HENRY AND PIOTR

Locals often refer to the Missouri Botanical Garden as Shaw's Garden. Henry Shaw was a 19th Century rich guy with vision and an interest in plants, His estate provided the cash and land tor today's garden, its extensive research program and adjacent Tower Grove Park (our loveliest, IMHO). 

This building was his home. It didn't have dancing ballerinas in silhouette in the late 19th Century. Today there is a son et lumiere show on special occasions. You can guess that The Nutcracker was going on here. Tchaikovsky and Shaw were rough contemporaries, although Shaw lived far longer. The water and air must have been better in St. Louis than Moscow. Still, you can almost hear the flutes and celesta over the bassoons and low clarinets as you look at the image.              

GARDEN GLOW

It's a St. Louis tradition. At this time every year, the Missouri Botanical Garden has an event they call Garden Glow. It's been going on a long time and appears on this blog year after year. There were some members-only nights early this week. Daughter Emily and I went; other members of the family had conflicts. This is just a taste. The whole family goes back in a week.              

MAPLES, GINGKOS AND PRAIRIE GRASS

Citygarden covers two full blocks downtown. The landscaping is done in zones, reflecting the variety of flora in our region. The ginkgos we saw recently are flanked by a flaming Japanese maple and still tender birch. A few varieties of Midwestern prairie grass fill in the bottom. This is the best of the gardener's art.                 

THURSDAY ARCH SERIES

From Citygarden last weekend, looking east along Market Street through the ginkgos. They won't be around much longer.                   

CITYGARDEN IN NOVEMBER

Autumn colors can come late here, or not at all. If the late summer and early fall are dry, everything goes brown and then plops. We've had some periods of rain this year and things are better if not perfect. We are also not that far north, about on the same parallel as Washington and San Francisco (and Rome). If colors come, they come later than much of the country. Last weekend, Citygarden was awash in golden ginkgos. People's clothing tells you how warm it was.

I'm getting a Covid test this morning. First time. One of my co-workers tested positive and I was in her vicinity in the office last Friday. Not very close, everyone wearing masks, but still. I'm 70 and immunosupressed by my meds for rheumatoid arthritis. Fingers crossed if my joints would let me.