Each Little World

I'm not ready!

My work table/desk is piled high with my garden notebook, garden magazines with sticky notes and dozens of Latin words scribbled on scraps of paper, written anytime I saw a plant whose name I wanted to remember for the future. It's all a big jumble that needs to be sorted out.

I figured I had until the new year to get that done. At that point I'd have a list of the things I want to order for the garden. But a list that was well-thought out and included plants that I have a place and a plan for already. No more impulse buying.

Primula 'Oriental Sunrise' from Odyssey Perennials

So I was not as happy as I might have been when Russell Stafford of Odyssy Perennials sent his 2022 catalogue on Friday Nov. 26. The very next day I got an email from Carolyn's Shade Gardens announcing that her 2022 Snowdrop Catalogue would be sent out Dec. 4. Then I got a notice that another favorite source was taking orders for 2022. In the past, I've always jumped on these websites the minute plants were available. 

An order of Snowdrops from Carolyn's Shade Garden (above) waiting for spring in my living room a few years ago.

This time I looked at the sites but did not click. In truth, I went back again to look at the plants I could not get out of my mind. Sold out! I guess I'm not alone in my plant lust.

But I really wanted a break to enjoy the holidays and get ready to think spring and gardening after January 1st. I'm glad I held off then as it's helped me remember that I need to add more low maintenance plants to the garden; that means shrubs rather than perennials. Plus I need to be looking at more natives than exotics. January in the wintry midwest is a dangerous time for online garden shopping. 

Fall bulb order

In late July, a Wisconsin garden blogging friend reminded her readers that it was time to order spring-blooming bulbs for the best choice. Having missed out on some special bulbs I wanted for the last few years, I did not take any chances this year.

I put in my order to Van Engelen on April 30th, as soon as their re-designed website went live. I ordered more Martagon lilies from Solaris Farms on June 13th. I ordered more Lilium canadensis (below) as soon as they were available, since the ones I got last year were so lovely.

I feel like I ordered a lot of bulbs — around 225 — but I am guessing I am quite restrained based on the size of my garden. But I knew that come October, my energy for planting would be waning. So I tried to be realistic. I planted most of them on October 18th, 19th and 20th, a trio of warm, sunny days that could not have been more perfect for working outside. Here are a few of the flowers I'm most excited about. 

. . .

Lilium martagon 'Slate's Morning' from Solaris Farms. I have had great luck with Martagons and decided it was time to spring for a few  more. When I say "a few more," that's exactly what I mean. At $16.00 each, I only ordered three. I planted them in a spot in the garden where there are no other Martagons; nor many flowers except for early bloomers like snowdrops and Hellebores.  

I have a love/hate relationship with Alliums but I keep being struck by mass plantings of them, so that's what I am going to attempt. I got 10 Allium 'Summer Drummer,' a very tall variety, to mix with the next Allium below. (A garden friend who lives nearby, said she has not had good luck with this 'Summer Drummer'. We'll see how I do.)

I ordered 25 of Allium purpureum which gets 2-3' tall. These were mixed in with lavender Thalictrums and Veronicastrum.

This beauty, Allium 'Silver Spring', was planted among Calamintha nepeta ssp. nepeta, Geranium 'Crystal Lake' and Penstemmon 'Dark Towers.'

Fritillaria raddensa is rock hardy and long-lived according to Van Engelen. But I had no luck with it when I tried it a number of years ago. But a tall, pale yellow flower in April would be so lovely in the garden that I'm trying again. I just have to replicate the conditions of NE Iran to Turkmenistan!

Muscari are one of those "no fail" bulbs and M. comosum looks like a fun one to add to my other ones. It gets 6-12" high so it should make a visible statement almost anywhere it's planted. 

Now I just have to wait six months to see what happens!

Mixed success with lilies

I have had great luck with Martagon lilies from the start; but much more limited results with the other lilies I've planted. I planted a group of 'Fusion' lilies in with my Maidenhair ferns, picturing them blooming above all that lacy green foliage. Turns out that was too much shade and competition. I managed to find and dig out a couple of the bulbs and moved them to a much sunnier spot. Voila! Now I just have to try to find some more of the hidden bulbs. 

This is my first try at growing Lilium canadense and I am thrilled with the results. 

They are the sweetest and most fragile looking of all the different lilies I've tried. 

The yellow ones got knocked over in a storm. I'm going to try to get a few more orange and some of the deep red ones next. 

I planted 5 bulbs of the American native Turk's cap flower, Lilium superbum, a few years ago with mixed results. 

The squirrels dug out 3 of the bulbs and transplanted them in my neighbor's yard, where they grew better and bloomed earlier than the ones left in my garden. 

Last fall I planted a few more but nothing appeared this year but the original two stems. Can't decide if I should try again or quit while I'm ahead. 

I've heard this is a difficult one to grow and I have to agree. 

GBBD: 7.15.2021

Some plants seem a little behind this year while others are a couple of weeks ahead of their typical bloom date. By midsummer, much of my garden is green but there are a few things in bloom like Astilbe taquetii 'Superba' with Hemerocallis 'Lady Inora'.

I am an obsessive Thalictrum lover and added two more of the tall summer bloomers this year.  

Thalictrum rochebruneanum 'Lavdender Mist' (above and the two photos below) with Vernonicastrum virginicum 'Fascination'.

T. 'Lavender Mist' has the largest flowers of all the ones I'm growing which makes them visible at a bit of a distance. 

Astrantia 'Star of Fire' and a flowering wand of an unknown Heuchera.

Ligularia stenocephala 'The Rocket' with the end of the orange-flowered Lilium canadense.

My Lilium leichtlini keep disappearing on me. I'm down to one plant from the 10 I planted in 2014.

