The Garden Buzz

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: January 15

I'm "borrowing" some blooms for this January Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. 

Camellia japonica on the square                                      The Garden Buzz

Without my own garden I've resorted to photographing a few of the flowers blooming here in Savannah while I sit out the coldest part of winter up north. I pass these beauties every day while walking so perhaps that gives me some small right to claim them. 

Lots of shoe leather                                                            The Garden Buzz

I have vague memories of camellias growing up in  California, as well as from my time living in Memphis, however I have never 'owned' one. They are most appreciated blooming now while everything else waits for another month to get started on spring.

Camellia buds ready to burst                                            The Garden Buzz

I pass a particular venerable camellia in one of the squares, Chippewa Square I believe, that has two distinct colors, one side is that soft warm pink almost coral, while the other side has a stripey pink and white, candy-like variegation. Grafting gone bad or perhaps intentional? One of those two-in-one specials from a catalog?

Meanwhile, there is a shrub, blooming all over Forsyth Park at the moment, that I feel I've seen before but am struggling to identify. It's probably a common one, but just out of my realm. Is it just a double, ruffly camellia? It's about 4x4 feet wide. Maybe a savvy southern gardener can clue me in?

Mystery shrub?

I'll repeat this photo of potted pansies, because they are just that cute.

Potted pansies on the steps of Fabrika, a darling fabric store in Savannah 

And I'll include these not very bloomy but very lovely containers of winter greenery southern style.

Large fern in windowbox with containers below
Urns with green motif

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A dog friendly town if there ever was!

 

I'll end with this sweet little rose bouquet from our bistro table at the Paris Market today.

Peach roses...my favorite.

I hope to have lots more to show come February, by then I'll have probably "adopted" a few more worthy specimens! Until then, Happy Bloom Day. And as always thanks to the lovely and talented Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

 And last but not least a birthday shout to DesaRee and Stella,my sweet nieces who share this birthday. 

Props to a Great Shrub, Daphne "Carol Mackie", Literally and Figuratively

What an awkward but accurate title for this post. 

You see, it's been almost a year since the "oatmeal snow". That's how I heard it described when I came back into town after a short trip last November. And then I looked out the bathroom window and wondered why I could see that white house across the pond better than ever before.

This early snow had been wet and heavy, with a consistency like concrete. It crushed the beautiful lilac tree that graced the space out my bathroom window, whose arching limbs formed an umbrella of lavender blooms every spring. With its limbs cracked and splayed from the center, there was no coming back.

But what about the daphnes? Five shrubs, partly the shrub backbone of the courtyard garden, their light gray limbs bent and broken. I imagined digging them out and waiting for something new to fill in the holes in this very visible garden.

Daphne "Carol Mackie" didn't start out as one of my favorites, actually finding her way to my garden by way of a local garden designer. But then I came upon scenes like this..

And this...

How could you not love foliage like that? Blue-green with a gold band that became more cream into the season. Just enough variegation to define itself from the green uni-blob of summer. But enough variegation to light up a shady spot. Oh, and the flowers, not insignificant, not inconsequential, but more lke a bonus, pale pink to white fragrant clusters in early to late spring. 

Closeup daphne blossoms

As the winter went on and became the fourth snowiest one on record, the snow continued to pile up. And without anywhere else for it to go, the damaged daphnes disappeared under the growing heaps. 

When I first moved here I was intrigued by trees that were bowed to the ground. How I wondered could a tree just lean over and form a semi circle with itself. While some snap with the weight of snow and ice, others bend until they meet the earth again making arboreal arcs in the forest. 

When the snow finally melted mid-April, I could see the daphnes were nowhere as near as charming as these curving trees. In fact they dragged down the entire garden design with their crippled posture and lack of leaves. I made plans to replace them. Often labeled as hardy to zone 5, maybe they weren't meant to be in Minnesota.

I'd like to say it was a "wait and see" approach that saved them, but it was more like a "didn't get around to it" reprieve. 

Then two things happened. As the time came near to have the lilac tree removed, a few faint blossoms appeared on the daphnes, the pink flowers the same shade as apple blossoms I thought. Tired of being impaled by the lilac branches across the path, I got out the pruners and started trimming. I lopped off one that formed a perfect "Y". And then I thought, why not. Why not make crutches like the ones they use in apple orchards for ancient trees?

