Each Little World

GBBD: Waiting for Spring

GBBD: 09.15.2022

Rain, gray skies and cooler weather have energized some plants and knocked others sideways. Thalictrum 'Splendide' is the drama queen of Thalictrums. This year she wasn't nearly as dramatic as in the past. All my Thalictrums were 1-2 ft. shorter than last year. 

Anemone japonica 'Max Vogel' is a much more intense pink than I anticipated or this photo indicates. 

Astrantia major 'Roma' with Calamintha nepeta ssp. nepeta. The Calamintha is still going strong everywhere it's planted 

Sedum 'Matrona' with Hakonechloa

Tricyrtis hirta, a tall variety with straight stems. The rabbits are munching any Toad lily they can find. 

Tricyrtis hirta 'Empress' looks quite different from the variety above in person. 

Tricyrtis 'Tojen' is pushing between the two trunks of a small tree.

Begonia grandis with 'Chocolate Shogun' Astilbe in the rear. 

Kirengeshoma palmata Koreana group 

Anemone japonica 'Honorine Jobert' just starting to bloom. The nearby 'Whirlwind' is still tightly closed. 

I planted Caryopteris 'Snow Fairy' last spring after admiring it in a friend's garden. It looks like a shrub but is actually a die-back perennial. Though I love the foliage, I was particularly excited about the fact that it got blue flowers in the fall. 

Glad I wasn't holding my breath as the flowers are quite underwhelming. I'm hoping that there will be more and larger blooms next year as the plant settles in. 

To see what's blooming in other gardens, visit May Dreams Gardens who hosts this long-running meme.

GBBD: 8.15.2022

My garden is in transition. These are all late summer blooms with fall Anemones, Cimicifuga, Tricyrtis and mums all budding up but not yet flowering. The August stars have been a few new plants among old favorites that have kept me engaged watching their progress.

I fell in love Gladiolus murielae when I saw it in a friend's garden last summer. I bought a dozen bulbs to try it out in my garden. I'm going to attempt to overwinter my bulbs and will definitely add more next spring.

My two Agapanthus 'Galaxy Blue' made it through the winter, though one is much happier than the other. The plant that is getting a bit more sun has 5 flowers while its partner only has one. But even one of these blossoms is a beauty. 

From the way the flowers emerge between a pair of leaves to the way the spent flowers twist themselves up, I've been fascinated by Belcamda chinensis 'Freckle Face.'  Plus it's a butterfly magnet.

My Phlox paniculata 'Jeana' got beaten up when I knocked this lantern over on them earlier in the season. But they've bounced back. 

'Jeana' is tall and willowy with heads comprised of small flowers compared to most Phlox varieties. 

Geranium 'Perfect Storm' is a new purchase. Initially I thought of putting it with the Phlox, but eventually planted a pair of them with a pair of Geranium 'Crystal Lake' if you can picture that. 

Astilbe chinensis 'Delft Lace' is a mid-size Astilbe that performs well for me. But it never looks, to me, like the picture that all the nurseries use in their catalogs. 

Hosta 'El Nino' is one of the rare Hostas that I let flower. 

I have big patches of Heuchera 'Brownies' all over the garden. Neither the flowers nor the foliage is showy but it is a problem-free Heuchera. Plus the flower stems are very tall making them useful for bouquets. 

Great Blue Lobelia is one of the few natives that I've planted that is doing well. I'm hoping the flowers last until the yellow and white fall flowers around them open. 

Visit May Dreams Gardens to see what's blooming in a host of other gardens. 

GBBD: 7.15.2022

My Ligularia and tall Thalictrums were all in bloom at this point in the summer for the last two years. Another sign of how the weather has everything on a different schedule this year. At the moment it's lightly raining but it looks like we're soon going to pass through the big hole in the center of this storm. Aargh, my garden is dry as a bone. But there are some lovely bright floral spots:

Lilium canadense are still performing.

But July in the Midwest is daylily season, Hemerocallis 'Petite Sioux'

H. 'Lady Inora' with Astilbe taquerii 'Superba'

H. 'Little Rainbow'

Euphorbia 'Ascot Rainbow' is Zone 6 but my last plant returned for a few years. So I'm giving it another try. 

