In My Garden

May 27, 2012

HYDRANGEA HEAVEN 2012

A single H. Macrophyllia Endless Summer Hydrangea Bush

Nature has a way of evening things out.

Last year my Hydrangeas bloomed

And fried within days.

It was sad

Oh so sad.

This year is Hydrangea Heaven.

I’ve seen banks of Hydrangeas on Cap Code.

They inspired me to plant my own.

But never did I dream that they would put on such a show.

All over this part of the country

Hydrangeas are blooming gloriously.

And making up for last year.

Thank you.

Now I realized that in my short 1 + years of blogging

This is the third blog about Hydrangeas.

In previous blogs I’ve told you

Where to plant

Morning sun afternoon shade

If possible.

How to water

Drip

And what fertilizer

Manure.

If you want the long version you can go back to May and July blogs of last year.

So this year I’m going to just enjoy.

I do want to report that I’ve been cutting like mad this week

Sharing them with

A new mother

A bride and groom for their wedding

Buckets of Wedding Hydrangea

Which I love doing

Since my friend Martie did me the same favor 8 years ago.

Memorial flowers for the church

In memory of the real lady of this house

Whose name was Ivy.

As well as table decorations for

Saturday Manna

and a Sunday church picnic.

But isn’t that the point of all of this.

Sharing.

I love an abundance mentality.

There’s plenty for everyone

If we simply share.

Hope you will share yourself with someone this week.

Gail

5 Comments

Filed under Bouquets, drip irrigation, Gardening, Gardening Friends, Hydrangea, Manure, Wedding Flowers

May 20, 2012

PASS ALONG PLANTS

One of the things I love about gardeners

Is there willingness to share.

I’ve mentioned this before.

Sharing is so prevalent

It’s even been given a name.

Pass Along Plants.

Sally’s Pass Along Larkspur

Most well-kept gardens

Produce babies.

Lots of them.

And there’s a need to find them each a good home.

At least that was true when I first started gardening.

After all I had been given plants by my friend Sally to start my garden.

I should certainly pay it forward

When the time came.

The truth is it’s impossible to find each seedling a new little bit of heaven.

But I still try.

Twice this season I’ve had the chance to share lots of plants.

First my friend Mary wanted to fill in some empty spaces in her flower beds.

She moved a few of her things around.

Divided some hostas

And dug from my garden.

Ferns, Gloriosas, Purple Coneflowers, Larkspur.

And a Rosebush which had a Helianthus growing up the middle.

Then last weekend Megan came.

Megan & her trunk full of plants

She got here as I was finishing up the big dahlia dig.

So she got a bit of this and a bit of that.

Ferns, Stella d’ Ora Daylilies, a mystery Day lily,

Two pieces that fell off one the Blushing Bride Hydrangeas.

They are real babies, but patience will reward her.

More Gloriosa Daisies, Purple Coneflowers, tall garden Phlox and Larkspur.

A Butterfly Bush

Dahlia tubers

Tiger lily bulbs that appeared in the mail without being ordered.

And volunteer Hellebores – which I’ve never had to offer before.

Then we hit the leftover seeds for more goodies.

We dug

And visited

And laughed

And remembered our “professional” gardening days together.

During her Junior High and High School days.

It gives new meaning to sharing.

Sharing gardens

Sharing lives.

The timing was perfect

Just as the Larkspur was hitting full stride.

Larkspur & Friend

The Larkspur growing from seeds given to me by Sally

Who got it from her mother.

Generations of plants ago.

Life is good.

Gardening makes it even better!

Gail

1 Comment

Filed under Dahlias, Ferns, Gardening, Gloriosa Daisy, HELIANTHUS, Hellebores, Hosta, Purple Coneflower - Echinacea, Seeds, Tall Garden Phlox, Uncategorized

May 13, 2012

MOVING DAY

The Dahlias didn’t put on their usual show last fall.

Perhaps it was the hot summer.

