Last updated on May 16th, 2019
Here in New York’s Hudson River Valley, spring has officially sprung. Now the air is warming, the trees are leafing, and the gnats are flying into the mouths of everyone who happens to talk (or yawn) while walking. And speaking of walking…would you like to see what Avery and I see when we tour the gardens at Clover Hill? Join us.
Boxwood Garden. I recently thinned out branches from the 350 shrubs here in order to encourage lush interior growth (click here for details). In May, the shrubs will be sheared and shaped by a gifted boxwood barber.
Weeping Crabapple Trees. Flanking the brick steps in the boxwood garden is a pair of Malus ‘Red Jade.’ Earlier this week I removed from the trees any limbs that had “wept” onto the boxwood shrubs below. (Hat Tip to reader Kim for this tree-branch-pruning how-to.)
North Hill. Here and elsewhere, the ground is littered with leaves and twigs. The leaves will be mulched when the lawn-mowing crew arrives in May. Broken branches from ancient maples and oaks invite a rousing game of “Pick-Up-Stix” every time I step outside.
Arborvitae Row. Happily, the North Hill’s hedge of tall, fat arborvitae came through winter just fine. Birds are currently nesting in the secure shelter these evergreens afford.
Kitchen Garden. Taking a right turn at the end Arborvitae Row, we bump into the Kitchen Garden. I cleaned the garden’s wood chip paths and its 12 raised beds a couple of weeks ago. The beds are now ready for planting. Alas, I don’t feel like planting anything just yet. I’m still recovering from the clean-up job.
Kitchen Garden Arbor. This formerly-pleasant seating area has been smothered by a pair of hardy kiwi. I’ve hired a hit-man to end the chaos. (Hint: Do not plant hardy kiwi unless you are willing to prune its exuberant tentacles almost daily during the growing season.)
Pool Garden. Opposite the kitchen garden is an in-ground pool framed with hemlock and statuary. Failing any snow in the forecast, we shall open the pool next week. Hallelujah.
I’m getting bored now, so let’s speed things up a bit. Forward and march to…
Other Gardens. Beyond the pool and kitchen enclosures is the shady Woodland Garden. This garden, too, has been cleared of fallen leaves so that its perennial residents — ferns and hosta among them — can emerge. Click here to see the Woodland Garden in summer.
And here’s the Serpentine Garden, now begging for a rake. Click here to see how I designed this terraced oasis.
Perfuming the Serpentine today is this cluster of ‘Blue Jacket’ hyacinths…
And this navy-striped white Pushkinia.
At the base of the Serpentine is the tiny Herb Garden. Here, Avery the Gnat-Attacker awaits.
Back in 2014, I rooted boxwood cuttings in the herb garden’s four raised beds. This spring I shall donate many of these enduring evergreens to a local garden club. The remaining boxwood is destined for the front border of the kitchen garden.
And once the boxwood has been relocated, and my can-do attitude returns, I’ll plant the flat of parsley and herbs that I purchased nearly a month ago. I love spring!
In the comments field below, tell me how your own garden is faring in mid-April of 2019. Is it all cleaned up and ready to dance? Or is it — gasp! — still covered in snow?
xKevin
Mindy Wygonik says
Thank you for the lovely garden walk. I’m jealous of your beautiful hyacinth as either the deer or rabbits leveled ours. Fortunately, we still have glorious daffodils. It’s too early to plant much outside here in western Pennsylvania (it snowed Monday), but we’re getting the raised vegetable bed ready. I love to dig in dirt. Cheers!
Tracy says
Beet thinning tomarrow fallowed by where did all of this basil come from. I hope your weekend is lovely.
Tracy B says
Hi Kevin, I’m pleased that your garden blogs have restarted. These are my favorite type of posts you create, by far. And the tours are especially fun. I’ve already potted up 52 dahlia tubers and am seeing signs of life. The raised beds are planted with peas and carrots already, and I’m just seeing the noses of the peas. Kale goes in tomorrow. In my basement, I have two 3-shelf grow light set ups, each holding 30 trays of 30 seedlings each…1,800 plants to pot on and then pot out, not including rose and hydrangea cuttings, etc. Ack! But I do enjoy the results.
