Month: September 2012

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PUNCTUATION POINTS

I love punctuation points. As a designer, I use them to break up large horizontal spaces, or to mark the transition from one garden room to another.

Above, four ‘Degroot’s Spire’ Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis ‘Degroot’s Spire) mark the entrance to the Viburnum/Clematis Court from the Potager & Fruitery.

(Ilex crenata )’Sky Pencil’ announce the entrance to the Cutting Garden and it just followed that the  interior beds be punctuated with the same. (good contrast with the rounded Boxwood that mark the other beds)

Unfortunately, one of the ‘Skypencils’ has died.

To replace it, the brick edging will have to be  removed as well as part of the brick path. These plants are 9 years old with extensive root systems; locating another this size  at a reasonable price is unlikely.

Cause of death ? Unknown. Initially  spider-mites were suspected but then the other three plants would be affected since they are in such close proximity. Any thoughts out there?

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NO FUSS PERENNIAL

I don’t fuss with perennials (anymore). To live in my garden they must look after themselves…

                                                                                              

    The Toad lily (Tricyrtis hirta) does , and blooms in the autumn…..

                                                                                       

fabulous with the club moss (Selaginella kraussiana ‘Aurea’) below.

                                                                                                 

According to Allan Armitage (THE perennial expert) they got the common name ‘toad lily’ from the fact that members of the Tasaday Tribe in the Philippines, their native habitat, rub their hands with the juice of the flowers and foliage before going to capture frogs.

Thought you might like to know.

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THE PRO OF PROCRASTINATION!

For various and sundry reasons I never  looked  into  pea gravel for the Circle of Friends…and now my reward for procrastinating, is exactly what I wanted in the first place! Moss underfoot!

So there IS a pro in procrastination!

                                                                                                    

 A soft quiet carpet……. so comforting.

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BOXWOOD CUTTINGS

I was all set to plant out the little cuttings of Boxwood

directly into the Circle of Friends,

According to my reference book…

at this size I would have to plant them 6″ apart!…

then I read Monty Don…..

                                                                                                   

He transplants his Box cuttings into a nursery bed and  grows them on for two or three years

To me, that makes sense, the plants are tiny.. I can baby them a bit longer,  give them a better start, fatten them up and plant them 3′ apart.

All the while I will be adding organic matter to the ultimate location of the box babies. Layer following layer of shredded leaves and rabbit Manure, and more leaves & compost….and  more leaves…. and….

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SO NOT READY!!!

 It’s really September and I am so not ready for the change of seasons. The Camellia  sasanqua  ‘Sparkling Burgundy’ is blooming….

and all the berries on the viburnums are full & beautiful…

Neglected area..or should I say areas I left to Mother Nature are actually lovely, nurturing many beneficial insects, Humming birds  and other wildlife

…including deer. I’ve stopped chasing them away.. they love these hydrangeas!

Once again, The Season of The Mourning Bench………….