Wednesday, December 29, 2010

garden addition: fire pit


My blog had a drought the entire fall season, but that doesn't mean I wasn't doing anything in the garden; I was just too busy to write about all that was happening! One of the garden projects we tackled was the addition of a fire pit.

This ended up being a fairly simple and economic project. Supplies purchased at the Home Depot, totalling $50, included: river pebbles, lava rock, and the 'decorative' concrete block surround. I already had a shovel at home, and Whit provided 95% of the labor.

We did not use 'fire-rated' concrete blocks, rather we opted for the type used mainly in constructing decorative retaining walls. Not being 'fire-rated' means a few pieces may crack over time and need to be replaced. The angled edges of the concrete block made the circle easy to achieve without any gaps in the border.

The location we selected is in the middle of our tiny back yard, which is slightly sloped. (Any fire pit should be at least 10' away from exterior walls) Our fire pit is approximately 2.5' in diameter, with a portion set into ground to accommodate the slope while keeping the top of the concrete surround level.

Once the 10 concrete blocks were placed along the edge, Whit dug down several more inches and we started filling in the pit with one bag of river pebbles followed by one bag of the larger lava rock. The lava rock was purely an aesthetic choice, but I think adds some authenticity.

The final elevation of the rocks sits several inches below the top of the concrete blocks. The fire pit works great! But if Whit had to do it over again, I think he would have made the pit even deeper, to accommodate larger pieces of wood. We will probably add another course of concrete blocks to achieve the same affect.

With the addition of a few camping chairs, our new outdoor entertaining area was complete! Of course, Whit wishes that our fire pit were larger (probably a guy thing). We were limited mainly by space and proximity to the house. I think the size is just perfect.

We had several fires throughout the fall and in to the winter. My hope is that this outdoor space will be used year-round. It will be interesting to see how the moss holds up to the foot traffic and heat, since it is too shady to grow grass in the back yard.

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Garden Year In Review



It has been months since I blogged about my garden so there’s lots to catch up on; and I thought I would review this year’s garden successes and failures. By all accounts, I was far more productive in 2010 than I had been in previous years. I may not have weeded as much as I could/should have, but I had a modicum of success with the hollyhocks, veggies, and herbs. Also, I hope to have some quality compost to add to the garden at the start of the next growing season.

Into the fall we enjoyed tomatoes, peppers, and fresh herbs. I definitely plan on growing Romas and Cherry tomatoes again, but I may look into other beefsteak and heirloom varieties since Big Boy and Mr. Stripey didn’t perform as well. Although by all accounts, this was a difficult year for growing tomatoes in my area. The unseasonably hot nights prevented the tomato flowers from pollinating and ergo many folks had smaller yields this year.

My tomato staking system worked well; at one point all of the tomatoes were taller than me and I had to attach them to nearby shrubs and walls for support. Just before the first hard frost, I harvested all of the remaining (green) tomatoes and brought them inside to ripen. We had home grown tomatoes ripening for almost two months after that!

I plan on growing more peppers, especially more hot peppers next season. The jalapenos were very successful. I may try my hand at a few other varieties including Serrano, Poblano, and Banana peppers too. The red peppers fruited so late that I wasn't able to harvest a red pepper, instead I plucked the ripening (green)peppers off the plants and made stuffed peppers with them. All of the homegrown peppers proved far superior to their store-bought counterparts.

The last of the parsley was harvested two weeks ago, as it was snowing; and I'm frequently cutting sprigs of fresh rosemary for various recipes. Next year I will keep cilantro seeds around to plant every few weeks as they will inevitably bolt before I’m able to make my homemade guacamole. Thanks little sis for my new mortar and pestle!

This fall’s garden maintenance mainly consisted of cutting back all perennials, veggies and taking out the tomato and pepper supports. This was made slightly more cumbersome by the mesh fencing I installed mid-growing season. Using two of my favorite garden accessories, West County waterproof gloves and Felco pruners, this task took about fifteen minutes.

[It’s important to note that like rose clippings, tomato plant refuse shouldn’t be composted because there is a high likelihood of diseases outliving the composting process. I have decided to burn such debris in our fire pit.]

The reason the West County gloves are worth mentioning is that not only are they waterproof and washable, they’re warm. It is still easy to grasp things and do slightly detailed garden work year round. Also, the insulating material makes pruning tasks blister free!

The Felco’s are garden essentials and with proper cleaning and sharpening should last a lifetime; all parts are replaceable. The ergonomic Felco 6’s fit my petite hand very well and are the best pruners I have ever used. This size easily cuts through branches 3/4" thick. But one should be careful, they are very sharp and powerful; I have inadvertently cut through a small rock with these pruners before.

I have daffodil bulbs to plant if I could find the time when the ground wasn’t frozen. October through December is the best time to plant spring-blooming bulbs. The two varieties I have to plant are ‘Ice Follies’ and ‘Mount Hood’. 'Ice Follies' is a large white daffodil with a bright yellow center. 'Mount Hood' opens up a pale yellow, and then quickly becomes an all white giant trumpet. Both of these naturalize readily and perform well in the south.