Georgeann Brown says
Thanks for the tour. Weather in Middle TN has run the gamut, luckily no snow but so much rain. We have clay, can’t plant much until some soil drying. I do love “New Dawn” roses. Have a lovely Easter and Spring.
Brian from cleveland says
Kev, how’d you keep the deer from eating the arborvitae? Mine are missing the bottom 4 feet of branches.
Toni O'Brien says
Oh my! I wish I had half of your “can do” attitude. I feel thoroughly inspired whenever I finish enjoying a trip through your gardens – whatever the time of year. Keep them coming, please Unfortunately my gardens are still partially snowcovered. I live in central New Brunswick, Canada, which is bracing for our second major flood in as many years. Luckily I don’t live in a flood plain but “my” snow will only add to someone else’s misery. I still have lumps showing in the snow – leftover snowballs of the snowman I built two weeks ago. Somewhere under there is greenery. My blueberry shrubs are mostly uncovered and the Easter Bunny’s friends have been spotted in our yard so my fence needs to go up this week; that’s a start. Also need to replace my water barrel; didn’t empty it before the frost and guess what – cracked, done. Some things we just have to learn the hard way.
Martey Costello says
One little tip on pruning from Penn State Extension. Take your pruning cuts to the branch collar, that wrinkly, raised bit of tissue right next to the trunk. That’s where the tissue that heals over your cut comes from. So, cut right up to the branch collar. Awesome garden, Kevin!
Selma H says
Good Morning! My garden in Falls Village Connecticut is still sleeping awaiting our return from winter in the Caribbean. I’m sure the daffodils are up and blooming along with the wakerobin and the white trillium in celebration of our return! Thank you for the tour of your gardens, they are beautiful in every season.
Deonna Bishopp says
Kevin your Garden inspires me and you come up with some creative ideas! You are such an imagineer and I’m so happy virtually every visit 🙂
Happy Spring to your lovely family!
LeeAnne Bloye says
“I’m getting bored now, so let’s speed things up a bit.”
Kevin! What??? How can you be bored in your lovely gardens??????
Thanks for sharing! Here in Newmarket, we are still a couple of weeks behind in the true springing of the season so your photos bring sweet anticipation that mine will look as alive as yours soon.
LOL about the Kiwi. My husband loved the planted by nature Wild Grape vine on our front porch.
The love died when it was discovered it was attracting Japanese Beetles (:-/) All the woody vines were left between the boring black rod type spindles so that Jackman and/or tangutica clematis can cling to them.
Oh and inspired by you, my first ever winter sewing project has yet to show any signs of life. But if it doesn’t work there is always next year. Please keep up the good work!
-LeeAnne
Newmarket, Ontario
Mary says
A beautiful tour! Thank you. It will be 78 in our fair city today.
Terry L Stites says
I loved the garden tour, thank you so much. Here in NE Oklahoma we’ve got wind and lots of it. If anyone in Kansas or Texas has lettuce growing in odd places, I’m so sorry. We planted corn, okra, onion sets, bush beans,
tomato and pepper plants. We also made seed tape for the carrots and radishes, I hope they do well. Lots of flowers in pots are giving that pop of color everyone craves. I have a stevia plant and a pineapple sage for the first time. We have cucumbers in too. They will grow up an old swing frame. I should mention that the garden is roughly 16×16.
Sharon says
Fantastic tour…I’m anxiously waiting for signs of life from the many spring bulbs I added to my garden last fall…under water after several snowstorms earlier has me worried…thanks for all your great advice…
Celeste says
Like “Brian from cleveland”, my Arborvitae are deer eaten! How do you avoid that Kevin?
Here in my Montana garden the ground is way too wet to work. I’ll be waiting for it to dry out for at least another 3-4 weeks (rain last night didn’t help either).
I did easily harvest sun chokes and volunteer chervil, both to add to our salads.
