I Simply Remember These Favorite Things with Dr. A ~ January 2026
Welcome back. Here we are in 2026, and we never seem to run out of Favorite plants, books, shows, and gardens. Here are a few more of My Favorite Things
A Plant - Deciduous (aka) Native azaleas
Flower buds of deciduous azalea - ‘Lisa’s Gold’ in Dr A’s garden in winter
There are many deciduous azaleas (Rhododendron species and hybrids), all of them lose their leaves in the fall and most flower early in the spring. Although they are in the Rhododendron genus, they couldn’t be more different in their look or performance than the evergreen Rhodies.
I enjoy deciduous azaleas because of the outstanding flowers in the spring and the handsome form and foliage in the summer. However, I also love the wonderful flower buds that make me so look forward to the future. Most are cold hardy to zone 5, some like the Lights series (‘Northern Lights’, ‘White Lights’) are even hardier.
The same flowers of ‘Lisa's Gold’ in the spring
A Garden - Magnolia Plantation and Gardens
I found myself in this garden while doing some botanizing in the Charleston area, and it truly is one of the most beautiful garden settings I have visited. The history is one of enlightenment and enslavement, the landowners making most of their money on the backs of slaves.
However, the gardens today do not shy from their history; they let visitors know how it was – and take great pride in what it has become. Wonderful walks under live oaks draped in Spanish moss recount the horticultural legacy found everywhere on the grounds. Crinum lilies, magnolias, maples, gardenias, and thousands of bulbs dot the landscape. However, botany aside, it is simply a beautiful place to spend a few hours if you are in the Charleston area.
Spanish moss draped over the limbs of live oaks in Magnolia Plantation
A Book
My Friends
Author: Fredrik Backman
Fiction
I am a huge fan of Fredrik Backman's books. He hooked me with A Man Called Ove, then got me again with Anxious People, and then with Bear Lake …. but I believe his latest, My Friends, is the best he has written.
A story of a painting and of four friends who forged an unbreakable bond as teenagers. Their story is told by a young Louisa, an aspiring artist, who literally bumps into one of the original friends twenty-five years later. He had become one of the world’s most beloved artists. He saw something in this girl and bequeathed Louisa his most famous painting. The story of the friendships from many years ago and the making of the painting are the core of the book.
It is obvious I am not a book critic, but I don’t have to be to share my 100% enjoyment of this novel. I am not alone; this book received the 2025 Goodreads Choice Award for fiction.
A Show/Movie- The Magpie Murders/Moonflower Murders, Prime
Finding an entertaining streaming show is getting more difficult. We wanted a who-done-it but one without too much blood and violence. The Magpie Murders, based on books by Anthony Horowitz, filled the bill. It is certainly not a normal who-done-it because, as you will discover, there is a mystery within a mystery.
The plot thickens when a best-selling author’s newest manuscript arrives at the publishers, missing its last chapter—a who-done-it without the who-done-it. The editor, Susan Ryeland, tries to track down the chapter but in so doing finds herself investigating murders along the way.
The catch is that she teams up with the fictional detective Atticus Pund, the protagonist in the book without the chapter.
It sounds a little bizarre, and it is – but great fun to follow her and her fictional detective solve the puzzles.
A Place - Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Beaver Lake (Lac aux Castors) on Mount Royal
Here is a great Jeopardy question: What is the most populous island in all of Canada? Perhaps Newfoundland, or Vancouver Island… no, Ken, the answer is “What is the Island of Montreal?”
The island of Montreal, on which resides the city of Montreal, is but one of a large number of islands (actually an Archipelago) at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence River. Even most locals are unaware that the Island of Montreal happens to be the largest of the 234 islands that comprise the Hochelaga Archipelago. All of this is a complicated way of saying you will be driving on many bridges.
I suppose this month’s choice ebbs a little into bias since, as many of you know, this is my hometown. It is a beautiful city, particularly in the summer, with dozens of parks, wonderful architecture, to-die-for cuisine, and dozens of places to visit. Museums, theatres, markets, the Montreal Botanical Garden, St Joseph’s Oratory, and Mount Royal (after which the city is named) are sights to take in while visiting. Lastly, Montreal was a walled city, and many of the old walls and architecture can be found in the very popular Old Montreal.
The Old City, popular with many
A recommendation from readers based on last month’s issue.
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Anyone who enjoys reading, traveling, and gardening could write a column like this. So, if you're keen, please send me feedback on your favorites and include a book, place, plant, or garden you recommend.
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