Each Little World

March madness

I was out in the garden Friday checking on emerging snowdrops and Hellebores.

Galanthus 'Magnet'

Helleborus 'New York Night'. The leaves on most of the Hellebores were flat on the ground around the flower buds. I cut them off and set them aside, thinking I'd toss them over the plants if the weather took a turn for the worse.

Saturday morning I woke up to very different garden; the turn for the worse had arrived. I sat around, just checking every couple of hours to see how much more snow had fallen. We were at 6" when I got up at 6:30 am. It was up to 8" by 8 am and 10" at 10 am — the time that the day-long textile workshop I signed up for in January was beginning

Luckily they offered a Zoom component for those of us stuck at home due to the weather. I've only done Zoom lectures or chats with friends. This experience was an eye opener in terms of what students and many employees have been dealing with since the start of the pandemic. Not easy trying to do serious work on Zoom.

The windows on the north and south sides of the house had melting snow on them, suggesting how whirling the wind was. Both snow photos were taken through the windows which suggests why they are not my best ever images.

I visually measure snow depth using the wooden bridge over the dry stream (below). This time I went outside with a yardstick to get the 10" measure.

I've lived in snow states my whole life, so this weather wasn't all that surprising. My personal weather theory is that at the end of the winter season — just when you are frantic for spring — you will get the snow that you missed at the beginning of the season. Unhappy to be proven right again.

Slo mo

Every time I check the weather, the forecast has changed. Rain has turned to chance of light snow or frozen mix despite daytime temps barely dropping below 40°F for the next ten days. Monday and Tuesday were mostly sunny and we hit 50°F both days, so there has been progress in the garden — just not with the snowdrops. Most still have barely appeared. But other things have. 

Paeonia japonica. I aways leave Peony stems in place in the autumn to mark the location come spring. Since they arrive early I want to be sure I don't step in the danger zone.

Paeonia mairei, a Chinese woodland Peony that blooms very early and can take some shade. I like Peony buds as much as the flowers. 

Since I planted a few Tulips acuminata in this bed last fall, that's what I am assuming these leaves represent. I caged them as soon as I took the photo. No other spring bulbs are showing anywhere else. 

Last spring, I planted three Galanthus 'Mrs. Macnamara' "in the green." Whether the other two will flower is unclear. 

At the same time I planted two bulbs of G. 'Wasp.' Clearly they are very happy. I'll be happy when they opens their "wings" and look more waspish.

Hamamelis vernalis is the spring-blooming witch hazel. Alas, it is not a Wisconsin native as I assumed when I planted it. Very insignificant flowers and a poor shot by the gardener. But you get the idea: The Carex growing beneath it is more interesting.

One of the drawbacks of Witch Hazels is the fact that they hold their leaves for a long time which often obscures the flowers. Luckily this is the only branch with foliage still on it. The green ribbon marks a tree that our aborist is treating.

It's Spring! I guess.

Nothing says spring to me like the velvety green of moss after the snow melts.

As I walked west along the the stepping stones late Sunday morning, I looked up and the picture wasn't nearly as springy as I wished. Though the back garden faces south, the slopes keep snow in place until the temps really warm up. 

It was sunny, but the temperature was only in the low 20 degrees F. ( around -6.66°C.) The stone steps up the Tea House slope were still mostly buried. 

As was the west side of the building. 

The gardens at the top of the slope get the most sun in the back garden. This is Helleborus torquatus on March 5th.

Two weeks later on March 19th.

Just a foot or two away is Helleborus 'New York NIght', here on March 5th.

March 19th. I can see the difference but it is rather marginal.

Galanthus 'Jonathan' is near the two Hellebores but this is the first I've seen him. 

The plants in the above photos are all to the left of this snowy path. The shadows from the big shrubs and the fence keep it snowy up here. 

I found lots of typical spring scenes: twigs and branches on the ground, lots of pine cones scattered about and a few bulbs that were dug up by critters last fall.

When I took this photo of Galanthus 'Magnet' on March 5th, another snow storm was on the way.

Despite the recent cold and snow, they just keep pushing forward. 

The weather forecast for this week includes  a few days of rain with rising temperatures into the 40°s F. Those two things should clear away the snow. If plants start to make their moves, at least I'll be able to see them. 

These photos are not exactly inspiring, but they are an ideal record for me. As you all know, there's nothing better than being able to go back and see what was happening on specific dates year to year. Last year we had light snow on March 19th and 25th. I picked my first snowdrops for vases on March 27th.

Snowdrops mostly alone

When you garden in a climate where winter lasts for months, you fall in love with early spring bloomers. So I didn't think twice about buying these Muscari. But nothing is earlier than Galanthus or snowdrops. I've been keeping track of when snowdrops bloom in my garden since I planted my first one in 2005. They've appeared in February four times, but most years come in mid-March. Only once did they hold off until early April.

