Each Little World

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I've been frantically trying to cope with the weather to keep my plants alive and the garden weeded and prepped for the Garden Bloggers Fling group coming to my garden this weekend. Two days in the 90°s last week and more of the same Monday and Tuesday. I was out just after 5 am yesterday morning to weed and water while the temps were bearable. I went in by 8:30. 

Leaves on many plants are turning brown and crisp from the heat. Other plants are bursting in and out of bloom in a matter of days. Hoping my Martagon lilies last until the weekend but I have my doubts.  

I'll be back next week when the temps should be lower and I can relax and play in the garden.

Rain!

After a very dry winter, it rained most of Thursday and right into Friday. Since the ground is still fairly frozen, it was good that it was a gentle rain that caused no problems at our house and garden. As the rain initially started to fall very lightly, it made the dry spots under the furniture look like snowy remnants. 

I woke up Saturday morning to discover the rain had turned into snow at some point during the night.

And turned back to rain, filling the garden with spring greens.

Though our few warm days were lovely, I am much happier to be getting some rain as spring is starting. 

Glad I put out my rain gauge so I could measure the precipitation in my garden: .87" (2.20 cm.) More rain is forecast midweek. 

March. Ugh.

The weather is veering from lamb to lion and back again. Saturday's high was 53°F. ( 11.66°C.), but it brought thunderstorms with heavy rain and wind. Despite the ground being frozen, no water made it into the basement. This morning's temp is 28°F., but feels like 22° according to Weatherbug. 

At this stage of the winter, I am less interested in more snow. We did not get it early in the season when we needed it to protect the garden against the cold. Without checking the record books, this is one of the driest winters I can recall in many years of living in Wisconsin. A walk around the garden Sunday afternoon showed a muddy mess with endless twigs, small branches and locust pods littering the ground. 

i snapped a few wide shots to help me remember what areas held onto the snow longest. Most of the front garden was still snow covered as that's the  north side of the house.

Everything that's not green is under standing water in this shot, including ferns planted last year. How did I not know this spot was so problematic?

Rabbits devoured a dwarf Hemlock planted last fall, two dwarf Oak Leaf Hydrangesas (3 years old) and a 5 year old 'Orange Rocket' Barberry. That's only what I've noticed so far. 

I never went out to look closely at what the city water crew did in December when they had to access the line to do a repair. I was horrified at what a mess they left behind in my Geranium macrorrhizum bed by the street. The blue cap is the water line. They moved the rock marker and filled in the hole with new dirt bit it doesn't look good. Maybe I won't feel as frustrated when the surrounding plants begin to grow in a month. 

On the up side, snowdrops are starting appear. 

Arum itlaicum 'Ghost' just needs the rest of the snow to disappear to start her spring growth spurt. 

I am always curious to see what ferns still look good after snow, ice and freezing temps. This is Dryoteris erythrosora 'Brilliance' aka Autumn Fern. Once this old growth gets removed it takes a long time for this plant to send up its new fronds. You have to mark where this is growing or you will accidentally plant something on top of it. 

Just past the above ferns, the sedges are looking lovely: Carexes pennsylvania and radiata. 

Across the path Polystichum makinoi  actually has its fronds standing upright!

Every year as the ratty snow along the curb starts to melt, I look there to see the first signs of spring. Most years, those signs are empty beer bottles or cigarette packs. This year's souvenir is a COVID mask. Perhaps a driver tossed it from his car window pleased to see the numbers are going down. Somehow I don't think it's the last one I'll find out there. 

Look what happened overnight. See what I mean about lions and lambs. I guess I won't be picking any of those snowdrops as soon as I'd thought. 

A green December

The storms that swept through the Midwest on Wednesday night did little serious damage near us. We lost power during the night and the winds sounded scary; in the morning everything looked the same as it had the day before and for a number of days before that. It has been fascinating to walk around the garden and see what plants still have not given up despite frosts and lack of rain. 

Polystichum makinoi with Adiantum venustum

The fronds are turning purplish-bronze but they are still mainly upright. I am not sure if it's the result of the fern's own hardiness or its protected location. 