I'm still in thrall to my new Hydrangea serrata  'Mountain Mania'

Hakonechloa grass with Sedum 'Matrona'. I like it best at this stage before the flowers have really opened. 

Hostas are beginning to bloom, along with Alliums and a few sporadic Geraniums here and there. In my garden, mid-July is more of a foliage than a flower moment.

GBBD: 6.15.2022

Despite being gone from the garden for the first ten days of the month, I didn't miss much. One Peony had come and gone as had the flowers on my various Brunnera. But my new Alliums are just opening and the Martagon lilies will follow shortly.

I've been trying to take more wide shots that will help me remember what's planted in a given area; something plant portraits don't do. This is the bed at the top of the stone steps leading into the front garden. It includes two flowering shrubs: Philadelphus 'Snow Dwarf' in the foreground and Deutzia 'Yuki Cherry Blossom' in the rear. I think the Deutzia needs more light to really flower. The Peony is P. 'Soft Salmon Joy.'

Dianthus 'Bath's Pink' is growing between the two flowering shrubs in the above photo.

Gillenia trifoliata aka Bowman's Root is behind the Peony in the first photo. 

The Geranium pharum in this bed are almost done flowering but Tiarella 'Elizabeth Oliver' is still going strong . . .

as is Thalictrum 'Evening Star.'

In the back garden Thalictrum 'Black Stocking' blooms before any of my other large Thalictrums.Chives echo the color.

Iris pallida Dalmatic was in the garden when we bought this house. It likely was growing here from the mid-1950s when the house was built. This is the Iris that smells like grape pop. I've been moving clumps around trying to find enough sun to get them to bloom. 

I keep planting Digitalis trying to find one that is more peach color than pink. Clearly this is not it. There are seedlings everywhere so who knows what I'll get next year.

A new Allium in the street side garden: Allium nigrum 'Silver Spring'

Allium atropurpureum, also new, is flowering in the back garden. I planted it with Allium 'Summer Drummer,' but it looks like these may be over before it blooms. 

Candelabra primroses have been flowering for ages. 

Loving this old nameless Heuchera whose flowers are mixing with the foliage of Epimedium rubrum.

i was pleasantly surprised to discover how flowery Luzula nivea (snowy wood rush) is when it blooms. I think I will divide some of the plants to get an even better show. These are much prettier than my other Luzula plants.  

Tuesday's high temperature was 96°F and today it waa 78°F when I got up at 5:30 a.m. Lots more heat in the 10 day forecast. I had a long list of things I still wanted to do in the garden before the Garden Bloggers Flingers arrive at my house on June 25. I think the weather is going to keep me from getting much done.

GBBD: In a Vase on Sunday

A week of temps hitting 90°F or above had me in the garden cutting flowers for the house.They bloomed and faded so fast outdoors that this way I got to enjoy them for a little while longer. 

I love photographing floral bouquets on my tall Japanese display stand against the gold Japanese screen. After photographing, I moved the tea cups to the fireplace mantel where we could easily see them from our favorite reading spots.

To see what's blooming in other gardens, visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens who hosts this long-running meme.

GBBD: 4.15.2022

The week began with temperatures in the 60°'s, leading me to expect a lot of blooms to showcase today. Alas it was downhill from there with a week of freezing overnight lows that began on Wednesday, followed by very high winds all day yesterday. So the garden looks pretty much the way it did at the beginning of the week. We're both still waiting for pleasant spring weather to stay here for more than a day or two.

Crocus (above)

Iris histrioides 'George'

Iris reticulata 'Harmony'

The garden is awash in Chionodoxa; stems are visible everywhere but few flowers yet.

Hellebores are attractive at every stage. This is H. 'Sandy Shores' from the H. Honeymoon series.

I moved the two Hellebores (above and below) a few years ago and they've settled into their new home nicely. 

They're both probably H. 'Royal Heritage' strain

H. niger 'Sunset Group,' a rare Hellebore whose flowers face outward.

Hepatica 'Apple Blossom'

Hepatica nobilis 'European Pink'

A wonderfully quirky-colored Iris reticulata hybrid — 'Mars Landing' — that is 5 years old and has not increased. I need to find a source to get more. 

To see what's blooming in other gardens, visit Carol Michel who hosts the monthly meme: Garden Bloggers Bloom Day.

