Some recent and current blooms in my garden

Posted on 2008-07-07 by admin

Hemerocallis, Daylily, June 21, 2008

Just some quick photos of plants recently or currently blooming in my garden. The first few were taken two weeks aga.

Daylilies

I don’t “collect” daylilies, at least not the way I try to collect Hosta or native plants. We inherited a few with the gardens when we bought the house. For that reason, I consider them to be “passalong” plants: dependable, sturdy, hardy, tolerant of neglect, vigorous, and so on. I gave away several clumps this Spring. I’ll have more to give away over time.

Hemerocallis, Daylily, June 21, 2008

Native Plants

Ascelpias incarnata, Swamp Milkweed, June 21, 2008

Echinacea pallida, Pale Coneflower, June 21, 2008. This photo was used to illustrate “Coneflowers: America’s Prairie Treasures”, by Barbara Perry Lawton, in the Summer 2009 edition of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s “Plants & Gardens News.”

The Shady Path

In this short section of the shady path on the north side of the house, I have my two big-leaved monsters: Rodgersia pinnata, on the right, and Kirengeshoma palmata, on the left. The Rodgersia has a lot of drought damage from our heat wave a few weeks ago, but it’s off-frame of this photo. I’m keeping a close watch on the Kirengeshoma, as it also crisps up at the slightest hint of drought. There are buds on it now, which mature very slowly into waxy yellow bells. It benefits here from its location next to my neighbor’s mixed border, which gets watered by soaker hose.

Both of these plants are several years old, possibly even a decade. I’ve lost track of when I purchased them. They’re slow-growing, but continue to increase in size every year, despite never being divided in all that time. They are well worth the wait.

I used to keep the Kirengeshoma in a large container, which I could never water enough. It’s much happier in the ground. Both of these plants would prefer constant moisture. I have long-term plans to build a rain garden in the shady part of the front yard. When the time comes, both of these plants will be very happy there.

Nestled between them in the foreground is a small, yellow-leaved, purple-flowering Hosta. I’ve lost the id for this. I think it might be ‘Little Aurora.’ Any Hosta aficionados out there who can weigh in on what this might be?

Heirloom Canna

Last to share with you today is the Heirloom Canna ‘Mme. Paul Caseneuve’ blooming in a large, glazed container in the front yard. This is the same specimen that I grew for the first time last year. I overwintered it in the same container in an unheated, but enclosed, section of the front porch. I’m surprised it came back.

It doesn’t look as pink as I remember it from last year. The color is more apricot/salmony this year. At least it’s got the same bronze foliage.

Garden Blogging Bloom Day, May 2008

Posted on 2008-05-15 by admin

2012-01-14: Corrected ID of Bearded Iris ‘Gracchus’, which I had incorrectly id’d as I. neglecta.

Part of my backyard native plant garden.

It’s Garden Blogging Bloom Day, the 15th of the month, when garden bloggers all over the world report on what’s blooming in their gardens.

I’ve organized this by the four gardens, one for each side of the house: the native plant garden in the backyard, the shady and sunny borders on the north and south, and the heirloom garden in the front yard. The heirloom bulbs in the front yard are nearly done; just one Tulip lingers on. The wildflowers in the native plant garden have most of the action right now.

This is my first report for Garden Blogging Bloom Day. I didn’t get to take any shots specifically for this post. I’ve uploaded an added what I have. If there’s something in particular you’re curious to see, let me know in a comment.

Native Plant Garden

Wildflowers in the native plant garden

In alphabetical order by botanical name.

Amsonia tabernaemontana, Eastern Bluestar
Aquilegia canadensis, Eastern Columbine
Chrysogonum virginianum “Allen Bush”, Green & Gold
Dicentra eximia “Aurora”, white-flowering Eastern Bleeding Heart
Iris setosa canadensis
Lonicera sempervirens, Trumpet Honeysuckle
Phlox stolonifera “Sherwood Purple”, Creeping Phlox
Stylophorum diphyllum, Celandine or Woodland Poppy
Tiarella “Running Tapestry”
Viola, white-flowering, unidentified species, possibly Viola striata, Creamy Violet
Zizia aurea, golden zizia

Iris setosa canadensis

Lonicera sempervirens

Here’s the unknown violet. I think it’s Viola striata, Creamy Violet. Any ids?

