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by Cristina Roig Morris
Executive Editor
I remember getting my first copy of Traditional Gardening
in the fall of 1996, and admiring the charming publication that
Michael had single-handedly managed to create. Who would have
thought that just over a year later I would be collaborating with
him as the journal's editor! Back then, I was happily ensconced
at Garden Design, and Traditional Gardening was but a tiny
eight-page newsletter. The sequence of events that led to our
teaming up bears some mention because it is one of those curious,
fateful convergences that puzzle and delight. Though Michael and
I have been pals since our freshman year in college, until recently
our lives had proceeded in what couldn't have been more opposite
professional directions: I went off to law school, and Michael
launched a landscape design business. I won't bore you here with
the story of how I managed to escape an unfulfilling career (though
I'd be happy to give words of encouragement to any lawyers out
there who are thinking of doing the same). Suffice it to say that,
a few years ago, our professional paths happily converged when
I became an editor at Garden Design. Sometime last fall, over
a delicious dinner at a favorite neighborhood bistro in New York,
we decided it was time to join forces and make Traditional
Gardening really grow. Needless to say, it wasn't difficult
to persuade me to come on board. I guess you might say I'd already
caught the Traditional Gardening bug.
Getting a magazine off the ground means going, increasingly, on
the road - to trade shows, house restoration fairs, conferences,
and just about anywhere your readers might be found. Some of you
may remember meeting us at the Old House Fair and Restoration
& Renovation trade shows this past March, right here in our
back yard of Boston. The highlight of these events was undoubtedly
getting the chance to speak face-to-face with the hundreds of
you who dropped by our booth. Many of you commented on liking
our accessible format and straightforward style; others liked
the combination of inspiration and how-to. Some of you had never
heard of us, and were happily surprised that we existed at all.
While we'd certainly prefer to meet you in person, sadly that
is not always possible. So, in the meantime, we urge you to keep
the letters and e-mail coming, give us your feedback, and help
us make Traditional Gardening as good as it can be.
It is common knowledge that a garden is never complete: it is
a work in progress, owing its existence to the variables of time,
effort and environment. In many ways, the same is true of a publication.
We are constantly evolving - always for the better, we hope! -
and in this issue we add eight more pages, and introduce three
new departments which aim to provide yet another layer of practical
information to supplement our more historical pieces. For those
of you with wanderlust, Garden Travels will aim to ferret out
some of the great American historic garden destinations, beginning
in this issue with a tour of historic Savannah. A new Sources
section will bring you the very best in nurseries, books, Web
sites, and all those hard-to-find ornaments and decorative elements
for the traditional gardener. Last, Michael will contribute more
of his considerable practical experience as a designer of traditional
landscapes in Landscaping Lessons - a section devoted to exploring
solutions to common garden design problems.
We hope you enjoy this issue and, as always, look forward to hearing
from you. Happy gardening!
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