | Jerry's Wake
A great many southwest Missourians lost one of their dearest friends last fall. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people Jerry encountered delighted in his hilarious sense of humor, encyclopedic mind, and expansive spirit. They remembered him in the good and proper Irish-style wake he'd wished for. To see how it went, click on
Jerry's Wake
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