I Simply Remember These Favorite Things with Dr. A~ July 2025
July is here, and apparently “The Living is Easy”. I'm not sure how easy it is for all of you, but I'm really enjoying my tomato sandwiches. We went out and bought mayo, lettuce, and good old Wonder white bread! I believe a Jeopardy question could be, “Who buys white bread these days? Answer:” Gardeners picking their own tomatoes and slicing them for sandwiches.”
A Plant - Garden lilies
Lilium ‘Forever Susan’
I found an old friend a week ago. In fact, when we knew each other, he was the same age as my son, and one of the neighborhood children. Children of your neighbors usually disappear from your life and become grown-ups with families of their own. So, imagine my surprise and pleasure when JP contacted me out of the blue and told me of his passion for garden lilies.
Garden lilies have to be one of the easiest bulbs to grow, and certainly one of the most colorful. Dozens of different choices, in countless colors and heights, can easily be found in garden centers and online. I order five bulbs of a given cultivar and plant them in the fall, bulb to bulb. That way, I look forward to a stunning grove of color in the summer. The other positives about lilies are that their vertical growth takes little space in the garden and allows them to be interplanted with your perennials and shrubs. Their foliage, unlike that of daffs and tulips is not ugly as it declines and does not detract from others in the garden.
There are a ton of cultivars, but my favorite is ‘Forever Susan’. Absolutely stunning, but I must confess to a particular bias with this one. It is named for my patient and wonderful wife, Susan, and I knew it would be nothing but stunning.
Yes, lilies are easy, inexpensive, and colorful - and even bring old friends back together. Enjoy your bounty, JP.
Lilium ‘Joshepine’
Lilium ‘Satisfaction’ with Rooguchi clematis
A Garden - Sonnenberg Gardens, Canandaigua, New York
One of my favorite places to visit in this country is the Finger Lakes area of upstate New York. The lakes themselves are beautiful, the towns quaint, and the wine quite excellent (see Places, below). However, one of the gems that awaits is Sonnenberg Gardens & Mansion.
The mansion was built by Frederick and Mary Thomson in 1887, and the gardens became the passion of Mrs. Thompson. She traveled the great gardens of the world and came back with ideas she implemented in her gardens in the early 20th century. However, the gardens and house went through some very rough times after she died in 1923, but finally, the house and gardens became part of the New York State Historic Park system.
The estate now sits on 50 acres, so put on your walking shoes; there is a
lot to see. There are nine formal gardens, including the Italian Gardens, the Kitchen Garden, and the Japanese Gardens, all a pleasure to stroll through and admire. Various events and lectures are also scheduled throughout the season. I really enjoyed my time there. I look forward to returning.
A Book - How to Read a Book
Author: Monica Woods
Fiction
My sister-in-law, Phyllis, loves a good book. Readers are much like gardeners; they enjoy sharing their reads and recommending their favorites. When she shared its premise, I was intrigued, and if nothing else, the title cried out for attention. So, here I am recommending it to you. Thank you, Phyllis.
Harriet is a retired English teacher who runs a book club in the local prison for women. Her book mates are certainly unlike your book buddies - and given the personalities, the discussions can get a little heated. Violet, an inmate in the book club, is released and unknowingly moves into an apartment near Harriet’s house. The maintenance man Frank works in the bookstore Harriet frequents for book ideas. His wife was killed by Violet in a drunk driving accident. Inevitably, they all meet.
The story of three people and how their lives intersect makes for a remarkable storyline. This is certainly not a Hallmark book, but as you are caught up in the choices they make and the interactions between them, you can’t help but root for them all. I believe that over time, this may become a favorite for book lovers.
A Show/Movie- Darby and Joan
I apologize up front, I’m a bit of a softie when it comes to watching movies or streaming shows. Not that I have not shared my enjoyment of action shows, mystery monikers, and even blood and guts themes in Favorites past. However, now and then, I need a series that not only captures my interest but also one I can look forward to watching without too much drama.
The action takes place in Australia, and as you would expect, the extraordinary scenery is straight out of National Geographic. The two “mature” protagonists are Jack Darby, an ex-cop from Australia, and Joan Kirkhope, an English woman who has never been to Australia.
The storyline begins with Joan coming to Australia to look for answers concerning the death of her dubious husband. They accidently run into each other in Queensland and soon find themselves traveling together in search of answers, for Joan and also for Jack.