Zizia aurea

Shady Border

Corydalis cheilanthifolia
Corydalis “Berry Exciting”
Epimedium x versicolor “Sulphureum”, Barrenwort
Rodgersia podophylla? This has a tall, 3-foot spike on it, and it’s still only in bud.

Epimedium x versicolor “Sulphureum”, Barrenwort

Sunny Border

Part of the sunny/long border

Geranium macrorrhizum, another pass-along.
Geranium macrorrhizum “Variegatum”
Bearded Iris “Dee’s Purple.” Not a real cultivar name, just what I call it. It’s a tall, purple Beared Iris, a pass-along I got from Blog Widow John’s mother’s (Dee) house in upstate New York after she died several years ago.
Tradescantia, Spiderwort, a pass-along I got from a neighbor

Geranium macrorrhizum

Iris “Dee’s Purple”

Heirloom Garden

Heirloom Bearded Iris ‘Gracchus’, introduced 1884
Tulip “Clara Butt” (Heirloom, 1880)
The Tree Peony just finished up a few days ago.

Heirloom Bearded Iris ‘Gracchus’, introduced 1884

Links

GBBD, May 2008, May Dreams Gardens

Grief & Gardening #7: The Garden of Memory

Posted on 2007-06-28 by admin

Yesterday afternoon I was in the East Village. I took a chance and went to visit the first garden I worked on in New York City. I haven’t seen it in nearly 15 years.

It’s not visible from the street. It’s behind a tenant-owned building on 1st Avenue. You’d never know it was there, like so many hidden garden treasures in the city.

The last time I had seen it was sometime shortly after I moved to Brooklyn in 1992. I went back twice. The first time, I saw that, despite neglect, the garden was holding its own. Some things had spread surprisingly well. The hardy Begonia grandis had escaped the bed and spread into the dry-stacked brick retaining walls and halfway across the brick path. By my second visit, someone had “weeded” the garden, removing all of the Begonia, not knowing what they had.

It was a little disheartening. My move to Brooklyn had been disruptive. I was not so much moving toward something as running away from and leaving behind – abandoning – much of my life. I had hoped the garden would continue without me. It seemed as if it might not.

When I went to visit it yesterday, my expectations were low. It could have been worse. I noticed the big changes first, then some details.

20 years ago, we planted a paperbark maple, Acer griseum, as the centerpiece of the garden. It was an outrageous purchase: $300 for a 6-foot tree. I was astonished that it was still there. It’s now huge, probably 20′ high and as wide, nearly filling the width of the backyard. I noticed some dead branches, but otherwise it seems healthy and vigorous. With a judicious pruning, it has decades ahead of it.

The holly which had graced the corner of the yard was overgrown, leaning out from both walls, racing the maple for the light. The two large Ailanthus which had shaded half the backyard were gone. Much of the garden was a rampant carpet of green, mostly Virginia creeper.

Closer inspection of the green told me not all was lost. I recognized the leaves of plants I had planted all those years ago. Epimedium, Cyrtomium, lotsa Hosta. There’s now a carpet of variegated Solomon’s seal. Toad lily. Climbing Hydrangea. I even saw the distinct blue-green scalloped leaves of bloodroot, growing yards from where I had planted it.

And, I was happy to see, the Begonia is still happily seeding itself around. It had not been extirpated after all.

So the garden is still there. In desperate need of weeding and shredding, but largely intact. My visions of what the garden could become, expressed through the selection and placement of plants, have drifted and blurred.

I lived in the East Village for 12 years before moving to Brooklyn. It was where I landed in New York City. Through this garden, the breakup of lovers was transmuted into friendship. New lovers courted in its embrace. I celebrated my 30th birthday there. Many of the others who helped build this garden, men who were my neighbors, died long ago. That garden holds them in my memory.

Garden Notes: The Bulbs of Spring

Posted on 2006-07-15 by admin

I was going to rake and mow the front lawn, but it just started raining. So instead I’m sitting in my tree fort (second floor back porch) and blogging again. Ordinarily a risky prospect, blogging in the rain, but it’s a gentle summer shower instead of our usual thunderous downpours, and there’s the slightest of breezes instead of the gales. And no hail this time. There’s a male cardinal high in the neighbor’s dogwood – brilliant red against the dark green summer foliage – cheeping and ruffling his feathers in the rain.

