Shrubs
MORE HYDRANGEAS
Hydrangea season is in full swing. I have, over the last 15 years, been ‘collecting’ hydrangeas and devising many ways to display them in a garden setting. They bloom a very long time and even when they pass their ‘prime’ they are still very effective; in fact I love them more when they are faded. They truly carry the southern garden throughout the summer months.
lacecap above..
H. macrophylla ‘Westfalen” above…
Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Jogasaki’
Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Mme Emile Mouillere’, turning pale blue above..
Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’ in the garden with companion Kerria japonica ‘Picta’ above..
The path leading to “The Circle of Friends” in my garden this morning … above
Tomorrow on the American Hydrangea Society Garden Tour I am going to see beautiful gardens and more hydrangea cultivars to lust over. Hope to see you there.
BOOKS AND BOUQUETS
While cleaning the library, I came across the book that was instrumental in changing my life.
This book was on the sale rack at Barnes & Noble Bookstore in Boston 30 years ago.
What an inspiration. I wanted to fill every room with wonderful bouquets…. how difficult could that be? After all, the arrangements in this book were done in a small bathroom in NYC… (with access to the wholesale flower market.)
Without a nearby flower market but with a perennial catalogue firmly in hand I bravely placed an order. My future son-in law (although we didn’t know it then) cleared a border alongside the house for the plants.
While I awaited the delivery I read a Gertrude Jekyll book; exactly which one I do not remember, as one of her books inevitably led to the next. The one thing I did know , was that the plants had to be arranged beautifully out-of-doors as well as supply material for bouquets.
I soon discovered that plants take a few years to develop, and flower arranging is way harder than it looks. Still I am glad for the experience, it makes me so appreciate the talent of my friends who can ‘throw’ an incredible arrangement together in a heartbeat!
30 years later my bouquets are simple and mostly easy one of a kind blossoms from shrubs not perennials, they require way too much maintenance.
WILKERSON MILL GARDENS
Yesterday I had occasion to visit WILKERSON MILL GARDENS in Palmetto Georgia.
Long one of my favorite nurseries for underused and hard to find plants; they now specialize in hydrangeas, every one imaginable, and the good news is they are available mail order!
Above, pink “Annabelles”! (Hydrangea arborescens “Invincibelle“)
Love the “Hydrangea Blue” wagons!
I also noted some other very desirable plants to lust over. (below)
Above , Red Lotus Tree (Manglietia insignis) in the Magnolia family…I never heard of it before.
Above, the incredible foliage of “Moonlight” climbing hydrangea (Schizophragma hydrangeoides “Moonlight’)
So if you are in Georgia, pack a picnic and go visit, if not, check the website for all the information you need to grow gorgeous hydrangeas and find a few you are not familiar with. Connect here.
No, this is not a paid review, but if information on plants and planting are considered…I get an abundance of that!
GARDENS FOR CONNOISSEURS TOUR
There is nothing like a garden tour for some inspiration and the Atlanta Botanical Garden’s “Gardens for connoisseurs Tour” is one of the best.
The gardens, all private, ranged from highly manicured to woodland all in the heart of the city.
Here are some photos I took…..
I liked the way formal elements were incorporated in to this woodland paradise….
as well as a formidable Bonsai collection.
Also, the groundplane changed to mark the transition from one garden room to another…..
Then there is the patio area around the house….
And opposite the French Doors……
I could go on and on about this garden, it is 2.75 acres with two creeks and boasts 300 different cultivars of Japanese Maples. I did not want to leave.
In stark contrast, the next garden was about as formal as Versailles! Well actually, Vaux le Vicomte , the predecessor to the gardens at Versailles.
The above garden in search of Edward Sissorshands and an assistant!
The tour will continue. I took over 250 photos!
MEANWHILE…. BACK IN THE GARDEN….
While we rush about getting the baby vegetable plants into the potager, the garlic screams for attention…it is ready….
it makes itself known by browning leaves, ( 5 to be exact) and a tendency to fall over.
Another item moves to the top of the ‘to do’ list… this is ‘ Emergency Management Gardening’. They will be cleaned when they cure.
MEANWHILE…. back in the garden… The first Hydrangea macrophylla is open..’.Penny Mac’ I can hear my friend Penny, in heaven, laughing with delight!
Next to her is ‘Madame Emile Mouillere’, a white mophead.
Hydrangea quercifolia, Oakleaf Hydrangea, is glorious…
all three types together, H. quercifolia, H. arborescens ‘Annabelle’ and H. macrophylla. ( below)
More Clematis blooming…..
Above, Estonian hybrids ‘Ruutel’ and ‘Piilu’ both raised by Uno Kivistik, the names mean ‘Knight’ and ‘Little Duckling’ respectively.
Clematis ‘Odoriba’, with its delightful little bells, ‘Carnaby’ in the corner, and below, Clematis ‘Confetti’ blooming for the first time.
