FLOWER MAY•JUNE 2025
HOUSE l GARDEN l LIFESTYLE
CON TEN TS May • June 2025
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Gentleman Gardener
On the grounds of his East Hampton country home, Marshall Watson curates garden “rooms” as authentic and elegant as his world-class interiors.
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French Connection
The team at Decorations Lucullus blends Acadian and Creole influences with authentic French materials and antiques in this résidence secondaire located just outside of New Orleans.
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Coming Home
Designer Libby Smith returns to her childhood stomping grounds in Rye, New York, and helps her parents redecorate the house where she grew up.
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The Potter's Wheelhouse
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ON THE COVER Ceramicist Frances Palmer’s talent for making striking vases is matched by her passion for growing and arranging the beautiful flowers that fill them. Read an excerpt from her latest book, Life With Flowers (Artisan), on page 82. Photograph by Frances Palmer
“Just living isn’t enough,” said the butterfly. “One must also have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” —HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN 8 FLOWER May•June 2025
PHOTO BY TRIA GIOVAN
In this excerpt from her new book, Life With Flowers, ceramicist Frances Palmer reveals how spending time in her garden, whether tending the plants or simply being still in the moment, re-energizes her artistic spirit.
REDEFINING LUXURY WALLS Wallcovering: Mural on reflective mica. Natural Agate in Twilight
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C ON TE N T S
Departments
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Make a statement with these Peridot and Pearl earrings ($5,700) by Singhvi, singhvijewels.com. For more handpicked jewelry, see page 22.
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From the Field
Celebrate summer’s arrival with colorful tabletop décor, handpicked jewelry, and the latest books on gardens and design.
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John’s Almanac
John Coykendall, master gardener for Blackberry Farm, shares gardening wisdom he’s gathered through years of hands-in-the-dirt experience.
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Gardens
Crown of the noble Caetani estate in Italy, the Garden of Ninfa continues in the beloved embrace of its long-ago roots.
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When planning a visit to the Garden of Ninfa, you’ll find other gems along the way. Marion Fox shares a few of her favorites.
I N EVERY IS SUE Watering Can 12 What’s Online? 50 Sources 92 Floral Moment 96 10 F L O W E R M a y • J u n e 2 0 2 5
PHOTOS BY DAVID HILLEGAS AND NGOC MINH NGO
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WATER I NG CA N A Note from the Editor
fine eyes. With this one brief counter, the Bingley sister’s hopes of any romance with him are dashed, but we applaud his appreciation of the outdoorsy girl, heroine of our tale. Now, I’m not maintaining Darcy and Lizzy’s mutual love of the outdoors clinched the deal in their love story (spoiler alert—they get married in the end), but these two do have a particular bond that seems to only be enhanced by their love and enjoyment of the world beyond the casement windows of richly appointed drawing rooms. I’ve certainly experienced this phenomenon in my life, whether strolling in the country, entertaining outside at my home, or traveling to nearby and far-flung lands that boast glorious garden scenes, all with my very own “Darcy.” Another favorite scene of mine is from Genesis and refers to the first couple “walking in the garden in the cool of the day.” What’s your favorite outdoor spot/scene/story? You may find one among the beautiful features in this issue. Love and SDG,
Margot Shaw EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Please send your comments, triumphs, challenges & questions to: wateringcan@flowermag.com OR Letters to the Editor I FLOWER Magazine I P.O. Box 530645 I Birmingham, AL 35253 Get the FLOWER email newsletter! Sign up at flowermag.com/news
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PHOTO BY CARY NORTON
ONE OF MY FAVORITE SCENES in the Jane Austen film versions of her books appears in the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice— the one with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle playing the romantic leads of Darcy and Elizabeth (“Lizzy”). A nature-loving girl, Lizzy is a gentleman’s daughter who scandalously sports a bit of a tan from all her walkabouts in the countryside. Darcy, though an aristocratic and citified dandy, is fond of a good stroll in the gardens and a brisk gallop across hills and dales. In this scene, Lizzy has unconventionally walked 3 miles from home to check on her sister, Jane, who’s taken ill and ends up ensconced at Netherfield, the country home that Darcy’s friend Charles Bingley shares with his snooty sisters. As Lizzy crosses the stile onto the property, she splashes into mud. At first, she is miffed but then incipiently amused at herself. She strides on and suddenly encounters none other than Darcy. They, having already established a budding love/hate attraction, each register an awkward but not unpleasant surprise. Darcy cheekily remarks on Lizzy’s coming on foot, and she sarcastically commends his powers of observation. She then asks if he will accompany her to visit Jane, and he obliges. When Elizabeth arrives at Netherfield, the Bingley sisters snidely ridicule her for having walked, muddied her hem, and garnered a tan. Then one sister, the single one, attempts to prod Darcy to confess his disapproval of such behavior, but Darcy retorts that the exercise only brightened Lizzy’s
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Celebrate summer’s arrival with colorful tabletop décor, hand-picked jewelry, and the latest books on gardens and design. PRODUCED AND STYLED BY AMANDA SMITH FOWLER PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVID HILLEGAS