More likely it’s the shade created by the neighbor’s mulberry tree.

I don’t want the mulberry tree to go away.

It takes me back to my childhood.

On our way to church in late spring

Daddy would stop along a county road

We’d all jump out and start picking and eating mulberries.

For those of you who don’t know mulberries, they stain.

Big time.

So there we would be in our Sunday best.

Standing in a ditch

Eating mulberries.

Mother was fairly laid back about it all.

Thanks for that example, Mom.

Back to Dahlias.

So if I want Dahlias, I’m going to have to move them.

I knew this last fall

When Elliott was home he suggested moving them to the NE corner of the garden house.

Good idea.

But that space was full of plants.

So first I moved the Digitalis – Foxglove to the other side of the garden house.

Then I dumped lots of compost to settle in for the winter.

Earlier this spring I moved the Aloha roses to their new home across the path.

So, yesterday was moving day.

I decided to round the corner, too.

That meant digging up the Butterfly Bush.

I think it’s moving to Megan’s – if she’ll have it.

New Dahlia Bed

Next came digging up the dozen or so Dahlias that survived.

I’ve ordered more – lots more.

Emory Paul - that big glorious dinner plate Dahlia.

Along with Kevin Floodlight – a yellow favorite

Fleurel which is white.

Lilac Time, and the bi-colors of Avignon and Mom’s Special.

Since the ones I dug are of unknown lineage

And the new ones are all complimentary in color.

I just mixed them together.

Except for Emory Paul which creates a backdrop against the garden house.

There is no great trick to planting them.

Bury them about 6 – 8 ” deep like a Daffodil.

You can usually tell which end is up by the blunt end of the old stem.

It will take them a bit to come up

So place a marker by each one you plant.

Dahlias have a growth habit that is well…wild.

To say they need staking is an understatement.

They need staking and caging and anything else you can dream up.

Several years ago I came up with a system that works pretty well.

I use the triangular wire tomato cages you can find at garden centers.

I place them side by side

Alternating them to form a box.

Cover the entire area with cages.

Then stabilize them by connecting them with cable ties.

Now because these are tall heavy blooms

I go one step further.

Lace a 4′ piece of rebar through one side of each cage.

Are you beginning to get the picture!

Now we wait.

Gardening does teach you patience.

Fall will bring amazing results.

Enjoy the week.

Gail

P.S. Here’s what’s showing off this week.

Oakleaf Hydrangea

Amaryllis planted in the garden

4 Comments

Filed under Amaryllis, Compost, Dahlias, Digitalis, Fall, Garden House, Garden Planning, Gardening, Oakleaf Hydrangea, patience, Perennials

May 6, 2012

PRESTO POTS

A few years ago we re-did the back patio.

Lifting all the worn out brick,

Expanding it a bit and

Replacing it with new brick.

At the same time we bought GIANT new pots

Traditional Rolled Rim Italian clay were our choice

Rolled Rim Italian Clay

I think we were on the garden tour that first year.

So I invested in fantastic pink tropical Hibiscus.

Glorious in the green house

Not a bloom on them the weekend of the garden tour!

Thus began my years of problem pots.

I won’t bore you with year by year disaster stories.

Suffice it to say that I’ve had trouble finding the right mix.

Last fall I murdered the mile high purple fountain grass.

Last Year’s Attempt

It was great till it grew so tall I couldn’t see my garden from the breakfast room

And…the wind blew it over onto the flowers.

So out it went.

For lack of a better idea I just planted them to lettuce.

Peg Checking on the Lettuce

Made sense to me.

The pots are close to the kitchen

For easy cutting.

And with the mild winter I had terrific lettuce for months on end.

Now that it’s late spring it’s starting to bolt

And taste a little bitter.

Besides I’m having a luncheon in my garden next week

So I had to do something.

The answer came at my friend Susan’s front door.

Dipladenia Deep Red !

Dipladenia Deep Red

I found it at my favorite local nursery in hanging baskets.

