Author Archive for Donald McClure
He can tickle your funny bone or tug at your heart strings. County people may know him as a chronicler of everything that happens (or should happen) in the garden, but his interests stretch across the natural world. His unique sense of observation takes in a wide expanse of living and may even point out some truths about our own condition as managers of the world around us. With Loyalist antecedents in his family tree his roots go deep into the Ontario countryside.
Yanks have done a good job preserving cultural identity
One of the great joys in visiting New England is to revel in the feeling of unity that preserving the Greek Revival architecture brings to the towns and villages throughout the region. You never have a doubt that you are in New England because street scapes reflect the cosy warmth of New England historical architecture. […]
Great year for zinnias and novelty dahlias
This has been an excellent year for growing zinnias. Because of their proclivity for attracting leaf spot and mildew infections, many gardeners have given up on these stalwart mainstays. However some of the newly developed hybrids have built-in resistance to these diseases . What zinnias bring to the garden are the typical hot zestful colours […]
Crafty crab spider uses a form of magic
A visitor to most County gardens in summer is the crafty and elusive crab spider. Not that I am a particular admirer of this creature, but I am fascinated by its ability to make its living by blending into its surroundings and using a little magic. That bit of trickery centres around this spider’s unique […]
County Gardener’s summer notebook – peonies, butterflys and butternut
No garden is too small to hold a peony Had I but four square feet of soil I would plant a peony in the centre and proceed to worship. Alice Harding I couldn’t say it any better than Alice. She says it all. And now that the peonies have mostly bloomed and blown away for another […]
County Gardener’s 2011 notebook
Wasn’t going to do as much this year planned to cut back and save the wear and tear but when I stood beside the bed something happened to my head there’s room for another Rudbeckia over here — Oh dear! It returns each spring like an old friend, the “first rose” of spring perennials, the […]
Low tech solutions to big time problems
With the growing television-inspired popularity these days of hunting out antique and pop art collectibles, it is always useful to review what might be out there simply to inspire your search and increase your chances of finding some (awesome) treasures. With the Pawn Stars in Las Vegas scarcely able to handle the influx of all […]
Delicate flower of hope and inspiration
“I never saw daffodils so beautiful,” she writes. “They grew among mossy stones…. some rested their heads upon these stones as on a pillow for weariness and the rest tossed and reeled and danced and seemed as if they verily laughed with the wind that blew upon them over the lake, they looked so gay […]
Flirting with Spring
It is the second week of March. The west wind is rising and seems to penetrate even into the sanctity of the old house which has seen 132 winters. Inside we are not apprehensive. We have endured it all before. There is an end to it. Outside the moon hangs bright and clear in the […]
Wilderness jewel Valley of the Don
Somewhere in the labyrinth of storage boxes that remain unopened and undiscovered for two decades, is a photograph of me holding a young snowy owl on a stick under a birch tree. The picture was taken by my friend Irwin Ledlie and a few feet above him, looking down, was the mother bird, quite calm […]
On the cutting edge of collections
With the current popularity of television programs like Pawn Shop, American Pickers and Antiques Road Show, interest in collecting stuff is starting to revive. For anyone who has a collecting bug there are limitless opportunities to get involved in any number of cultural or natural elements. You are only limited by your energy, your storage […]
