It’s Italy in spring 2025 for a classic tour of timeless destinations
My next garden tour will be a wonderful 12-day trip to Northern Italy from April 27 to May 9, 2025.
Milan's Galleria.
The tour is designed with lavish three day stays in four great cities in Northern Italy. We will start in Milan before going on to Verona and Parma and ending in Genoa. The plan is to visit other destinations...
Two novels, Paperboy and Roland, from Steve Whysall, published 2025
Today I'm delighted to announce the release of my two novels, Paperboy and Roland. Both books are now available in ebook form as well as paperback from Amazon and major book stores.
Two novels, Paperboy and Roland, by Steve Whysall, published 2025
I began writing Paperboy when I retired in 2017 and worked intermittently on the manuscript for a couple of...
This hummingbird was worth waiting for
When I got this fabulous echeveria Blue Rose hanging basket the other day from WIG nursery in Burnaby, Alfred Kwan, the owner, advised me to cut off the flower stalks.
"The beauty is in the colour and shape of the echeveria rosettes,” he insisted. “The flowers are a bit of a distraction.”
The red flowers with their yellow tips are not...
Five terrific specialties for your garden
Here are five garden specialties that I stumbled upon while wandering around one of my favourite local nurseries, Western Independent Greenhouses, here in Burnaby.
Wired hen composed of houseleeks. This is wire framed chicken is packed with different colours of hardy houseleeks (Sempervivum tectorum) also known more commonly as hens and chicks. The frame costs about $50 but it takes...
More fun days in Berlin ending with a rousing beer party
Our last few days in Berlin were spent visiting Museum Island in the centre of the city.We also took the train to Charlottenburg Palace on the outskirts of Berlin and also enjoyed an open-top boat ride on the Spree River.On Museum Island, we visited the Pergamon Panorama, a 360-degree multi-media presentation designed to take you back 1,900 years to...
Our next adventure: a thrilling, quirky trip from the north to the south
Today, I am delighted to announce the official launch of my next tour, the quirkiest, most eclectic adventure of them all, a 15-day exclusive Top to Bottom Tour, from Sept. 22 to Oct. 6, from Edinburgh, Scotland, to London, England.
Lake District to Stratford, Liverpool to Oxford and more: Tour will be a party from start to finish
On the way,...
Amazing art of stone balancing but is it garden sculpture?
Not sure what this has to do with gardening, except that I saw this demonstration at the Chelsea Flower Show in May and was quite amazed.
Here you see artist Adrian Grey balancing a very large, heavy stone at an impossibly acute angle on another large boulder.
At first, I thought he was just pretending to be a living sculpture, holding...
Want to buy this house . . . and save a beautiful garden?
It’s not at all unusual for gardeners to grow old and discover they are unable to take care of their garden as well as they would like.
It’s a sad but common eventuality. And what often happens is that such gardens - even very beautiful ones that have taken years and years...
Back in the garden and lots of morning glory to pull
Back in my garden today after five weeks away, leading garden tours in England, Wales and Ireland, and I already see how much work I need to do.
There is so much morning glory. It has grown everywhere. How has it managed to get a hold so fast in such a short time.
Jet-lag meant I woke early this morning and was...
Sad and shocking debacle of Brazil’s brilliant Bernardo Paz
The recent devastating dam disaster in Brumadinho, Minas Gerais, Brazil, made me think back to our visit to the region in 2013 to see Inhotim, the fabulous garden/art complex, located in the same area as the dam, just a short distance from Belo Horizonte.
Dam disaster in Minas Gervais, Brazi
Come with us to Southern England and the Channel Islands next May
Our next garden tour adventure will be to Southern England and the Channel Islands from May 14 to 27, 2023.Many people have already booked a spot on this tour but there is still time for you to sign on if you'd like to join us. The hotels have agreed to save space for extra guests, but there is, naturally, a...
Farewell Larry Wick: We’re all far richer for having known you
My dear friend and travel companion Larry Wick, one of North Vancouver’s most well-known gardeners, has died at the age of 99.
Larry in Hong Kong on his way with us to Myanmar
Larry travelled with us to South Africa, Spain, Morocco and Myanmar.
Larry with me in cactus garden in South Africa
Everyone loved Larry. He was a wonderful, gentle, kind-hearted guy,...
COMPANIONS: Look who travelled with us over the years
Dozens of people have travelled with us over the years - to China, South Africa, Japan, France, Italy, England, Ireland, Spain and on and on. We have done a total of 32 tours. Each time we go, we like to take a few group shots. Here are some taken over the years. Enjoy spotting your friends.
Florence
South Africa 2012
Lunch on...
Into glorious, refined Vienna for the last of our Beautiful Cities Tour
After a splendid last night in Prague when we went to Reduta, a famous jazz club, for a night of Billie Holiday music, we headed out of the city for Vienna.
But first, we stopped at the Dancing House (Fred and Ginger), the famous Frank Gehry architectural landmark, to take a few pictures.
Lednich Castle on the way to Vienna
On the...
Great Garden Tours: Your complete guide to 34 exciting adventures
Today, I'm delighted to announce the publication of Great Garden Tours, a compilation of stories about the 34 garden tours Loraine and I have led over the past 16 years.The stories of these popular tours are available in a handy paperback or Kindle ebook, both from Amazon.ca - PAPERBACK and KINDLE
2024 Tour 31 Beautiful Cities. Striding the line of...
No darkness but ignorance: Old words, new insights
I have walked through Leicester Square in London many times over the years.
I lived in London for a time in the 1970s when I worked as a reporter for the Evening News and I’ve been a frequent visitor to London since I came to live in Canada.
Here’s a taste of what we can expect at Chelsea in May
In May, I will be in London with a tour group, visiting the Chelsea Flower Show, which this year runs from May 21 to 25 in its usual spot on the grounds of the Chelsea Hospital by the Thames.
This is always an exciting event. Chelsea is the world’s premier show. There...
Garden Tour Reunion Party was a blast with lots of fun memories
The Garden Tours Reunion Party on Sept 2 - a celebration of the 22 garden tours I have led over the past nine years - was a big success.
Eight-two people attended the event at the Shadbolt Centre at Deer Lake in Burnaby, next door to one of the nicest gardens in the Lower Mainland, Century Garden.
The Cory Weeds Trio...
Come with us to Ireland on this exciting 15-day Grand Circle Tour
Today, I am delighted to announced the official launch of my 15-day Ireland Grand Circle Tour.It will start in Dublin on Oct. 1 and circle around the picturesque south coast and along the sensational west coast and up to Northern Ireland, Derry, Belfast and out to the Giant’s Causeway before returning to Dublin. We will be staying in excellent hotels including a...
The Handy Dandy Scandi Tour: Our new exciting adventure to beautiful Denmark, Norway and Sweden
Let me start by saying that I was sincere when I said last year, after the delightful Top to Bottom Tour of Scotland and England, that I would not be doing any more tours.What happened was that people kept asking us "what are you doing next?" and "where are we going next?" and saying things like "why not do...