Brought them home and was ready to pull up all the lettuce.

When I stopped.

Let’s try just pulling up only the lettuce I need to make room for the new plants.

Leave the rest for filler.

Great idea.

Along with the Lettuce, Nierembergia survived the winter

And is blooming wildly…more filler.

Winter Survivors: Nierembergia & Lettuce

Next I added True Yellow Lantana, plumbago, Gomphrena, and Purple and White Petunias.

White Cascade Petunia “Short-Term Annual”

I know, I swore off petunias last year.

But they sucked me in so

I did a paradigm shift.

I don’t expect them to survive the whole summer.

I now consider them “short-term annuals”!

Don’t buy very many and tuck them close to something that will live.

And again, I only removed the lettuce that was necessary.

The end result is well, great in my book.

Full & Finished !

The pots look full.

Much fuller than normal for this time of year.

As the plants grow, the lettuce will die.

Nature will take its course.

Love when that happens.

Enjoy the week.

Gail

Saturday Morning Visitor

TAMING THE GREEN MONSTER

Last week I tackled my grossly overgrown Euonymus on the east fence.

It was fitting to tackle my green monster

On the 100th anniversary of the original Green Monster at Fenway Park.

Fenway Park July, 1994

Now you may be saying to yourself

This is a real stretch

Fenway Park to my east fence.

But actually they are connected.

When Elliott was in elementary school

We took a series of “urban vacations”.

Boston on the 4th of July was one of our destinations.

Sailing in Boston Harbor, July, 1994

And even though we are not big baseball fans

We couldn’t go to Boston without going to Fenway Park.

We walked from our Back Bay hotel – the hotel Elliott!

To the ball park.

And along the way

We discovered The Fens

And the Fenway Victory Gardens

Fenway Victory Gardens

Started in 1941 as we entered WWII

The Fenway Victory Garden is the longest continually operating Victory Garden.

Here we are 60+ years later with community gardens returning.

I was enthralled.

Apartment dwellers standing in line to have their own little slice of gardening heaven.

Chatting over the fence

Just like home.

Later on we traveled to Martha’s Vineyard

Where I was introduced to

New Dawn Roses

Rosa New Dawn, Martha's Vineyard, July, 1994

Which now grace my east fence.

So we’ve come full circle

Shortly after we built the fence

John decided it needed a little greenery on the inside.

His shrub of choice for fences is Euonymus

Knowing how well they grow

I was a little dubious

But decided not to die on that sword…or shrub.

After a few years the branches began to grow through to the rose side.

It was manageable.

Until this spring.

Between the extra early and warm spring.

And the fact that I have been “in my garden” very little

The Euonymus became

The Green Monster

My Green Monster

It pushed through the fence.

Pushed the New Dawn roses away from the fence

They pushed Belinda’s Dream roses forward.

And when they bloomed with those glorious heavy blooms.

Rosa Belinda's Dream

They were on the ground.

Not my best effort

Especially on the most public part of my garden.

So I’ve spent a day reigning in the Euonymus

Filling one entire poly cart with “clippings”!

The tamed monster

Then tieing the New Dawn branches to the fence

With the handy stringing tool John fashioned a few years ago

Rose tying tools

It works perfectly for my fence

Once New Dawn has finished blooming.

Rosa New Dawn

I’ll cut the branches way back

Like I should have done in early March!

And if we have a decent summer

It will bloom again off and on.

So…as you travel the neighborhood

I hope you’ll think of my own Green Monster.

And the time we met the real one!

Take care,

Gail

THY NEIGHBORS GARDEN

Gardening is for me

a solitary pastime.

I love having people drop in

to see what’s blooming.

But I spend hours alone in my garden

Singing to myself

Admiring my work

And plotting my next adventure.

Roses & Iris

Perhaps that’s why I love having gardening neighbors.

Someone close by to share with

and borrow from.

