Up on the Roof

Recently we went to this opening of a rooftop garden. It was so inspiring but we haven't a roof of our own. If you do, think about it. Seriously. You could even wear some flowers in your hair (if you insist). Here is a beautiful photo gallery of blossoming city rooftops from National Geographic.

ciao-flowery-meow/the mgmt

(photograph of Gala via am-lul's closet)

Lilacs

Every May we miss the northern lilacs bloom. Today it hit particularly hard that they just do not grow well here in the DC-area. Oh sure, you'll see some here but nothing, nothing like in the north. Or France. One of the best things about living in Strasbourg were the amazing stands of lilacs in a nearby park. You could even pick large bunches & not make a dent in the display. (It was allowed! At the time.)

If you've never read Mrs. Greenthumbs (the late, great hilarious Cassandra Danz), you must take her books out of the library or buy them. Here's a little sample. The story of the lilac bush named Henry alone makes CD worth reading. You will laugh & laugh - what could be better than that? Here's hoping that you have lilacs in your life.

ciao/GGCM

PS: Amy Lowell's Lilacs

(lovely photograph by Liivia S.)

The Fragrant Garden

We have a holiday overload situation. Just caught up with wonderful Adrian Higgins & last week's column about putting more scent into your life. If you don't have a garden, then make your cat work so she can buy you flowers. Preferably of the scented variety. Until tomorrow.

ciao-meow/GGCM

(photograph via Lolita)

First Daffodils 2011

We love daffodils & know you do, too. Visit the lovely Daffodils 2011 website. You can upload your daffodil photographs & look at beautiful ones from fellow fanciers. Hang out with your daff-peeps from Canada, the States, England, Wales, Scotland, & Ireland. (And probably more countries but this is in haste, like everything else these days.) You can also visit them on their Facebook page.

Upcoming post on daffodil festivals near you, near us - next week.

ciao-meow/GG's Florist

(Walter Crane illustration from Flora's Feast, A Masque of Flowers)

Monet's Debt to Flowers

I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.--Claude Monet

Happy birthday to Claude Monet (1840). For some helpful travel information about, thoughts on, & photographs of Monet's garden at Giverny, visit The Clever Pup's Paris Notebook. She was there just last month & has the best ideas about how to visit Paris. Hint: Wear rose-colored glasses only part of the time or you will miss out. (Poplar (Autumn) series via here)

We're off to walk through some autumnal garden scenes, as well. Have a great Sunday.

ciao-bonjour-meow/GGCM

Lunatic on Bulbs

That's what Emily Dickinson said of herself & it applies to GG Central, too. We're preoccupied with gardens, lately/always. Tiger lilies were a favorite of Miss D. ( GG is a tiger lily). Here is the New York Times article Emily Dickinson's Garden at the New York Botanical Gardens. The exhibit runs through 12 June 2010. If you are near there (or will be), we hear it's fabulous. Since GG's editor ran a similar post on her blog, a veritable mountain of articles & stories has piled up & so we realize this is not news for many people. But you never know--one cannot follow everything. Judith Farr's The Gardens of Emily Dickinson (2005) was really the first book to combine the subject of the poet & her gardens & we salute her. Read it!

We'll be running photographs & images from GG's editor for a week or so -- until we get back on all four paws (so to speak). (Retail news about the Darfur Peace Baskets is forthcoming.)

[Flora's Feast, a Masque of Flowers by British illustrator Walter Crane; botanical image via Ray Allen's wildflowergardening.wordpress.com; third image, guess who?]

Apricot Rose & Jane

The proverbial last bloom is nigh...GG's editor has seen late blooms on floribunda roses around the neighborhood, even downtown. In desperation, she snipped one small apricot-colored flower. Don't judge! Do you think that this will be held against Obama? We're at the ready to bat back ridiculous rumors, scurrilous commentary, & plain ol' mean-spiritedness--all of which are on abundant display. If you hear something you don't like, check here for the facts. This isn't over until YOU vote.

GG was working on her Jo the Plumber get-up for Hallowe'en (with help from management), but has stooped to cliché, unravelling a half-knitted scarf. We may push for the easier Sarah Six-Pack costume. We are not cat dressers but our late dear friend Jane S. said "a cat isn't a cat until it's been dressed up at least once." When Jane passed away, her garden was a 65+ year-old masterpiece (planted by her parents) & full of resident cats, kittens, dogs, & puppies (oh, & grandchildren, too). She was an endless source of heaps of cut flowers, excellent advice, wry commentary, recipes, tips, history, literary quotes, & everything else. When all else failed (whether the conundrum was a social crisis, chaos backstage, university hanky-panky, or stain removal), a cast of hundreds (including her fabulous family) thought the same thing: "Ask Jane." And so we did.

xoxo, bisou
GG's editor

Public Domain Images

Tulip

It's been warm but before you know it...you'll be sorry you didn't put in enough (or any). Bulb planting is the gardener's proverbial confidence that spring will return. What with the dreadful news all around, a little confidence couldn't be a bad thing. We're just saying...

GG Garden Reminder: Order those bulbs!

Charles & Ray Eames Postage Stamps

GG Central's current official stamp(s). There are 16 to a sheet & are on sale now, at postal offices & on-line, too. Choose a different one to suit a mood or a recipient. They remind GG's editor of Gina & Franco of Pittsburgh...they introduced GG's editor to all things snazzy in design & had many Eames-ish furnishings (& still do--timeless stuff). They also introduced us to all things Italian. Franco is an architect & a maestro in the giardino. Gina is a maestra in all things alla cucina, literature, culture (high & pop). G&F were a tremendous influence on GG's editor as a teenager & beyond.

Ciao-meow, baci, to all!
xoxo, GG

Au Jardin d'Edgar - GG's Balcony Dream

A little green relief from GG Central. Some day wouldn't this be lovely? Au jardin d'Edgar is in Paris (we heard about it from Paris Breakfasts) but we'd be just as thrilled to be planning a jardin, balcon or otherwise, elsewhere in France or Rome & points south.

Have a great evening...and if you simply cannot "go offline" (or you're waiting to watch the speech on your laptop, A Cup of Jo is a fabulous blog that has come to our attention recently. We do have our standards & this is above & beyond. Check it out...and don't forget Menton Daily Photo & Riviera Dogs by Jilly Bennett.

Bisou, ciao, baci, & xoxo, GG

Julia Child Rose

The Julia Child floribunda rose is featured on the blog A Brush With Color. GG highly recommends stopping by to view the lovely watercolors & photographs by the painter Suzanne Smith in North Carolina. Even if you don't have time to read her entertaining & insightful posts, it's a lovely "place" to stop in for a daily beauty treat. The photo is from Rose Gallery Forum, Garden Web.