Each Little World

The Wild Time Border

The "Wild Time Border" is the name I gave to the front garden that borders the street. Initially I imagined it as a more Shakespearian "wild thyme" garden. But it turned out to be a repository for any debris drivers felt like tossing out of their car windows; thus "wild time." (The old Sugar Maple in the center of this photo came down in the fall of 2021 and the Pagoda Dogwood on the left is doing poorly.)

Luckily we knew from the get-go that the city actually owned the first 14 feet of our property; typically the sidewalk area. So we planted things we could easily replace should the day come when the city arrived. That's been pretty much the last nine months since the first crew came to measure and mark the street for the roadwork. This is how the garden looked in late June (below). One of the crews damaged the curb on the left and so that was replaced which meant the bottom strip of garden along there was removed as well. 

We're almost at the finish line. At the end of the first week in September, the crew filled in all the spots where equipment had been digging in our front garden with lovely topsoil. 

These guys were very pleasant and asked questions about our garden and the ground cover Geraniums. 

Next we put in a sign and hot pink flags to alert the next team that we did not want grass planted in our space.

The tall stick with the ribbon marks the access to the water line. We left the marker in place in case they need to know that location again.

Mark immediately got a load of cedar bark and we spread it over the new soil to protect it from washing out in the forecast rain. Luckily the initial rain was more like a mist and we worked right through it spreading the mulch. 

We then spent a chunk of the weekend and into the next week replanting the area. Mark had dug out all the Hostas and Hakonechola macra grass in the area where they were going to dig in June. I stuck them in my stash of plastic pots that big plants and shrubs had come in. They've been sitting in the shade since then; getting watered when it rained or I remembered them. They were so huge when we removed them that we broke them into sections in order to make the job manageable. Rather than put them back in the ground as big plants, I spread them around so it will take them a while to fill in again. I didn't want to have to turn around and divide them again next year. 

We hadn't quite finished replanting this area when the next stage of the project hit our end of the street.

Multiple loads of gravel were spread and graded to get the roadbed ready for paving this week.

I told Mark I thought we should plant the replacement Geranium macrorrhizum plants on one foot centers. He was shocked and said that meant we would have to put in a good 300 plants. This is where he started and he clearly was planting much closer together than my suggestion. 

Since half the front garden is planted in big root Geraniums, I continued the planting at one foot intervals if not closer. Those plants are so easy to pull out and we had so many available that it seemed silly  not to fill the space fairly heavily if we had time and energy to do so. It looks like the rest of this month is going to be nice and warm so I may get out there again and fill it in a little more. 

What the big root Geraniums look like right after they're pulled out. Easy to see where they get their name.

They were supposed to start paving the street this morning but it's raining. I want the project finished but I am happier to get some needed rain instead.

Says who?

I bought one plant of Heuchera x villosa 'Brownies' in 2008. It grew so well for me that I began to divide it and spread it around. It never frost-heaved, had pests or seemed to need any additional moisture. Eventually I created a couple of large sweeps of 'Brownies' in spots where I needed a no-maintenance ground cover that didn't really call attention to itself. 

I went online the other day to confirm its identify and discovered my experience with 'Brownies' is not the same as that observed at the Mt. Cuba Trial Garden. 

"Unfortunately, the floral display was unimpressive due to the floppiness of the tall, white inflorescences," was their opinion on their website. They felt its strength was all in its foliage. i love the very tall wands of white flowers 'Brownies' produces right now when many Heucheras are winding down flower production. They are among the longest flower stems of any Heuchera I grow; easily two feet long.

Recently it rained for six hours; mostly nice and gentle with only a couple of strong downpours. The last couple of days it's been very windy and gusty. All of which is to say the long flower wands on my 'Brownies' are still upright, despite our weather and the experience of Mt. Cuba. Plants clearly don't pay attention to experts or the written word.

Have you seen this?

Okay, maybe you have but this plant — Bergenia 'Ripple Effect' — is totally new to me. B. 'Ripple Effect' is a hybrid between B. ciliata and B. procumbis out of Issima nursery. I've been growing the straight B. ciliata for years along with B. cordifolia and B. 'Bressingham Ruby' from the famed Bressingham family in the UK. Ciliata has fuzzy foliage while the the other two have smooth shiny leaves that color up in autumn and don't go dormant. Bergenia 'Ripple Effect' goes dormant.

