What’s “blooming” in January?
January 14th, 2008 
by Susan
Think of those quote marks as a wink to the quaint notion that blooms MATTER. In fact, I have a little
story about that.
When the Associated Press photo editor called me to set up a shoot of me in my garden earlier this month there was grave concern that this would even be possible. Did I have ANYTHING blooming, even a HOUSEPLANT? And that just got me started on my schtick about evergreens and rocks and ponds and garden furniture and all that good stuff and she fell for it! No seriously, though a nongardener working and living in Manhattan, she could envision all that looking damned photogenic.
And the photographer herself immediately saw all the best shoot locations - standing under an arched doorway, against the backdrop of a waterfall, on a teak bench with evergreen foliage and red berries behind me and ON AND ON. (Did I mention it was about 40 degrees and a bit windy, too?)
But back to blooms because that’s what gardenbloggers show off on the 15th of every month and I only have one really sad-looking and disappointing hellebore bloom (H. foetidus) that you don’t want to see. That’s why I’m showing you my friend Pam’s rosemary as it looked just last week, which she assures me will be its happy state right through the winter. Gotta get me some of that.
And here’s a favorite winter photo of mine, taken at the National Arboretum. Don’t winterberry
hollies look awesome massed like that and paired with grasses? For the Latin-inclined, that’s Ilex verticulata.
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January 15th, 2008 at 8:29 am
I’m with you that it is more than flowers that makes a garden bloom. Although I have a friend who cried that she wasn’t ready for shrubs! as she tried to get her perennials under control, I have come to a great appreciation of shrubs, and built things! Thanks for opening our eyes to a new perspective.
January 15th, 2008 at 9:45 am
Wow!! I love berried shrubs of any kind. Wish I had some. And of course I don’t think houseplants compare to a real garden scene, complete with evergreens and other cool winter stuff. But, as with all gardening, I love the process of getting the indoor plants and bulbs to do what I want. The results are not all that. For true indoor magnificence, you need a botanical garden or some such.