Virtual Gardener

This is a series of articles written by Lesley Parness, former Superintendent of Horticultural Education at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum.  They include links to further information on the internet.

Click the titles to read the full articles.

  • The Virtual Gardener Announces a New Member Benefit

    The Virtual Gardener is pleased to announce a new Member Benefit! Members can now peruse our circulating library's collection online. Did you know that Benjamin Franklin was the first American to start a circulating library in 1731? Members of his "Library Company" paid a fee which was used to purchase books and maintain the library and ...
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  • Virtual Gardener Spring 2011: Climate Change and Your Garden

    Over the past year, the Virtual Gardener has found that nothing can bring a pleasant dinner conversation with relatives to a halting stop like the utterance of the phrase “climate change.” I will not say another word on the subject but offer these websites for you to explore. First, to www.pewclimate.org for an excellent ...
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  • John Bartram

    by Lesley Parness — lparness@morrisparks.net This Virtual Gardener entry is about John Bartram. This year’s New Year’s Party will allow you to meet John Bartram in person, no small feat as he was born in 1699 and died in 1777. Please read the program description for information about this fabulous presentation! In preparation for this program, and ...
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  • Sallets and the Father of British Gardening

    Virtual Gardener – Summer 2010 Let us now praise the sallet (salad.) This menu item, healthy or haute, is ever present on 21 century tables. Not so a mere 400 years ago, when a dish of arugala was fit for a rabbit, not a king. How did sallets gain acceptance in the dining rooms of royales ...
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  • The Rush of Citrus

    It’s worth the olfactory desert of January to smell, on a sunny afternoon in February, the rush of citrus. There’s a lovely Meyer’s Lemon waiting for you at Willowwood’s conservatory. For some closer to home, grow your own. For the real deal on growing your own, check out recommendations at www.fourwindsgrowers.com, Use their citrus variety information ...
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