Bergenia 'Ripple Effect' has glossy green leaves that are rounded with serrated wavy edges. But get this, the leaves are huge; easily one foot in size. The entire plant will supposedly make a 3' spread and is suggested to be used as a dramatic ground cover. That's what I'm doing. I've put a pair under my Weeping Purple Beech which should be exceedingly dramatic if they're as happy in that location as the Beech.

I found this at my local nursery (K and A Greenhouse) at their late summer sale. I immediately grabbed one; went back a week later for a second. Drove out yesterday for a few things and got two more. All are planted and caged which is why I photographed this one before it went into the ground; the cages lack a certain charm in photos. The rabbits chomped off a leaf on the first one immediately. I think they will be safe to uncage one they start to increase. 

Now I just have to decide if my 'Ripple Effect' Hosta would like to join these guys or if it will sulk at being overshadowed by such foliage giants.

Success

I won this Eucomis last summer as a door prize at a garden event. At the end of the season I put it in our unheated garage and ignored it. It looked so sad in the spring I didn't really think it was alive. But I removed the flower stalk and foliage, watered it and put it outside where it immediately started to send up beautiful new foliage. I underplanted it with a native Carex and set it in a heavy ceramic pot to raise it about critter height. Alas some big critter came along and knocked it over more than once. 

You can see its damaged leaves. I finally moved it to a new location where no one has bothered it. It also had some damage from a being outside on a couple of nights that were colder than predicted. But it just kept going.

I think this may be the variety 'Sparkling Burgundy' based on the initial foliage color and the flowers. I don't really care what variety it is. I'm just happy it survived and is blooming. This is one plant that is definitely easy enough to overwinter that I will keep doing it. 

IVOM: Heucheras vs. Heucheras

There are Heucheras and then there are Heucheras. Some disappear quickly and are never missed. Others last so long and well that I've turned them into swaths of ground cover. Some barely flower and others are suffused with blooms. Most of my Heuchera successes are from my early gardening days. They've been divided and moved so many times I no longer have a clue as to the names of most of them. Despite having a lot of plant id cards, I've never really been able to figure out who's who among these oldies. 

These days I look for villosa hybrids and steer clear of most new "hot" varieties. When I'm trying a new variety I don't really want to buy more than one for starters, but it seems they hit the market and disappear so fast it's hard to find them again if you do want to add more. New plants seem to be following the "fast fashion" model.

The leaves on this variety start out almost purplish and become more green as the season progresses. This is the unknown Heuchera with the best flower count of any I've ever grown. I look forward to it blooming each year which is not something I do with most Heucheras.

No. 2 favorite. Dark foliage that holds its color in western sun. Lots of flowers but I like these stems as part of a mixed bouquet rather than as the stars. 

One of the early purplish introductions that has survived and been divided. 

H. 'Pinot Grigio' has lovely pastel foliage that is pinker or redder depending on location. Nice flowers as well, though not as many as I'd like. 

My alter-ego vase filled with the pink stems of the Heuchera in the first picture. 

Not only does each plant produce a lot of flower stems, the stems themselves are packed with tiny flowers. 

She thought her display was a little bland and sent me out for a bloom of Gladiolus murielae aka Peacock Orchid.

I'm with Anna

"A garden that is all flowers

is like a cake that is all icing."

— Anna Pavord — 

Garden designer and writer

. . .

Since the design of our garden was greatly influenced by Japanese gardens, flowers were not a major factor. The most floriferous area of the garden is way in the back where it is hidden until you come upon it.

Even for the flowers I plant, foliage is often the determining characteristic for which varieties I pick. 

I like Trycirtis 'Lemon Twist' (above) and Tricyrtis 'Lightning Strike' (below) best before they've bloomed. They're perfect just as they are right now.

Carexes and Hakonechloa varieties are spread throughout the garden. But I grow Mellica uniflora f. albida in only two locations and pull out any seedlings. If it was all through the garden, I think it would lose its delicate charm.

I've had good luck with most of the ferns I've planted. I planted my first Christmas fern (Polystichum arcostichoides, foreground) in 1999. Dryopteris x australis (rear) stands up straight all season and is about 4' tall and growing.

I have big sweeps of Maidenhair ferns and Japanese painted ferns and am adding more unusual ones as I see them. Most of the ones that I planted last year all returned; some more strongly than others. They survived the winter, now they just have to make it through this early heat and drought.

I'm adding more ferns — and more shrubs — to the Tea House slope to reduce maintenance in this area. (Most of the ferns are out of view in this shot!)