Y-Shaped "Crutches"

I loved the idea of recycling one plant to help another, but in this case, one tree to help five shrubs. It seemed fitting. Even though at the time I didn't think it would work completely.

Nonetheless I fashioned a number of these crutches, little ones and big ones, short one and tall ones, and positioned them under all the daphnes at various points, forcing the branches upwards but not too far. 

Lo and behold as the summer progressed, it became evident my little plant support operation was a success, and one of the more gratifying gardening experiences I've had lately.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: October 15, 2011

This Bloom Day caught me by surprise! It's a chilly, breezy autumn day in Minnesota, feeling normal after a year of unseasonal, atypical (but, hey, what's typical anymore?) weather.

A quick and cold tour of the garden finds dribs and drabs of color and hangers-on sputtering out a final attempt at carrying on the species. 

Time to put our kayaks away. Long shadows and golden light.      The Garden Buzz

Pee Gee Hydrangeas take on that antique shade of rose               The Garden Buzz

Shasta Daisy "Becky" flutters in the breeze

The rugosas have recuperated from Japanese Beetle damage

A lone delphinium defies the windy weather                   The Garden Buzz

Last of the dahlias                        The Garden Buzz

Hydrangea "Incrediball" aging into vintage green

This snapdragon looks unfazed by anything

Backlit seedheads of Joe-Pye Weed shining bright

A sleepy bee clings to the last of the zinnias                               The Garden Buzz

Winterberry "Red Sprite" hints of holiday things to come               The Garden Buzz

Always a melancholy mood in the garden this time of year. 

Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for the one and only original Garden Bloggers Bloom Day!

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: August 15, 2011

I'm going to go off the garden path this Garden Bloggers Bloom Day and do it a little differently. Usually I'm guilty of the same game the garden catalogs play, lots of colorful closeups and no full length views of the subject at hand. It's tempting to go in tight for the beauty shot. Maybe get out the macro.

I thought you might appreciate it a little less edited this time. I won't show all the warts and weeds, but you'll get a better idea of this garden I'm trying to make my own out here in the water, woods and wetlands.

My "office chair" on the porch

Across from the porch, I watch butterflies and hummingbirds on these zinnias

 Pee Gee Hydrangea blooming with courtyard beds in the background

Oops, I couldn't resist, Zinnia "Cool Crayon Colors"

Looking back towards the porch, Nodding Onion blooms attract bees and butterflies

Alliums along the path looking out to docks

Pole bean tower in the "hot mess" garden; a freeform, oft self-seeded veggie potager including Italian parsley, nasturtiums, signet marigolds, kale, beets and strawberries.

Beyond the beans, Joe-Pye weed blooming

Over the fence, the blooms of aquatic Duck Potatoes

Purple elderberries on the path by the pond

Further along Rudbeckia "Herbstsonne", phlox, and fading blooms of Invincibelle Spirit hydrangea

 Hang in there, we're halfway through!
Lots of bees browsing native Culver's Root

Reliable beauties, Annabelle hydrangeas with Nepeta Souvenir D'Andre Chaudon

Clethra "Ruby Spice" smells sweet

Swallowtail on lily

 

Black swallowtail on Mexican Sunflower, "Torch"

Rudbeckia "Cappuccino" started from seed with ornamental millet

 Warm sunset colors 

Out front, the blank canvas where my pine trees stood before a violent windstorm felled them. Check out my funky new stone wall. I'm studying the spot while I wait for it to "speak" to me and tell me what to plant. Any ideas?

 

 Uncommon annual, Cerinthe with blue-green foliage and dangling blue-purple buds

Not blooms but a beautiful combo, maidenhair fern and coleus

(Note the large mosquitos on wall above the container, it is Minnesota after all)

And finally, the blooms of Persicaria "Firetail", Joe-Pye Weed and Rudbeckia planted just outside my son's bedroom so that he might glance up from his laptop and perhaps see a hummingbird or butterfly. What a nice mama he has.

Hope you enjoyed the tour!!!