GBBD: 12.12.2021

It's December in Wisconsin so it's not exactly the moment to find flowers in my garden. We are not buried under snow like last year, however, and so I did unearth a few things hidden under the leaves yesterday afternoon. It's foggy this morning with a forecast of rain and possible severe storms. The temperature at 8 a.m. is 52°F.

I clipped enough Helleborus niger flowers to fill three small Heath vases that I put in my bathroom. I used their colors as the theme for a bit of holiday decor. 

The buds in this vase on the other side of my vanity sink haven't opened yet. 

I love the pattern on this vase against the tissue holder's faux shagreen. 

I used Hellebore foliage in two of the vases. 

In the third I put a leaf from a Hepatica and a frond from a Hart's Tongue fern.

I've been cutting Hellebore flowers from one plant for over a month. Each one lasts at least two weeks so I should be able to enjoy these right up to Christmas. 

GBBD: Nov. 15. 2021

It is rare that there are flowers blooming in my garden in November. But these three are reliable performers as late autumn turns cold. 

. . .

Calamintha nepeta subsp. nepeta changes color from white blossoms to soft lavender as the temperatures cool. 

I started watching this clump of Helleborus niger on Nov. 6. The weather was nice enough that I pulled off the leaves that were hiding the buds. 

By last Thursday (Nov. 11), it was obvious the weather was about to get much colder. So I piled fallen leaves back on the plant to protect it until spring. But first I cut a few buds that were starting to open along with foliage from Vancouveria hexandra, Geranium phaeum and the Hellebore. 

Overnight the Vancouveria foliage faded as the Hellebore flowers fully opened. It's always a thrill to have a little bouquet from the garden indoors this late in the year. 

The warm weather we'd been having kept the leaves on the Hamamelis virginiana, hiding most of the flowers. 

The chill overnight on Thursday and Friday's snow showers got rid of the yellow leaves, letting the flowers shine.

I don't know when this shrub has looked so good in November.

GBBD: 10.15.21

This October post focuses on late flowers and fabulous foliage plants.

We haven't had a killing frost yet and there is not one on the horizon. That means it's been a perfect autumn for Tricyrtis blooms. T. macranta has never put on such a good display. Can't believe the rabbits have not touched it. Maybe that's because they keep munching on fern foliage. 

Tricyrtis hirta 'Miyazaki' has a dramatic arching form. I moved a few stems of this plant to the top of the wall by the stone steps into the front garden where it is beginning to put on a nice little show. 

Tricyrtis hirta 'Lightning Strike' has striped foliage which means it looks great whether it flowers or not. But this year it has so many flowers that the stems are arching out like my other hirta varieties. This one is also much easier to see now that the Upper Pool is filled with gravel. 

I have such a large swath of Tricyrtis 'formosana' along the back of the driveway border that I moved a few plants to the other end of the border. They are doing beautifully, though the original group has been mowed down twice by the rabbits. 

Lots of local gardeners have been posting images of their autumn Crocus but mine just finally appeared. Now I need to make a note to add more while I can remember where they're located. 

These little flowers are being consumed by their neighbors. I may have to dig out some of the Epimedium before it kills them. 

My first attempt at growing Cyclamen has gone so well that I added four more plants last spring. Alas one was dug out and destroyed immediately by rabbits, but the remainder are doing nicely. This is C. hederafolium which you can see I bought for the foliage. 

Not a bloom but a nice autumn surprise, Podophyllum hexandrum reappeared.

Arum italicum 'Ghost' puts on such a spectacular display that I need to move it to a spot where it's more visible. Since it is summer dormant, it is hidden behind larger plants. That means you can barely see it when it is having its big moment. 

We took out a dying Austrian pine last winter to give Cercis canadensis 'Forest Pansy' more light and more room to spread out. It's just starting its fall color.

Not only is it a great Toad Lily season, it is a great mushroom season. Suddenly they're everywhere.

The shady and somewhat moist strip between my driveway border garden and my neighbor's exploded with mushrooms. 

The size, shape and color seem to change daily. 

Love this little guy who found a home for himself in the stone wall at the end of the border. 

To see what's blooming in other gardens, hop over here to the sponsor of this meme.