I love these little beauties and have slowly been adding them to my garden. I belong to a FB group, "Snowdrops in American Gardens", whose members live all over the country. For weeks they've been posting photos of their snowdrops; many accompanied by Winter Aconites, Crocus, Cyclamen and even Hellebores. Mine more typically share the stage with snow, ice or hail.

After spending time on the snowdrop FB page, I've started thinking I should plant other early bloomers close to my snowdrops so I can enjoy similar scenes. Then I realized I do have Hellebores with my snowdrops. If you look closely you can see the one in the photo below is just starting to push up. I took a series of photos last year so I could quickly identify my various snowdrops this year. But what this really shows is the fact that there are no other visible flowers in this view.

The best combo I've managed so far has been purely accidental; Galanthus 'Magnet' with Heucherella 'Hopscotch' foliage that still looks decent after being buried under snow all winter. 

I planted a few snowdrops amongst Luzula sylvatica 'Solar Flare' thinking that would give me as good a grouping as I'm likely to get.

I went scrolling through my photos to see when my other early bloomers really appear. 

• Snowdrops: typically March f17
• Crocus tommasinianus, Hepatica, Iris reticulata: 2nd week In April
• Hellebore buds are up by mid-April but no significant flowers until the end of April (though I did see some buds pushing up over the weekend)

The good news is it's not my imagination that my snowdrops have no floral companions. The bad news is that my garden's reality trumps this gardener's wishes.

IVOM: More pots

The last time I used this little blue and white bulb bowl from the Metropolitan Museum of Art was on Garden Bloggers Bloom Day in 2013. When I saw two small pots of about-to-bloom Muscari at the grocery store last week I couldn't resist. Blue Hyacinths and the similarly colored "grape hyacinths" will always come home with me when I see them.

I pulled the bulbs out of the dirt, washed them off and put them in the bowl. I was feeling very Dutch with this combination of flowers and container! I went looking for my other blue and white container with lots of openings in it. Turns out the blue and white brick is meant to hold flower stems and not bulbs. The bowl holds 5 bulbs, only half of the number I brought home. 

Thus the others got plopped in a little cachepot from the late Johannsens Nursery, once a mere five minute drive from my house. This container is one of 5 that I bought one year at Easter along with a number of different succulent plants to put in them.

All of the flowers are sending up a second bloom. I put the one container right next to where I sit most evening so I can enjoy both the flowers and the fragrance up close. 
As the flowers keep blooming it seems as though the bulbs are shrinking. One fell through the hole and had to rescued before it drowned. Maybe it's just that they're out in the air and not protected with soil. Or maybe it's just a fluke. 

The bulb bowl has lots of small openings perhaps meant for baby bulbs; who knows. It did occur to me, however, that I should try putting big leafy flowers in the bulb openings and fill the small holes with the delicate stems of spring ephemerals. We'll see what I can do come spring when there's more in my garden than snow. 

New for 2023

After last year's crazy amount of plants ordered online, I have tried to be more restrained this year. I've made a conscious attempt to think about what would work in the garden in terms of light and space and not just what interesting plant I want. Here are a few of my choices.

I have been growing Carex siderosticta variegatea for at least 25 years. It is a garden workhorse that requires little work from me. I ordered this new variety — 'Echigo-Nishiki' — from Plant Delights as it has much more white in the leaves than the straight variegated. Plus the white is described as 'frosted.' I am really looking forward to adding this to my garden. Zone 4, light shade.

(Photo by JLBG taken at Walters Gardens, MI)

Carex conica Snowline is another variegated Carex. This one is very fine textured with white edges on dark green leaves. The majority of my Carexes are solid green foliage and my shade areas need a bit of perking up which this should do. Z 5, supposedly can withstand tree roots which would be a real bonus. 

(Salmon Creek Photography via Digging Dog Nursery)

Plant Delights Nursery offered a few Lycoris for my zone that were more attractive to my eye than the typical pink Lycoris squamigera aka Naked Ladies. Though the bulbs are pricey, I ordered three Lycoris caldwellii 'Sky Over Sky'. Though this is a Z6 plant, I am hoping the fact that it dies back and can be heavily mulched will get it through our winters. 

(Photo from Missouri Botanic Garden website)

Lycoris incarnata 'Blue Pearl' looks different in every photo of it that I've found. Its blue tones should be a nice compliment to Phlox 'Jeana' and pink autumn Anemones. 

(Photo by Juniper Level Botanic Garden)

Filipendula 'Red Umbrellas' is smaller than the native variety and has this striking red veining as well. I probably don't need any more pink flowers but I am getting this for the foliage. So I am not going to worry if it never flowers. And it's Z3! 

(Photo from Digging Dog Nursery website)

January blahs

I think there was a sunny afternoon earlier this week, but I'm not really sure. It's been endlessly gray, though not as snowy as the garden needs. The latest storm dropped some rain that turned into about an inch of wet snow. Before that happened I wandered around the garden to see if any plants were pushing up, confused by the rain and warmer weather. 

