Book Signings with Authors C.L. Fornari and Stephen Orr

Authors C.L. Fornari and Stephen Orr will be signing copies of their new books!

Included with $15 Museum admission (free for members) or a Secret Garden Tour ticket–available here.

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Hydrangea Happiness by C.L. Fornari

With large, long-lasting flowers that range from showy pinks to heartbreaking shades of blue, hydrangeas are captivating, popular plants. Yet gardeners often find themselves flummoxed by the challenge of understanding and growing the many varieties of these shrubs.

Writer, radio host, and gardening consultant C. L. Fornari (also known as The Garden Lady) simplifies the cultivation and care of the six most popular species of hydrangeas in this practical, clear, and accessible guide. Hydrangea Happiness explains the difference between varietals and tells how and where they can successfully grow in assorted soils and conditions throughout the United States. In addition to sharing essential information, Fornari addresses myths and misinformation and fields questions about cultivating these popular plants. Punctuated with catchy rhymes and beautiful photographs, this book makes the road to Hydrangea Happiness easy, successful, and fun.

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The Gardener’s Mindset: A Gardening Book by Stephen Orr

From Stephen Orr, the former editor-in-chief of Better Homes and Gardens, comes a collection of essays and photographs that examines the restorative power of gardening, while revealing his own challenges in the garden and offering advice on growing plants and vegetables at home.

Alongside gorgeous photographs and easy projects that range from cultivating a color scheme to building a wildlife habitat, Orr delves into his personal gardening journey, pulling from the various gardens he and his husband created over the past decades. He remembers his first garden on a New York City rooftop, where he followed beginner’s instinct to rearrange endlessly pots of old roses, herbs, perennials, and even trees. Later in Des Moines, the challenge of growing anything interesting in his shade-filled backyard led Orr to discover the beautiful patterns and colors of leafy lungworts and epimediums. And he shares how his current garden in Cape Cod is a work in progress and serves as his trial-and-error lab, where he is learning how to cultivate plants that can stay resilient in the face of dry sandy soil, dramatic coastal storms, and climate change.