The two leading actors are excellent, and each episode’s mysteries are solved with “mild peril.” There is little in the way of blood or guts, gunfire or tragedy, and while some may find it a little boring, for me
I can’t wait for my glass of wine and a calm sit down for season three.
A Place - The Finger Lakes, New York
Not that long ago, I recommended the Cotswold area in England, for its stunning beauty and lovely vistas. The same can be said of the Finger Lakes area in upstate New York., and this is a lot easy to get to than England.
The Royal Mile
The Finger Lakes consist of 11 long narrow lakes south of Lake Ontario. Cayuga and Seneca Lakes are among the deepest lakes in the United States, and others vary in length from ~4 miles in length to over 30 miles. When we go, we also take in the surprising good wines of Finger lakes (wine trails abound) as well as visiting some of the lovely towns like Canandaiga (mentioned above), Seneca Falls, the home of the Women’s Rights movement and Ithaca, home of Cornell University.
Lots to do, lots to see and fabulous vistas everywhere. Well worth a road trip.
Some recommendations
From readers based on last month’s issue. Dr A reads everyone and will get back with you.
I recently read Paul Sutter’s Let Us Now Praise Famous Gullies (UGA Press—Sutter was a UGA faculty member, now at Colorado). It’s a fascinating story of SW Georgia’s Little Grand Canyon, a.k.a. Providence Canyon, which is a product of vast erosion co-created by land abuse and the deep structure of the land itself. If you’re interested in environmental history and in understanding the relation between human activity and soil and its substructure, you might like this book. It was recommended by Mac Callaham, a research ecologist at the USDA Forest Service, at a program at the Botanical Garden in Athens. Sutter reviews various theories about the canyon’s formation, including those that credit runoff from a roof, those that see erosive and ignorant farming practices as the cause, and those that argue that these farming practices created such an immense gap in the earth because the earth itself was complicit due to its structure. I wrote Sutter after reading it, and he responded graciously, which was a nice benefit of the adventure.
~Peter Smagorinsky
How about a plant named after a mental hospital.
Aster yunnanensis ‘Napsbury’
Napsbury Hospital was a mental health facility in London Colney near St. Albans in Hertfordshire, The hospital was designed by Rowland Plumbe in the country estate style and was initially known as the Middlesex County Asylum. Napsbury was opened on 3rd June 1905, During the First World War, Napsbury was used for and known as the County of Middlesex War Hospital, which treated wounded soldiers. Following the war, the hospital was returned to its original purpose.
Although Napsbury suffered some bomb damage in the Blitz, it was in continuous use as a hospital until its official closure in 1998. However, until at least 2002 one building was still in use for psychiatric patients. The site has been redeveloped for residential use as Napsbury Park, one of the Napsbury Park..Napsbury Hospital had a team of gardeners who meticulously maintained the beautiful gardens that included mature trees. The wards were named, in alphabetical order, after trees. After World War II, a hospital gardener Mr Jenn introduced Aster yunnanensis ‘Napsbury’ which was named after the hospital and introduced around 1947. One of the many residence was Opal Irene Whiteley (December 11, 1897 – February 16, 1992) she was an American nature writer and diarist. In 1948, English authorities found her residing in a squalid basement apartment, surrounded by thousands of books. She was committed to London's Napsbury Hospital, where she became known to the staff of Napsbury as "the Princess". Whiteley remained at Napsbury until her death in 1992.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opal_Whiteley
https://www.bing.com/search?q=Napsbury+Mental+hospital
I checked my references and at least two mention's in American publications so assume this plant managed to cross the pond.
Brian
Hey Allan,
A few years ago, I got to visit a bucket list site, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Villa d'Este in Tivoli outside of Rome. You walk in wonder as to how this was even constructed, and the engineers who designed it. Water, water everywhere, and in Rome, and you drink their water everywhere too. There are fountains, waterfalls, bubblers, and so much more. And the architecture is just magnificent. Electricity doesn't run the water; water and air run the Water Organ, which plays music every day, typically around 2 pm. Claude Vernard designed it. There are approximately 51 fountains and nymphaeums on the property. There are also 398 spouts, 364 water jets, 64 waterfalls, and 220 basins, all working by gravity.
For years, I saw pictures of it everywhere, and then I finally got to see it in person, and it took my breath away. A memory that can never be taken away.
See you at Cultivate ~ Denise Schreiber
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