No Hellebore buds or snowdrops were visible, but a disturbing amount of new Alliums had started growing. I think it means I did not plant them deep enough. Whether their flower buds will still be viable come summer is the big question. 

The ground was soft enough that I was able to push plastic plant tags right back in where they'd been disturbed, Not a good sign in mid-January. Some plants, like Autumn ferns (Dryopteris erythrosora 'Brilliance') are looking surprisingly good despite extremely cold temperatures and snow. 

I've been taking advantage of this down time to work on more Blurb books: One about the ducks who visited our garden each year, two using old family photos and one of garden columns from my newspaper days and the early blog. Working on them is keeping me from obsessing about the winter garden and ordering too many plants on-line.

Stars of the 2022 garden

My gardening friend Erin Schanen, The Impatient Gardener, just posted a video on her YouTube channel about the plants she considered award-winners in her 2022 garden. She has a bigger garden than I do and grows annuals, veggies and trials a lot of plants.

But she gardens in southern Wisconsin like me. So I am always interested to see what's doing well for her. Watching her video made me look back at my gardening year to determine what plants are on my awards list.

Here are a few plants — in no particular order — that performed well for me from the get-go in 2022. 

. . .

I bought a dozen bulbs of Gladiolus murielae, split them into two pots and fell in love. They had elegant flowers, very statuesque foliage and looked good in and out of flower.

I just ordered 3 dozen for this coming season. It may have gotten too cold in the garage where I was trying to overwinter the original bulbs for them to survive; we'll see. But I think I may be finally hooked on adding containers to my garden. 

Though I had a Geranium 'Rozanne' surrounded by Calamintha nepeta ssp. nepeta in my Traffic Island bed, I was never that crazy about it. I am much more pleased with Geranium 'Azure Rush' and G. 'Crystal Lake.'

Both are sprawling plants with pale toned flowers with striped interiors. They don't need any attention from me which is always nice. This is G. 'Crystal Lake.'

I love Brunnera and am growing just about every variety I have seen for sale. I don't know when or where I found B. 'Dawson's White,' but it is a winner. I moved it last spring from a shady spot with a lot of root competition from big trees. I put it in a spot that turned out to be quite sunny.

When everything around it was stressed from the heat, dryness and loss of part of the nearby tree canopy, 'Dawson's White' just soldiered on. The expanses of white on the foliage never browned until so late in the season I didn't care. 

I grew a beautiful blue Agapanthus from Seneca Hill Perennials for a good ten years in my garden. When the polar vortex killed it a few years ago I was broken hearted. I didn't think twice when Olbrich Botanical Gardens offered Agapanthus 'Galaxy Blue' for sale in 2020.

It came back again beautifully this past summer and is a clear winner in my garden. I love being able to grow it as a perennial rather than as a house plant. 

I decided to take a chance on a different variety of Hydrangea when I planted H. serrata 'Mountain Mania in 2021. I love its orange-tinged new foliage. Frankly, I adore this whole plant.

It came through its first winter with flying colors. I hope that means it will keep doing so. This year I also added Hydrangea arborescens 'Mary Nell,' highly recommended in the Mt. Cuba trials. It blooms on new wood in the shade!

I've been growing Luzula sylvatica 'Aurea' since I purchased it from the old Heronswood nursery in 2004. I moved a few plants in with some Hellebore seedlings a year ago and I am really happy with this color and texture combination.

The Luzula is very yellow when it first appears in the spring. It can take dry shade, but this group is in a fairly sunny spot and is doing so well it feels like a new plant. Sometimes the oldies are still the goodies.

Speaking of Hellebores, I planted a pair of H. foetidus 'Red Silver' in 2019, but lost one of them last winter. Missouri Botanic Garden says they may not be reliably hardy in Zone 5 but I've had good luck with another one of this type.

The good new is that the departed plant left behind seedlings.That's a first for me — and it puts this plant in the winner's circle even though it will take quite a while to get blooming size plants again. 

A Week of Flowers: Day 6

Once upon a time this bed was full of Hostas. I removed all but two of them in 2021 as the loss of a neighboring tree put this area in too much sun. More light, coupled with hotter, drier  summers led me to fill the space with Calamintha nepeta ssp. nepeta and Allium 'Millennium.' The new planting looked fabulous all season and was an absolute bee magnet. 

I also put in a small plant of Geranium wallichianum  'Crystal Lake' which worked its way up and through all the Calamintha to add its small bright blooms. 

To see what other garden bloggers are sharing during this "Week of Flowers," visit the blog of our host Cathy at Words and Herbs. 

A Week of Flowers: Day 5

Oops! I am so used to posting on M-W-F that I completely forgot I was going to share my flowers every day for a week. Here are a few early summer drama queens to help me get back on track. Lilium 'Forever Susan.'

L. canadense

L. martagon 'Claude Shride"

To see what other garden bloggers are sharing during this "Week of Flowers," visit the blog of our host Cathy at Words and Herbs.