Trying to reason with hurricane season

The storm surge at Fort Myers Beach during Hurricane Ian One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. William Shakespeare, Troilus and Cressida As longtime readers know, our family lives in Fort Myers, Florida, where Hurricane Ian made landfall this week. Words cannot express how much we appreciate those of you who reached out to … Continue reading Trying to reason with hurricane season →

Let me tell you about the birds and the bees, and the flowers and the trees

I tried to capture the parrots using the extreme zoom on my Samsung Galaxy phone. This is as good as I could get, given how they are about 40 feet up in the trees. When we moved into this house in South Florida, we inherited a dead royal palm tree (along with many beautiful and … Continue reading Let me tell you about the birds and the bees, and the flowers and the trees →

Making lychee-infused vodka

It is harvest time for the lychee tree in our backyard. This is Elise's favorite climbing tree, and she has been known to spend hours up there with a good book. I am thinking about putting some kind of sitting area underneath it, because the tree provides superb shade in the summer months and you … Continue reading Making lychee-infused vodka →

I have baby red pineapples!

For all practical purposes, I have become something of a banana/pineapple/papaya farmer. I have planted so many of these around our property - I am not sure what I am going to do with their crops. With respect to pineapples, I have planted two varieties - a sweet golden variety and a red variety. There … Continue reading I have baby red pineapples! →

Rhapsody in hue

I have spent many sublime hours working in the garden over the past few months trying to get some major projects done before the real heat and humidity of the rainy season set in. We have booked a long camping trip to Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina and the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee … Continue reading Rhapsody in hue →

An accidental focal point

I devoted an entire day a while back to removing several very large shrubs that the previous owners had planted along the courtyard of our house. I had decided our property will have a tropical aesthetic exclusively, so the scrubby plants had to go. It was difficult work, as these were not small plants and … Continue reading An accidental focal point →

Permaculture and deep mulch gardening

I have been gardening for decades and have built some fairly remarkable outdoor spaces in the various places our family has lived. However, it was not until we relocated to Florida that I discovered two approaches to living in harmony with the environment that have radically changed my worldview. Those would be permaculture and deep … Continue reading Permaculture and deep mulch gardening →

A morning surrounded by tornadoes

Well, today was an interesting day here in southwest Florida. We knew there were going to be severe storms this morning. I went to bed early last night because I love intense storms, and did not want to sleep through them. I pictured myself waking up, making coffee, and sitting out in the courtyard watching … Continue reading A morning surrounded by tornadoes →

“Winter” blooms

The name [Florida] comes from the daring adventurer Juan Ponce de Leon, who accidentally stumbled upon the Florida peninsula ....The year was 1513. Ponce de Leon was searching for gold and the "fountain of youth" -- a legendary spring that gave people eternal life and health. He sailed from Puerto Rico on March 3 with … Continue reading “Winter” blooms →

George E. Merrick’s poems about Florida

The final sunset of 2021, as seen from our South Florida neighborhood. This is a short post to share a "poet" I recently discovered. As a Florida transplant, I love learning new details about Florida's rich history. I stumbled on this page with links to the poems in George E. Merrick's collection, Songs of the … Continue reading George E. Merrick’s poems about Florida →