Of course, I’m thinking about February.

The spring bulbs! The spring bulb catalogs! How can I garden in the here and now when I already need to start worrying about how it will all look next year?

A couple of categories of bulbs I’m looking for to plant this fall for next year’s gardens:

Heirloom/Antique, available before 1905.
Variegated foliage (I have a thing for freaks).
Native plants.
Shady path and border.
Cut flowers.

There are a handful of bulb vendors I’ve come to know and trust:

McClure & Zimmerman. My all-time favorite. Great selection. Mainly just a listing of varieties. The catalog has no color photographs, just a scattering of botanical illustrations. I’ve been ordering from them since pre-Web days; their Web site now provides color photographs. Unfortunately, I’ve already missed their 10% discount cutoff date of June 30.
Van Engelen. The “wholesale” catalog of John Scheepers, they offer the same varieties to retail customers, but with minimum quantities of 25, 50 and more. The best source when you want to consume mass quantities for large drifts, bedding schemes and other instant garden effects. Or team up with neighbors and friends and buy in bulk and divide the spoils amongst yourselves. I like to order from them for large amounts of the smaller bulbs, such as Crocus.
Old House Gardens. One of my new favorites. A small, “boutique” outfit specializing in heirloom and antique bulbs. Personalized service. Emphasizes U.S. sources where available. Offers many varieties available from no other source.

So, by researching their catalogs, I’ve come up with the following wish lists. Mind you, I have not the money, the time, nor the space to plant all of these. We’ll see what I end up ordering, and planting.

Heirloom:

Allium atropurpureum, introduced 1800.
Allium sphaerocephalon, introduced 1594.
Anemone nemorosa var. Robinsiniana, circa 1870, also suitable for the shady path and border.
Canna “Cleopatra”, introduced 1895. Some leaves are striped with bronze, so it’s one of those freaks I covet. I ordered some from Select Seeds this year, but I don’t think it’s what I got: I won’t know for sure until they bloom, but the foliage shows no hint of bronze. Spring-planted. (Ordered from OHG)
Canna “Mme. Caseneuve”, introduced 1902. (Ordered from OHG)
Crocus angustifolius, Cloth of Gold Crocus, introduced 1587. (Ordered from OHG
Dahlia “Kaiser Wilhelm” (Ordered from OHG)
Gladiolus byzantinus, aka G. communis var. byzantinus “Cruentus”, Byzantine gladiolus, introduced 1629. (Ordered from OHG)
Gladiolus dalenii, aka G. psittacinus, G. natalensis, Parrot Glad, introduced 1830. Spring-planted, but hardy to zone 7, so it may winter over here. (Ordered from OHG)
Hyacinth “City of Haarlem”, primrose-yellow, introduced 1893.
Hyacinth “King of the Blues”, indigo-blue, introduced 1863.
Hyacinth “Lady Derby”, rose-pink, introduced 1883.
Hyacinth “Marie”, dark navy-purple, introduced 1860.
Hyacinth “Queen of the Blues”, introduced 1870. (Ordered from OHG)
Lilium auratum platyphyllum, Gold-band Lily, introduced 1862.
Lilium martagon “Album”, White Martagon Lily, introduced 1601.
Lilium pumilum, Coral Lily, introduced 1844, self-sows, so also suitable for the “wild” garden.
Lilium speciosum, introduced 1832.
Double Daffodil “Albus Poeticus Plenus, aka “Double Pheasant Eye”, introduced pre-1861.
Double Daffodil “Double Campernelle”, introduced prior to 1900.
Daffodil “Golden Spur”, introduced 1885.
Trumpet Daffodil “King Alfred”, introduced 1899.
Trumpet Daffodil “W. P. Milner”, introduced 1869.
Double Late Tulip “Blue Flag”, introduced 1750.
Tulip “Clara Butt”, introduced 1889. (Ordered from OHG)
Tulipa clusiana, introduced 1607. (Ordered from OHG)
Double Early Tulip “Kreoskop” (“frizzy-head”), introduced 1830.
Double Early Tulip “Peach Blossom”: Soft rose, honey scented, introduced 1890.
Single Late Tulip “Phillipe de Comines”: maroon-black, claret, introduced 1891.
Single Early Tulip “Prince of Austria”, scarlet maturing to almost-orange, fragrant, introduced 1860.
Single Early Tulip “Van der Neer”, violet-purple, introduced 1860.

