Deutzia
Columbine
Doublefile Viburnum
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Parkas and Capris
What a cold Victoria Day weekend!
Dining out on Sunday night, every woman who entered the restaurant was wearing Capris and a parka. It was darn cold!
Beloved Hubby dug out another patch of grass this weekend and behold - a new flower bed was created. It's on the north side of the house, so gets diffuse sun. I've filled it with Solomon's Seal, Columbines and Meadow Rue. I also moved a small shrub, Laceleaf Viburum. It gives that side of the house a complete look.
Dining out on Sunday night, every woman who entered the restaurant was wearing Capris and a parka. It was darn cold!
Beloved Hubby dug out another patch of grass this weekend and behold - a new flower bed was created. It's on the north side of the house, so gets diffuse sun. I've filled it with Solomon's Seal, Columbines and Meadow Rue. I also moved a small shrub, Laceleaf Viburum. It gives that side of the house a complete look.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Gains and Losses
Jack-in-the-pulpits in profusion! Tiny specimens sprout within the shadow of established plants. Epimedium galore! A miniature maidenhair fern is setting out a substantial miniature crown. Columbines are rampant. I must remove half of them - after they bloom.
The tiny Japanese poppy has flowered. Some other as yet nameless surprises are poking up.
The Diablo Ninebark is a glorious dark fountain in the garden's centre.
I have to decide whether to get rid of the strawberries or let them take over everywhere.
Now the bad news - my wisteria is dead. ::sob:: Three years of lovely growth over my pergola. Hardy hanging blooms right from year one. I watch. I wait. I scratch bits of bark and note the green underneath. But nothing grows. Hubby expresses concern. We follow the trunk down to its roots and see that there it is split right up the middle. Can it be wrapped? I don't know. But I'm pricing new ones.
The tiny Japanese poppy has flowered. Some other as yet nameless surprises are poking up.
The Diablo Ninebark is a glorious dark fountain in the garden's centre.
I have to decide whether to get rid of the strawberries or let them take over everywhere.
Now the bad news - my wisteria is dead. ::sob:: Three years of lovely growth over my pergola. Hardy hanging blooms right from year one. I watch. I wait. I scratch bits of bark and note the green underneath. But nothing grows. Hubby expresses concern. We follow the trunk down to its roots and see that there it is split right up the middle. Can it be wrapped? I don't know. But I'm pricing new ones.
Locust in Bloom
Let me just draw your attention to the late-budding locust trees. Upon dark wood, mustard yellow foliage pushes out, looking, from the ground, like small downy feathers; in eye-catching harmony with all the surrounding Spring green.
Spring Rain
Off our second floor bedroom is a deck. Really it's the flat roof of the garage, but with a nice wooden floor, we think of it as a deck, though it's proved to windy to enjoy for long.
But rain is another matter.
There is an aluminum roof over the deck - brown and white - an untarnished awning. When it rains, I enjoy nothing more than to sit on my bed in the half-light and listen to the rain pound the awning. Even a gentle fall produces a steady resonant drumming.
There is a clothesline out there. When we first moved in, I was inclined to remove it, but at the first rain, I saw that birds, mostly white-throated sparrows sought its refuge.
And there they were today. Thunder, lightning, a driving duo of rain and hail, and four anxious sparrows staying dry.
But rain is another matter.
There is an aluminum roof over the deck - brown and white - an untarnished awning. When it rains, I enjoy nothing more than to sit on my bed in the half-light and listen to the rain pound the awning. Even a gentle fall produces a steady resonant drumming.
There is a clothesline out there. When we first moved in, I was inclined to remove it, but at the first rain, I saw that birds, mostly white-throated sparrows sought its refuge.
And there they were today. Thunder, lightning, a driving duo of rain and hail, and four anxious sparrows staying dry.
Friday, May 12, 2006
Merlin's Hollow
Merlin's Hollow is a 25 year old English cottage garden in the town of Aurora. The owner, David Tomlinson, gives gardening courses and this year I am attending. There are 15 of us in the session, I've waited a few years for my turn.
His gardening philosophy is simple - laying two inches of leaves on your beds, in the Fall, will provide all the nutrients your soil and plants need. By July the worms will have pulled them into the soil and they will be gone.
Merlin's Hollow is divided into garden rooms and within each room are varied beds. David says "Think about the plants you want and plan for their different growing conditions."
Where he wanted a bog, he dug out the soil, lined the area with pond liner and filled in with peat and sand. He has treated every area this way and so grows many unique plants by providing them with their needed growing conditions.
Another useful point is that the area closest to your house is warmer than the rest of the garden. Rather than fill up this good area with foundation shrubs, he encourages more diverse plantings.
One final point - he divides his plants in Spring and this year with its warm days and cool moist nights is a good explanation of why.
More next month.
His gardening philosophy is simple - laying two inches of leaves on your beds, in the Fall, will provide all the nutrients your soil and plants need. By July the worms will have pulled them into the soil and they will be gone.
Merlin's Hollow is divided into garden rooms and within each room are varied beds. David says "Think about the plants you want and plan for their different growing conditions."
Where he wanted a bog, he dug out the soil, lined the area with pond liner and filled in with peat and sand. He has treated every area this way and so grows many unique plants by providing them with their needed growing conditions.
Another useful point is that the area closest to your house is warmer than the rest of the garden. Rather than fill up this good area with foundation shrubs, he encourages more diverse plantings.
One final point - he divides his plants in Spring and this year with its warm days and cool moist nights is a good explanation of why.
More next month.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Trees in Bloom
Hasn't this been the best year for Magnolia trees? Warm days and cool nights, following that hot week in April when the buds popped. Practically every time I turn a corner, I'm stopped by one of these old beauties in extravagent bloom.
And their tiny echo, the double Flowering Almond bushes, are just about to open.
When else do we get to enjoy so much pink?
Both my fruit trees are also in furious bloom. One, I don't remember ever flowering before. Can't wait to find out whether its a plum or peach tree.
And their tiny echo, the double Flowering Almond bushes, are just about to open.
When else do we get to enjoy so much pink?
Both my fruit trees are also in furious bloom. One, I don't remember ever flowering before. Can't wait to find out whether its a plum or peach tree.
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