Both my newest and oldest clumps of Dryopteris erythrosora 'Brilliance' are all standing tall and looking perfectly happy. I wish they had their autumn coloration now as well as in the spring. 

I put in two plants of Asarum splendens in 2019. Last summer I divided them and spread them around a bit. So far it has not been as aggressive as the native variety; nor has it gone dormant the moment it got cold. It is lovely to have that foliage instead of a big bare spot. 

I put a piece of Arum italicum 'Ghost' from the large mother plant in with this variegated ivy. The ivy makes the Arum foliage have a much more yellow cast than I ever noticed in the location. 

Epimedium 'Domino' has never slowed down. It's been a drama queen all season. 

I'm enjoying the sight of all this greenery in the garden; but I'm definitely ready for the moisture and insulation of some snow.

The Ginkgoes give up

We'd been watching our Ginkgo trees to see if the leaves were going to manage to turn their lovely buttery yellow color before they came down. The answer again is NO! One of the dwarf trees was just about there but the big tree and the other dwarf were just an acid green on their way to yellow. Last Tuesday night the temperature went below 25°F. In the morning we looked out and the leaves were all on the ground and draped over every shrub and object nearly.

The first freeze

For all the years we had the pond, I always noted when it froze over for the first time in the autumn and when he thawed in the spring. Though our new water feature is much smaller, I am going to use it as my weather guide. 

As was so often the case with the big pond, it froze this first week of November. It froze solid, in fact on Wednesday, Nov. 3rd. We haven't decided yet if we will leave it uncovered to freeze and thaw all winter or if we need to cover it for protection.  

Wet weather continues

While much of the country is suffering from record high temperatures, we are making up for all the rainstorms that passed us by in April, May and throughout most of June. It rained last Thursday, Friday, Saturday and slowed down with mere drizzles on Sunday. The garden is perking up, but it's too wet to work or add all the plants that have been waiting to get in the ground.

The good news is that most of the rain has been slow and steady with no excessive downpours. Tuesday's 1.04" gave us a total of 2.03" in a little less than a week. Enough to keep the deck wet so that the soles of my Naot shoes make a decorative pattern every time I step outside. The rain has the weeds popping up everywhere, so I will try and get them under control today if it doesn't rain again.

 

Overwhelmed by weather

We've pretty much gone from endless frosty nights right into high summer. We had our first 90°F. (32.22°C.) day on May 1st and we're currently in a cycle of extremely hot days with no rain in sight. The garden is bone dry having barely gotten 5 inches of rain since April 1st. I know that sounds wonderful to some of you (like Kris Peterson in Southern California) but it is definitely not our normal. Nor are these temperatures.

I am a woman who is happy at 75° and starts fading fast when the temperature moves into the 80s. We had such cold temps in May that I put off planting many of the things I got online and even some local purchases. Now with the hot, dry weather it looks like I have my own nursery there are so many potted plants wanting attention. 

We are moving forward with our garden projects, but the weather makes everything a slog. I am out before 7 a.m. watering and then working in the shade to the degree possible. 

I've been using all my energy to plant and keep the garden watered. And to help Mark when he needs it. This is all a long-winded way to explain why I haven't been blogging here or commenting on your posts. Hoping to get this gorgeous Buttonbush planted today. It has grown at least five times the size it was when it arrived from White Flower Farm. Very excited to add this native shrub to the garden. 

A cold Spring

Last night's overnight low temperature was 30°F. (-1.11° C.). Tonight and tomorrow night are going to be even a few degrees colder. Our last frost date is early May, so these temps aren't that surprising. But April began with unseasonably warm days that pushed the garden quickly into overdrive.

Last year my Martagon lilies, among other plants, never flowered due to frost kill. This time I am not taking any chances. Peonies, lilies, and assorted new shrubs all got covered.

The garden is a crazy assortment of bags, bins and sheets! The question is: Will it kill things to leave them covered all day since it's going to be cloudy and only get up to the low 40°F.? Can't decided if I want to chance it.

But it is a chore to cover and uncover all these plants for three days running. Ugh.

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.