Photographs of roses of many colours, interspersed with less-known and well-known lines of verse about roses.
Category Archives: Author, Writer, and Blogger
Author’s Last Draft Is Editor’s First Draft
The author’s last draft is the editor’s first draft. That’s when the work begins for both the editor and the author as a team together. For the author, it’s different from writing; it’s trying to see it more through the eyes of the reader, as guided by the editor. Some authors say that the editing stage is the hardest stage, because it’s when other eyes are looking at something very personal, very close to the author’s heart.
The Inside Story
This banana palm plant growing in Vancouver was cut down at the end of November 2025 before our winter got going, thereby preventing winter rot, caused by a fungal disease in the soil. Had the banana leaves fallen with the cold weather, they would have created the perfect warm and moist environment for the fungus to get established.
The four pseudostems show how the banana leaves wrap around the central core and then around each other. Take a look at ScienceDirect’s
Blooming in the First Week of January
The strappy yellow petals of this Japanese witch-hazel brighten up this winter day, the first week of January 2026. This Hamamelis japonica, its scientific name, started blooming in December and now in January the tree is turning a vibrant yellow.
I photographed this particular tree growing in a minipark in Vancouver’s West End, the blossoms on January 1 and the whole tree on January 4.
Witch-hazel trees are in Hamamelidaceae, the witch-hazel family.
Although the
My First Article for Vancouver Master Gardeners
Now that I have passed the Vancouver Master Gardeners Basic Training Examination, I am approved to tackle volunteer projects. Being a writer rather than a hands-on gardener, I’ll be writing articles about trees.
Here’s my first: “A Row of ‘Snow Goose’.“
Vancouver Master Gardener Basic Training
After attending three months of excellent lectures and coaching, sending in assignments, and taking a final open-book test, I have passed the Vancouver Master Gardener Basic Training, making me a “Student MG – First Year.” All I have to do now is 65 hours of volunteer work and I will be a “real” Master Gardener.
I plan to do some of my volunteer hours writing copy. Wish me luck.
Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival in Stanley Park, April 18 to 26
The beautiful cherry blossom season of 2020 is winding down, to be followed by the later parade of magnolias, camellias, rhododendrons, and azaleas.
The ‘Takasago’ north of Rose Garden Lane continues to be outstanding, whereas I went passed two ‘Rancho’ trees growing south of the Stanley Park Pavilion, and realized I had missed their blooming entirely.
I have enjoyed photographing, smelling, and learning about four more Prunus cultivars over the last ten