Now I must rush to harvest the seeds of the mustard we grew this winter; indispensable in some Indian dishes, the recipes for which have been waiting while the seeds ripen.
I also let the lettuce go to seed.
It was a delicious mix of salad greens ( Winter Mesclun Mix) which survived the little frost we did have. The flavor improves I find, when sowing seeds that have been raised in the same soil. (Ask anyone who has tasted my Basil!)
All this to say.. I’m busy…..
as my bees!
GARDENING WITH GRANDCHILDREN
Spent a glorious week in Boston with my grandchildren and much to my delight, the older boy is interested in gardening! We visited nurseries where, like a true dirt-bunny, he wanted everything he saw.
Together we planted a David Austin rose ‘Teasing Georgia’, and started seeds. He choose very colourful Zinnias & some basil for his mom. I hope he does not over-water in his enthusiasm.
It is so satisfying to encourage a young person to discover the joys of the garden.
From my own experience, I remember the very first time I saw my grandmother pull a radish from the soil, I was shocked that it was not in a bunch!!
GARDEN TOUR 2
I am tickled that the rambling rose Etain is blooming for the very first time,
I have envisioned it climbing 20 feet up the Oak tree.
On the other side I have planted ‘Rambling Rector’, another rose that could, under good cultivation reach to 30 feet. So I have hopes for this area to have real impact …..in time.
The Oakleaf Hydrangeas have formed their flower buds and are just starting to open, beyond them are the fig trees.
What I have long called the Viburnum Court should be refered to as the clematis court, since there are far more Clematis than Viburnum now.
Shame on me… those majestic shrubs are reduced to being supports for my Clem addiction!
Whenever I pass the Schiaparelli bench I congratulate myself on choosing the paint colour.
Here is a good example of either buying a plant while it’s in bloom or ordering from a reliable source.
The Clematis was supposed to be white…. oops, sorry, love it just the same , in fact this is a happy accident.
A quick peek at Clematis Josephine … So feminine!
And Clematis ‘Polish Spirit’ above.
I am just now getting around to pruning the dead flowers off the Hydrangea macrophylla. If one waits long enough there can be no mistakes, the new buds are obvious.
Earlier on I would have pruned more for shape than flowers; but now that I have the choice, I left some of the awkward branches for cutting.
When the Clematis are done… we will move on to rapsodising over the Hydrangeas!
GARDEN TOUR part 1
“You should have seen it last week!” The familiar phrase heard from gardeners, when showing visitors around. Well to avoid that I’m posting a time-lapse kind of garden tour. Photos from the garden over the last two weeks.
The Dogwoods in the meadow, like most other spring-flowering plants, cooked in the 80 degree temperatures. the blossoms did not last long. Above, in their moment of glory with the native Phlox (Phlox divericata).
Above, the view from a second floor window, Dogwoods, Lady Banks Rose (white selection) & Viburnums. Those ‘Snowballs’ (Viburnum macrocephalum) are trained into trees.
Love the tree right by the house.
Early clematis, blooming now for several weeks.
Along the North Border….Viburnum ‘Kern’s Pink’ & Baptisia…. (below)
followed by Viburnum opulus, Purple smoke tree (Cotinus coggygria ‘Royal Purple’ ) & Styrax obassia ..heavenly fragrant bells.
Clematis ‘Carnaby’ & Cotinus ‘coggygria ‘Royal Purple’
Look at those knockout roses below.. not pruned this year, they are lush & voluptuous reaching almost 6 ‘ tall.
The rose,’ Madame Alfred Carrier’, burst out of her restraints..
so….the trellis is moving again… to paraphrase Margery Fish, “In time she will learn to walk!”
All leading up to the Shocking Pink Schiaparelli bench.
To be continued….
“THERE IS NOTHING OUT THERE”
Famous words from Margaret Moseley. For 44 years she has created an incredible garden. She designed and planted everything herself and has done all the maintenance, except grass cutting. (“that’s not gardening”) Only recently has she hired some help.
These photos show “nothing”.
Can you tell pink is her favorite colour?
Can’t wait for the next visit. I always learn something new from her garden and I have seen it several times a year for the last 19 years!
I am sorry the photos of her Kwanzan Cherry Tree that was in full bloom the day I took these photos were so blurred.
SOUTHERN AZALEAS
The very first time I saw the Southern Azaleas (Rhododendron indica). They took my breath away.
I planted two of my favorites on the walk to the compost…
While I love their huge blousey flowers, the ‘Show Girls’ of the azalea world, I planted them because they are lovely evergreen shrubs. Two weeks of blooming beauty is not justification enough to merit the space.
The pink one is George L. Tabor, the white is G.G. Gerbing.
FRAGRANCE
I wish there was some way to share the fragrances that permeate the garden. Totally heaven!
Fragrant Viburnum
EMBRACING ROSEMARY
I thought this was charming & wanted to share.
HGTV INTERVIEW
Read all about it, my interview with HGTV…. All about hedges and their usefulness.
Recreating Eden Landscape Blog 