Happy National Pollinator Week!

Celebrate National Pollinator Week by planting trees, shrubs, flowers, herbs and fruits that attract and support these vital forms of wildlife. It's what puts the buzz in The Garden Buzz!

Check with your local extension office for lists of pollinator-friendly plants for your region, it's easy.

I've posted this article link below recently, however I'll repeat the link since it provides an emphasis on pollinators and their behaviors, along with plant information.

http://www.herbcompanion.com/gardening/attract-pollinators-to-your-garden.aspx

 

 

 

Landscaping with Native Plants: A Book Review

Checklist before leaving on vacation tomorrow:

1. Pack for all weather possibilities but hopefully WARM weather, woo-hoo.
2. Put houseplants in bathtub with instructions for hubby to water.
3. Get Henry dog bathed and take him to "boarding school" to learn better impulse control (not going ape-crap around unfamiliar people and pets) and general manners reminder. More peaceful and safer (ice ice baby) dog walks to follow, yea. 
4. All that other pesky pre-trip stuff
5. Write that book review for my blog.

Here's #5...

This book is targeted for Minnesota...HOWEVER I'm going to share some of the valuable non-regon specific advice it contains for those of you that don't live "up north".

First let me recommend this book to Minnesota and cold climate gardeners already growing or thinking about growing native plants. "Landscaping with Native Plants of Minnesota" (second edition) by Lynn Steiner is a thorough but easily digestible volume with lots of great information that identifies Minnesota's native plants and plant communities while showing home gardeners how to use them effectively.

Lynn Steiner is a longtime gardening editor,writer and photographer with more than twenty years of extensive gardening experience. She knows her stuff.

Landscaping with native plants has often been regarded as a messy, lazy method of gardening; looked down upon by neighbors and city councils alike. Lynn's tips can help you to design a landscape that is pleasing for humans and habitat. Here are a few...

• Maintain at least a small area of turf
• Use a buffer of grass or mulch between planted areas and sidewalks/streets so plants don't flop onto paved areas, making visitors uncomfortable
• Add embellishments such as sculpture and benches to make it look more like a garden and less like a field of weeds
• Use natives that are "more controllable" in their growth habit; these tend to be the clump-forming plants rather than spreaders.
• (Natural gardens have curvy lines, yet) Install some straight edges, either around garden beds or in the form of fences and paths

Along with real-world landscape photos (one of my friend's gardens is in the book) and comprehensive plant profiles with instructions for cultural and maintenance requirements, the book includes ideas for landscape placement and design concepts often lacking in other books on the subject. 

If you've been hesitant to work with native plants or if you're just starting to flirt with the idea...I highly recommend Lynn's book. If you already garden with native plants...send a photo, and I'll try to use it with a follow-up post.

Here's a few favorite natives from my garden...

Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)                The Garden Buzz 

Large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora)        The Garden Buzz

 

Serviceberry tree (Amelanchier laevis)        The Garden Buzz

 

 Wild ginger (Asarium canadense)             The Garden Buzz

 Red baneberry (Actaea rubra)                                     The Garden Buzz

Incrediball: The Hydrangea From the Big & Tall Shop

It's known as the "Annabelle on Steroids". This is one big hydrangea.

If you don't believe me when I say those blooms are huge, behold the hand-to hydrangea comparison in the photo.

 

My hands are not dainty or delicate yet they aren't quite hams. I like to think of them as sturdy Dutch peasant hands that slipped through the DNA from my paternal great-grandparents. They are not made for displaying jewels but for digging in the dirt. And I am more than fine with that.

Although I could have done with those slender Scots-Irish legs from my mother. Unfortunately the hands match the ankles.

The Incrediball was one of the most commented-upon shrubs of the garden tour this weekend. The general consensus was "Wow". I mentioned to most visitors that this was its first full season to bloom, as it started as a tiny trial sample from Proven Winners. It's always difficult to place these samples where they can benefit from the right conditions and spacing without leaving holes in your flower borders. I placed these in an undeveloped area and planted around them.

This area receives shade for a good part of the day and then a blast of hot southwestern sunshine. More impressive was, the not one but three gully-washers that left my regular Annabelles in a  flopsy-mopsy shambles, didn't harm the Incrediballs with their extra stiff stems in the least.