Mood reversal

I clearly posted too early yesterday as it turned out to be a lovely day. It was cool, cloudy and rainy for much of the day. We got .52" which was enough to make the garden sparkle. The rain, coupled with the recent hot days, has the garden on overdrive. I walked around a number of times just marveling at the beauty. 

As much as I like flowers, nothing beats the greens of spring. Up or down there was something lush and fresh to enjoy.

And, yes, there are lots of plants in full bloom like this unknown Peony. Last year I noticed a small stem on a mature species Peony whose leaves were clearly different from the main plant. I separated it and decided to watch it. This spring it shot up with a big bud that is opening into what looks like a gorgeous flower.

In the morning I got together with my garden gal pals to brainstorm some trees and shrubs that one of the members of our little group could add to her garden for winter interest as well as screening views of her neighbor's property. All that garden chat is always a boost.

When I got back home treats had arrived in the mail: The 30th anniversary edition of Gardens Illustrated magazine. 

I've been reading this mag since it hit the newsstands. I used to have the first 50 issues. I still have plenty of back issues, but now I only keep the ones that I really want to look at again — and again. This one is the second issue published. Also in the mail. was a box of plants from Odyssey Perennials. Mostly different Primula varieties.

This is Aquilegia viridiflora var. atropurpurea, one of the mail order plants. This is the nursery website photo as the plant is quite small. I'm going to put it with a group of Geranium phaeum whose flowers are deep violet and whose leaves have splashes of the same color. Despite my cranky start to the day, it turned out to be pretty perfect. 

Slogging along

Our cool, rainy weekend weather continues today, with the addition of high winds. We're sitting in front of the fire with coffee, computers and stacks of books. But one of us is doing better than the other.

We were up before 5 am this morning for Mark's 6 am appointment for his second cataract surgery. Everything went well, but he's currently holding a pair of reading glasses up to his good eye in order to read. He can't fit them over the big protective covering on his eye. He gets to remove the patch tomorrow and will have a set of matching eyes which will make life much easier again. For the moment, he looks like a crazy old guy!

By the end of the week I'm hoping I can move all the fancy-leaved Begonias, orchids and pots of Byzantine gladiola bulbs outdoors at last. Our living room is so stuffed with plants you can hardly move.

No matter where you go, there's a plant shoved in every little bit of space.

The good new is that new growth suddenly appeared. These mail-order bulbs arrived so early and have done nothing until now. I was convinced I had just thrown some money away. Now I am thrilled as I loved these flowers when I grew them last summer

But right now, I think I'll crawl back into bed and sleep until it warms up again.

The wonders of a warm day

The garden suddenly looks like a garden! More plants are appearing every time I ramble around. I'm still waiting to see what damage the frost may have done to those plants that were fully budded. But things look good for the most part. 

I piled leaves on Podophyllum 'Spotty Dotty' to protect it from the last frost. But she pushed through them immediately.

Syneilesis aconitifolia is extremely difficult to see when it first appears. I always leave the stems so I can find it in the spring. A garden friend aptly refers to this plant as "hairy thumbs." 

Its cousin — Syneilesis palmata 'Kikko' — in the front garden is much more obvious when it appears. It also comes up earlier.

I bought this one for its patterned foliage which disappears quickly. This is the brief moment when it looks the best.

The drama queen of ferns: Dryopteris crassirhizoma.

I believe this group is Polystichum retroso paleaceum.

I need to see if there is a tag buried near this fern as I am not at all sure of its identity. Though I am pleased at its early arrival.

My 'Arctic Alley' willow made it through its first winter and it starting to send out catkins.

Dutchman's britches (Dicentra cucullaria) is blooming throughout the garden. Nothing bothers this little beauty or slows it down.

Rain and cooler temps are forecast for the next three days. I'm good with that as I need to do some work indoors for a few days instead of exhausting myself in the garden. 

Hellebore seedlings

I planted my first Helleborus foetidus (from Pine Knot Farms) in 2017. It did so well that I added a pair of H. foetidus 'Red Silver' (from Plant Delights) in 2019. Last year I decided to move one of them and lost it over our much hotter and quite dry summer.  

At the end of the season I discovered it left behind a forest of seedlings. I am going to pot some up for me and garden friends. 

I haven't ever had or dealt with Hellebore seedlings. If you have had experience with them, I'd love any advice you care to share.