Elaine r says
Here in the B.C.Rockies, things are greening up…wild flowers and the pushkinia are blooming…and now my February daphne! The noses of the daffs are just peeping out and I might get the beds cleaned in time!
Samantha Gray says
Thank you for the tour – it’s always inspiring! Last fall we planted about 200 bulbs of all kinds, and this spring they have come up hale and hearty. Here on LI, my bleeding heart are blooming. The white Dicentra always seem to wake up a little later than the pink and red varieties.
The peach tree that my kids planted years ago (tossing a pit off the upper deck, no doubt) in the back corner of the yard is setting buds, and the Norway maples are turning our cars green. Garden peas are sprouting along with several types of radishes and golden beets. It’s been too rainy this week to plant, but carrots go in next with beans, nasturtiums, flax flowers and herbs. Waiting impatiently (no pun intended…) for some sun! Happy Easter to you and your loved ones!
Durf says
Spring is early this year, eh Kevin? So happy about that. It’s been a good year for bulbs. My bleeding heart is making an appearance. Looks like it recovered from that unfortunate Roundup incident.
Laura says
Hi Kevin,
Thanks for all the good info and inspiring tours.
I don’t know when to move my winter-sown seedlings out of their milk jug greenhouses – help?
Barbara says
So enjoyed the tour Kevin.. I live above Albany, not far from you soooo hope someday you will open for a tour for real..meanwhile enjoy ..good luck so ambitious..
Brenda says
Very much enjoyed your tour. Last year at this time I had sprouts in my milk jugs, but unfortunately this year I still haven’t got any seeds planted yet! Hoping I can make that happen this week… still three weeks ahead of the regular season! (That is optimism!)
Amy says
I’m in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where my garden is still covered by a good foot of snow. My asparagus grower sent 25 crowns too early, so they’re residing in damp peat moss in my fridge – planning on getting them planted as soon as the ground is unfrozen. Have eggplant, dahlias and lavender sprouting under my grow light. Everything else will be started directly in the garden Memorial Day weekend!
Kathy F. says
Love your garden posts Kevin. They are filled with inspiration. I just received my bare root spice bushes and sugar shack button bush. I have a damp part sun location in my back yard so I was busy planting them this weekend. Were those new chives in with your parsley flat? Curious.
Diane says
My garden in extreme northern Virginia is waking up…asparagus is now starting…just a bit behind schedule. Garlic, onions, lettuces, kale, spinach, blueberries and collards are coming along nicely. No seed started this year…may just purchase started plants. About half weeded in there, but the rest of the garden needs LOTS of work. Miscanthus all cut back, but that’s about it. Dogs have wreaked havoc in foundation beds…my poor hellebores are trampled, my boxwood need pruning, weeds are abundant, so I’ll be busy playing catch up for awhile. Love your garden tours…I’m inspired!
Janice says
Thanks, Kev. Your gardens and your love of them are soul healing.
Lovely shot of Avery, too….
Kim T says
RE: Martey’s post above about tree branch pruning. Here is a pic in case it’s hard to visualize. Never make flush cuts; always make collar cuts 🙂
https://baumtreecare.com/life-of-an-urban-tree-3-small-tree-structural-pruning/
Thanks for tour of your lovely garden.
Jerry Miller says
What a lovely garden. I’m busy cutting sod to enlarge my garden. Spring came all at once!
Debbie - MountainMama says
Your gardens are amazing, I’m curious how much property you have? I have about 2 acres and it’s nearly all cleaned up now…the spring cleanup seriously kicks my butt every year but it’s great to have it done! The veggie garden is cleaned up and 20 bags of compost will be tilled into it next weekend….let the planting begin!
Kristin says
It’s all cleaned up. My peas are almost a foot tall, and my chard is up. Winter sown herbs and flowers have been planted (except for the lone delphinium that sprouted and the foxglove which don’t seem to want to get any bigger and would need tweezers to plant). I even have my tomatoes in, as they have to be on the deck to get enough sun, and could be brought inside if necessary. Thank you for the tour!