Luck with lilies

Back in 2006 I saw Martagon lilies in a local garden and fell for them. I bit the bullet and bought three bulbs of 'Mrs. R. O. Backhouse' from Klehm's Song Sparrow Nursery. They cost a whopping 3/$56.00 and I was very nervous at spending that kind of money on plants, let alone bulbs.

But Mrs. Backhouse has been a workhorse since the day she arrived. I now have a huge sweep of them. Some time ago I moved two groups of bulbs onto the slope below the Tea House. They have done so well that I dug them out yesterday. Both groups were planted near little trees which have now engulfed them. It's had to believe that the almost invisible little Hemlock by the lilies in this photo is now a bigger presence than the bulbs.

I assumed that the plants looked so tall because they were growing on a slope above me. Nope. They are easily 5 and a half feet tall. They are going over quickly in the heat, so I didn't feel too bad about digging them out.

But I was surprised to discover one of the bulbs had sent out bulblets and the whole thing had grown together in a huge clump of six connected stems. I am going to replant them in the Tea House garden but in locations where they hopefully won't have to get moved again. 

A quiet evening in the garden

I splurged on this Peony a few years ago more for its emerging foliage than the flowers. This photo was taken on April 23rd.

Now that I have more than one flower I admit they are rather nice looking as well. The buds come out pale yellow, fade to cream and then white. Picture taken on May 23rd. Hmmm, I will have to pay attention next year and see if it always takes a month for the flowers to bloom.

I have been babying an Iris germanica in the garden for a couple of years waiting for it to bloom. This year it did so and turned out to be the plant I was hoping it was: an old fashioned pale yellow Iris that was growing in Tim and Mary's garden next door, right at the base of the clothes pole. 

I asked if I could have a piece and Tim said to come and dig it out. So I did. Since then, Tim died and Mary sold the house and moved closer to one of her children. I am so happy to know that I have a memento of our long time neighbors and their garden. 

IVOM: Before the next freeze

We got down to 31°F on Friday and tonight's low is forecast to be 33°F, so I cut flowers for indoors all weekend. 

White daffodils are my personal favorites rather than the bright yellow ones. This is Narcissus 'Dreamlight' with the peach ruffle and N. 'Stainless' below it.

I trimmed our 'Tina' crabapple and decided to add my prunings to the arrangement. 

I bring many of these daffs indoors for bouquets since they are in the bed by the street where I barely see them. Thus I never feel bad cutting them. 

This is a mix of early Iris, Muscari and Epimedium 'Lilac Fairy' with Heuchera foliage. 

IVOM: Before the frosty weather

Last week we had four nights where the overnight low was below freezing, which meant I spent an hour covering plants to protect them. It seems to have worked.

Before I started that process, I cut bouquets for the house and two for friends who I visited. All were variations on the one I kept for my self. Interestingly enough, the star of this display, Fritallaria thunbergii, sailed right through temps down to 23°F with no damage to the flowers. 

The Chinese gentleman got to enjoy the display closeup. I cut a stem from one of my Helleborus foetidus to get something that would hold everything in place. It's the greenery in the center and its flowers are not particularly obvious here. 

Unknown daffodils and yellow Epimedium flowers add a note of color contrast.  

I really put this vase together, however, to showcase the Frits. They are a pleasure from any direction.

Spring perfection

We're in a stretch of unseasonably warm weather. That means it's great weather for working in the garden, but the spring ephemerals are bursting into bloom and won't last long at all. After waiting so many snowy months for this moment to arrive, I hate to have it pass so quickly. That said, there are treasures everywhere I look in the garden.

I discovered this Hellebore buried under fern fronds. It's a Pine Knot Farms hybrid selected for foliage. 

When I bought this, I noted their website said that the flowers were larger and more colorful than the usual species crosses. I find it hard to even notice the foliage when the flower is this beautiful. 

I love Hepaticas but have completely lost track of who's who. 

Erythroniums are another plant I love but I have not had a lot of success with them so far. That means I am confused more often than not when they appear. My best guess is that this is E. dens-canis 'White Splendor.'

Foxgloves are popping up everywhere. I've planted them a few years in a row and let them seed. I'm hoping that means I will have flowers every year from now on. 

Early birds

It has been warm enough that the early spring plants are popping up quickly. The only problem is that this coming week has overnight lows going down to 20°F.

Since they are early bloomers they may be fine with a big chill, but I don't want to take that chance. I'm covering them today with evergreen branches — just in case I am being too optimistic. The branches will be easy to remove and light enough not to harm anything. 

Iris reticulata

 One of the first Hellebores I ever bought, Royal Heritage Strain. I moved it a few years ago and it has settled in with no problems

Another old clump of Royal Heritage Strain Hellebores.

Helleborus niger 'Sunset Group' has large flowers that face outward and foliage that lies flat, making a very nice display. 

Helleborus foetidus 'Red Silver,' aka Bear Claw Hellebore, is looking gorgeous. It's come through two winters very nicely.

The flowers are usually less dramatic on mine than in warmer climates.

One of the Hepaticas finally showing some color. This one can be seen across the garden once it's in bloom.

Two clumps of Crocus tommasinianus 'Lavender Striped' emerging through the old foliage of Japanese Blood Grass. 

Erythronium 'Pagoda' are up before any of my other Erythroniums have made made an appearance. 

Luzula 'Solar Flare' interplanted with snowdrops; an idea I adopted from Adrain Bloom's garden in the U.K. The big rock has lichens all over it that are the same color as the Luzula.

Before the cold weather hits us, I made a dwarf display of these early season favorites. 

I couldn't resist placing it near this painting as the colors seemed to echo each other to me.