Variegated:

Multi-flowered Tulip “Antoinette”: Pale lemon-yellow with pink edges, finishing salmon-pink, creamy-white margined foliage.
Double Late Tulip “Carnaval de Nice”: White blooms with swirling deep red stripes, white-edged foliage.
Viridflora Tulip “China Town”: Phlox pink with carmine-rose accents, moss-green flames, and a canary-yellow base, white-edged foliage.
Darwin Hybrid Tulip “Silverstream”: Variable, creamy-yellow diffused with rose and red, pink-and-white-margined foliage. I’ve grown this variety before, and it’s lovely.
Tulipa praestans “Unicum”, flowers orange-red, white-edged foliage. I grew this in the East Village garden. It’s very sweet, looking like a Hosta when the foliage first emerges.

Native:

Lilium superbum, American Turk’s cap lily, introduced 1665, so also suitable for heirloom garden. (Ordered from OHG)
Mertensia virginica, Virginia Bluebells, pink buds open to blue flowers, ephemeral, dying back for the summer. I don’t that this is really a “bulb,” but M&Z offers it in their catalog. I grew this in the wildflower section of the East Village garden, and it was always beautiful in the spring.
Sanguinaria canadensis, Bloodroot. A native relative of the invasive Celandine. Yet another wildflower I grew in the East Village garden, but, if I recall, in its double-flowered form. It looked like a small white water-lily emerging from the earth just before the leaves. I’d really like to find the double again. Another non-bulb M&Z offering.

Shade:

Cardiocrinum giganteum. Some day, I will have a place to grow this. I need to build my soil up for a few years, I think, before I try and tackle this monster.
Frtillaria meleagris var. alba, White-flowering Snake’s Head Fritillary. I’ve grown both the regular species, and this variety. The species is lovely, the white, sublime.

While I’ve been typing out here on the porch, I’ve also been visited by Blue Jays, Mourning Doves, and Monk Parakeets. Oh, and so-called “Rock Doves,” ie: Pigeons, the rats with wings.

The sun is out now, and it’s cooled off deliciously. Time to take the cat out for a walk and rake and mow the front lawn …

NYC Garden #1, The East Village, the 1980s: The Shade Garden

Posted on 2006-05-16 by admin

The East Village was the site of my first garden in New York City. My second lover in New York lived in a tenant-owned brownstone on First Avenue. When we were breaking up, he proposed a project for the two of us to work on together: turning the backyard behind the building into a garden. The space was dominated by two mature Ailanthus trees which, along with the buildings to the south, shaded the yard almost completely. On the ground grew nothing but liverworts and Ailanthus seedlings. In and on the ground were the remains of a back building which had been torn down a few years before.

I planned a simple asymmetrical loop of a path around the backyard. I identified a dozen different beds, based on their light exposure and site along the path. We started a compost bin. We weeded, and shredded and composted the remains. We sifted the soil to remove the building debris from the dirt. The soil level dropped by a foot in some places. We set aside the usable brick and stone. These became the paths and retaining walls of the new garden. We amended the dirt as best we could with organic fertilizers and bales of peat moss. (These days, I use coir, produced from the husks of coconuts during processing, instead of peat. Peat is not a renewable resource, and its harvesting destroys wetlands.)

We planted bulbs in the fall. I labelled everything. Friends remarked that it looked like a plant cemetery. In spring the first bulbs came up. We were ecstatic.

The garden continued to be developed and enhanced over the next few years by us, building residents, and other neighbors. One of the residents, a carpenter, built a deck over the broken concrete patio. One afternoon we had a load of topsoil delivered. Since there was no access to the backyard from the street, the truck dumped it all in a pile on the sidewalk. Neighbors pitched in and, with shovels, buckets, and a wheelbarrow, moved the soil through the building to a new pile in the garden. We learned about shade gardening. Wildflowers, ferns and hostas created a shady, green, cool oasis – a sanctuary from the noise and heat and, to be honest, stench of the street.

It took five years for the garden to feel completed. I continued to care for the garden until I moved to Brooklyn in the early 1990s. All my records and photographs of the garden over those years didn’t make it with me.

Flatbush Gardener

Urban Habitat Gardening with Native Plants

Tag Archives: Shade