Kelly and I have been that kind of gardening neighbors

Even before we were actual neighbors.

Now that we are only a block apart we are

Dangerous together.

Between the two of us we are constantly changing things.

Sharing things

Learning things

Our gardens complement each other.

Where mine is good-sized.

Kelly’s is mammoth.

Where I have endless varieties of perennials

Kelly wisely has focused on flowering bushes.

She has much more space to fill

And filling it with annuals or 4″ perennials is

Well….unimaginable.

She moved back to this part of the country from Seattle.

There she had learned a great deal about Roses and Peonies.

She brought that knowledge with her.

And has over the years adapted it to our “slightly” different climate.

She helped me overcome my fear of growing Roses.

Rosa Aloha

I in turn introduced her to Hellebore.

Hellebores

Over the years she has planted a “river” of them.

That’s the thing I love about gardeners.

They are so willing to share.

Actually, I can be a little annoying that way.

I’ve been known to give TMI too much information!

This week is a good example of that sharing.

I did a flower arrangement for a bridal shower.

I needed hot pink and oranges roses.

Since my Katy Road Pink is blooming out of it’s mind right now.

Rosa Katy Road Pink

I’ve got the pink part covered.

Orange on the other hand is a problem

Especially since it’s one of the few colors I don’t do.

Lucky for me Kelly has a whole row of the most glorious orange roses.

It’s a Weeks Rose called Colorific.

Kelly's Row of Rosa Colorific

And it is terrific.

So I took my favorite pruners and a bucket of water down the street

And cut a few.

Roses ready to arrange

Now it won’t be long till I can return the favor

Because next week Kelly needs 14 table decorations.

I have lots of spring bloom

Wild Orchid

And an endless amount of Euonymus for filler.

So you’ll find her cutting in my garden.

And because those Colorific Roses are so terrific.

I’m thinking of adding a few to my garden.

Shower Arrangement

Gardening neighbors.

Good friends.

If you don’t have one.

I hope you find one soon.

It doesn’t get much better than this.

Gail

And speaking of gardening friends,

my friend Debra sent this marvelous quote.

“I think gardening is nearer to godliness than theology. True gardeners are both iconographers and theologians insofar as these activities are the fruit of prayer ‘without ceasing.’ Likewise, true gardeners never cease to garden, not even in their sleep, because gardening is not just something they do. It is how they live.”

—Vigen Guroian, from The Fragrance of God

3 Comments

Filed under Bouquets, Garden Planning, Gardening, Gardening Friends, Hellebores, Peonies, roses, Wedding Flowers

April 15, 2012

COLUMBINE

One of the things I love about my garden

is shade.

I haven’t always had shade.

But this garden has several areas.

It’s not the deep woodland shade

but rather “partial or dappled shade”.

This means that sometime during the day

a litttle sushine comes through.

The best is morning sun.

The problem with shade is color.

It’s hard to come by on a consistent basis.

Most perennials that bloom in the shade

bloom in the early spring.

Leaving many months in need of a color boost.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Columbine loves dappled shade.

It’s happiest in cool mountain air.

Making it a natural for the state flower of Colorado.

But it also likes living on the Great Plains.

As long as you give it some shade for part of the day.

I’ve grown it both from seed and plants.

Originally I got it started from plants in 3″ pots.

Like most perennials it takes a few year for them to get established.

I didn’t pick any blooms the first few years

That let them go to seed

and make babies.

Then I read that the more you cut the blooms

The more the plant blooms.

So I began to cut these dancing blossoms.

Then near the end of season

I let them go to seed.

After the seed pods dry on the plant

I pick them and crush them

in areas that I would like to have more Columbine.

So far it seems to be working.

Ah Spring!

Gail

In My Garden

HYDRANGEA HEAVEN 2012

PASS ALONG PLANTS

MOVING DAY

PRESTO POTS

TAMING THE GREEN MONSTER

THY NEIGHBORS GARDEN

COLUMBINE

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