THE FRONT GARDENS

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The Herbs In the center of the front garden is a collection of herbs which includes parsley, sage, rosemary, and of course, thyme. Foremost in this view are the purple flowers of the chives. The tree, and American Beech, was planted as a twig secretly smuggled out of a local woods whose exact location shall go unnamed. It's attractive gray bark can't be seen here, but along with the brown leaves it holds onto until spring, it makes an attractive centerpiece to the garden in the winter. photo copyright 2000 Randy E. Newcomer

Sage Sage has long been one of Randy's favorites since the days before he knew one plant from another. One of the groundskeepers at the Ephrata Cloister introduced him to it when Randy was demonstrating candle-dipping next to the herb garden there. While seldom, if ever used, like many of the herbs here, we enjoy the smells and textures of the leaves. Chewing on a leaf does soothe the throat, but more often it is bees who enjoy the blossoms. photo copyright 2000 Randy E. Newcomer

Virginia Bluebells Mertensia virginica When you check out the nodding, trumpet-shaped flowers on this beautiful plant (or pull out your copy of Newcomb's Wildflower Guide) you'll immediately recognize it as a member of the borage family. The flowers are pink when young and turn blue as this April photo reveals. It grows from NY to Minn. and south in rich woods and meadows, though the first place I ever saw it around here is in the front garden and the greenhouse where we bought it. Since then, because I'm now familiar with it in it's various stages, I've been noticing it more in the wild. photo copyright April 1999 Randy E. Newcomer

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