What I saw as perhaps a drawback to the Incrediball; large blooms at the middle with smaller outshoots almost like an apron around the lower part of the plant seemed to charm our guests. They felt there was no need to hide its legs in that respect.

Also note in the photo that Incrediball progresses to that same shade of vintage green as the blossoms age.

For fun I planted hardy hibiscus "David Fleming" close by the Incrediball. The luscious pink blooms that usually look Amazonian matched the large scale of the hyper-hydrangea. Extra-tall fennel and Shasta Daisies with a few smaller conifers give this new garden bed a Paul Bunyan kind of vibe. More evidence I'm going Minnesotan.

PS: Butterflies love them too!

Garden Tip of the Week: How NOT to Trim Your Lilacs

As we go about our lives everyday, we see minor gardening transgressions; trees scarred by weed strimmers, those high mulch collars smothering little saplings, and such. Then there are crimes against nature. Please witness exhibit A...

This is what's left of the beautiful lilacs down the road from my house. I have looked forward to their billowing lavender flowers every year. Unfortunately I saw a heap of trimmings on the lawn the other day and now this is all that remains.

Lilacs bloom on what is called old wood. Any pruning should be done immediately after they flower.  New buds will form soon and any late pruning will sacrifice next season's blossoms. Any other pruning to shape or renovate should be done using the rule of thirds. Never remove more than a third of the plant.

Renovation pruning goes in and removes selected older limbs from the bottom, leaving a good amount of newer branches to achieve balance.

In my last home, we lived in an older neighborhood that prized its parks. In fact, it was supposedly modeled after an English village.  With the vast, expansive lawns and wide streets, it was evident the founders hadn't lived in a real English village. I have. But it's the thought that counts.

Incorporated as a tiny town, we had our own parks commissioner. One year he visited London and came back inspired to transform our already-lovely landscapes into Hyde Park. He ordered all the shrubs bullied into balls and hedges, including the lilacs. For the next three years, until the lilacs regrouped, we had no blooms.

Life's too short to go without lilacs. Prune them properly, please.

8 Great Shrubs for Your Butterfly Garden

I never went to proper journalism school like my daughter, where they teach you how to make catchy headlines among other things. I just throw stuff out there and see what sticks.

Apparently people love lists and better yet, numbered lists. I may be one of the last few people who knew this. But thinking back, I reviewed my own habits and yes, I like lists too. I think lists are for our lazy side; we appreciate someone else ferreting out the information and distilling it down to the essence.

In a previous post I discussed the importance of trees for butterfly gardening. Shrubs have high wildlife value as well, in the form of flowers, seeds and fruit, and all those things make for beautiful seasonal interest too. Shrubs are easy to grow, plant them, maybe prune them every now and then, but mostly they're just good to go.

So here we go...

1. Ceanothus or New Jersey Tea:  Butterflies are attracted to the nectar in the fragrant white spikes of flowers. It's also a larval host plant for some species of azure and dusky wing butterflies. In addition, turkeys and quail eat the seeds of this native plant. During Revolutionary War times the gray green foliage was dried to make tea.
2. Rhus typhina or Staghorn Sumac: A statuesque native shrub with large fern-like foliage that turns bronze-red in fall. The distinctive flowers attract butterflies and the large seed-heads are favored by other forms of wildlife.
3.  Fothergilla or Witch alder: This shrub has something for every season; starburst shaped flowers that attract butterflies, fresh green serrated foliage and gorgeous fall color.
4. Lindera benzoin or Spicebush: The eponymous larval host plant of the Spicebush Swallowtail butterfly, this shrub grows in sun to partial shade but likes a moist soil. The blooms are small and pale yellow, eventually turning to glossy red fruit.
5. Clethra alnifolia or Summersweet: The fragrant racemes of white flowers are a welcome sight in July and August. Both butterflies and hummingbirds are attracted to these blooms. The brown capsule shaped seeds are valued by other wildlife as well. This shrub is adaptable to both sun and shade, and tolerates moist soil.
6. Amelanchier or Serviceberry: Is it a tree or a shrub? It can be grown as a single-stemmed small tree or a multi-branched large shrub. However it is grown, the flowers and fruit are important to pollinators and other wildlife. Lots of lacy white flowers adorn the branches in spring followed by dark purple fruit in fall. It is also a larval host plant to many butterfly species.
7. Cornus or Dogwood: There are many cultivars of this native plant that are invaluable as both a nectar plant and larval host to many butterflies. Pagoda Dogwood is a graceful variety that provides food for wildlife and structure to the garden.
8. Syringa or Lilac: This beautiful but tough plant should not be discounted. Laden with clusters of nectar-rich purple, pink or white flowers, it is an important source of first nectar come spring time.

Fothergilla "Mt. Airy"     (The Garden Buzz)

Spring flowers of Amelanchier or Serviceberry    (The Garden Buzz)

Snow covered seed heads of Rhus typhina or Staghorn Sumac   (The Garden Buzz)

There are lots of other deserving shrubs that missed the list, buttonbush and coralberry to name a few. Are there others that you would like to add?  Let me know! 
 

 

Top Ten Butterfly Plants: This List Might Surprise You

Turns out the best plants for attracting butterflies  to your garden are actually trees. I know! Who would have thought?

Frosty pines in my front yard    The Garden Buzz

File it under the "Well, how about that" category; it just proves that when you think you know it all, you really don't. After attending the Wild Ones native plant conference this past weekend, I've gained a much better understanding of plant/wildlife relationships, and while there was no wild behavior to report, I'm anxious to share some of the more astonishing aspects with everyone as you all plan your butterfly gardens this spring.

It's not that I didn't know that many trees are larval host plants necessary for butterfly survival, I just didn't know how big the numbers lean toward trees. Yet you've seen them, usually noted at the bottom of plant lists heavy at the top with bright candy-colored annual flowers touted as butterfly magnets, the trees sometimes asterisk-ed as afterthoughts.

 
Yellow sulphur on zinnia   The Garden Buzz

You can't blame us, because after all, it's right there on those flowers that we see the butterflies in our gardens. And we have the best intentions, wanting to provide nectar to the fragile and ephemeral creatures that light up our outdoor lives.

Keynote speaker, University of Delaware entomologist, Doug Tallamy, gave a thought-provoking talk about the food value of native landscapes to insects. While many people might think they want a bug-free yard, he explains, they still desire the presence of songbirds. You can't have one without the other. Put up all the bird feeders you like, insects make up a majority of bird diets, especially for raising young. And then there are all the other animals that depend indirectly upon them as well, like frogs, rabbits, foxes, humans and on and on. That whole circle of life stuff.

The crux of his talk focused on food webs and plant communities and how they relate to suburban backyards. Insects that evolved "eating local" for eons don't often recognize non-native species introduced from other continents. (Yes, some like Japanese beetles can adapt, in a big way) Most of the vast lawns and many of the specimen trees growing in our yards are truly alien to insects and might as well be plastic yard ornaments. How's that for an eye-opener?

But back to the list, the mind-blowing (for me at least) list. It shows the quantity of Lepidoptera (butterfly)species supported by each tree, shrub and perennial. These native trees used for shelter, overwintering, egg-laying, larval food and nectar source support 100-500. While most perennials averaged 30-40, with many of those butterfly magnets in the single digits.

Most Valuable Woody Plants for Butterflies

1. Oak (534)
2. Black Cherry (456)
3. Willow (455)
4. Birch (413)
5. Poplar (368)
6. Crabapple (311)
7. Blueberry (288)
8. Maple (265)
9. Elm (213)
10. Pine (203)

River birch dangling his "toes" in our pond     The Garden Buzz
 

Fritillary butterfly on swamp milkweed   The Garden Buzz 

However don't think the perennials and annuals don't have value. There are many butterflies that depend upon one, and only one plant for survival. I think that's material for another post. This one has gotten a little long.

Note that the list is for the Mid-Atlantic region, but every region save for some arid desert areas has the rough equivalent of these native trees, some translation might be required. To learn more, I highly recommend his book, Bringing Nature Home.

Well, what are you waiting for....go plant a tree!