Typically, I like to see daffodils planted in large swaths (anywhere from 500-1500) to create a bold statement in the spring. Since my gardening area is so small, I will be planting mere handfuls of them here and there. Van Engelen is an economical source for large quantity orders; another daffodil source I use is Brent and Becky's Bulbs.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

corn, corn, everywhere, but not a kernel to eat


Freddie and his siblings flew the coop a few weekends ago. On Friday night, all four were in the nest. On Saturday morning, there was only one baby bird. By Saturday afternoon, there were none. Thus concludes our short stint as baby bird guardians. I wonder if bluebirds come back to where they were born to lay their eggs?

Just when I think the garden is winding down, my red bell pepper starts fruiting like crazy. I think this was caused by my pinching it back a few weeks ago, I was tired of it growing and growing without setting fruit. I hope there’s enough time for them to mature.

The ‘Black Cherry’ tomato is doing well and still producing lots of little tomatoes. The ‘Roma’, ‘Big Boy’, and ‘Mr. Stripey’ are still producing fruit, but it has been weeks since we were able to harvest a tomato (tomato thief). If they get close, I may just pull them off the vine early and let them ripen inside.

In the last big storm we had, the top of my large Butterfly Bush toppled over; so I had to cut it back and it looks a little unsightly. That hasn’t seemed to discourage any of the butterflies, luckily. I’ll have to do a better job of pruning this fall when I can really see its structure.

The Roses Of Sharon are completely hitting their stride now. At first I was disappointed in the lilac blooms; but now I’m overjoyed because I have three different colors at once. The white blooms which I love and remind me of my grandparents are now flowering alongside the lilac and pink blooming shrubs. It’s a beautiful palate of colors.

The Evening Primrose is STILL blooming, especially now that our evening temperatures are cooling off. That plant has got to be near the top of my “no maintenance required list.” Other no maintenance all-stars include the Oakleaf hydrangea and catmint that I have in the front beds and have basically neglected all season, but you’d never know!

Summer is definitely winding down. We’ve had a few evenings where temps dipped down into the low 60’s! I love the cooler weather, but I’m missing the long days of summer already. However, fall is one of my favorite times of the year; what with grilling out and college football, does sit get any better?

I’ve started reading ‘Omnivore’s Dilemma’, by Michael Pollan. This has been on my ‘plan to read’ list for sometime. I had read Pollan’s ‘Botany of Desire’ years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Despite the craze, I had put off reading ‘Omnivore’s Dilemma’, mainly because I thought it was an anti-meat eating campaign. So far though, the focus has been primarily on corn.

Turns out corn is in almost EVERYTHING: it feeds our livestock, fills our gas tanks, creates our processed foods, sweetens our sodas, and on and on and on. Corn and its cheap (government subsidized) products have a lot to do with our country's obesity and diabetes issues too. Not to mention our dependence on petroleum...

And while it’s not altogether new information, it has reminded me why it’s such a good idea to buy organic when possible. I prefer grass-fed beef (I felt like they were probably happier cows than feed-lot steer); but it wasn’t until reading this book that I was faced with the health and ecological consequences associated with the feed lots.

I’m finished with the first third of the book, having mostly to do with corn. The following are some of my notes from the book in the hopes that I may interest others in reading it. If you eat meat, shop in a grocery store, or have concerns about our reliance on fossil fuels, it’s a must read. Needless to say, I’ll be abstaining from chicken nuggets and reading more ingredient labels in the future!

 Government subsidies acct for nearly half of an Iowa corn farmer’s income.
 Without humans to plant corn every spring, modern corn would disappear from the earth in just a few years because it physically cannot reproduce on its own.
 Fritz Haber, the “father of chemical warfare” discovered how to synthesize ammonia while working on dirty bombs for WWI. His discovery, which won him a Nobel Prize, allowed us to fix nitrogen to the soil and completely revolutionized our industrial food chain.
 It takes more than a calorie of fossil fuels to produce a calorie of food in our industrialized agricultural food chain.
 Cargill is the largest privately held corporation in the world; Cargill and ADM combine to purchase 1/3 of all American corn.
 3/5 of our corn ends up on American factory farms, being eaten by primarily cows, who are not corn eaters by nature. Corn fed cows are problematic; this diet makes the cows sick, creates antibiotic and acid resistant bacteria, and creates a toxic waste dump of their feces.
 1/5 of America’s petroleum consumption goes to producing and transporting our food.
 From birth to slaughter (1200 pounds), a cow will consume the equivalent of 35 gallons of fuel, that’s a nearly a barrel.
 1/10 of our corn crop ends up in our gas tanks.
 The chicken nugget, invented in 1983 is the reason chicken has surpassed beef as America’s favorite meat.
 Of the 38 ingredients in a chicken nugget, 13 can be derived from corn.
 The most alarming chicken nugget ingredient: TBHQ; this toxic preservative is derived from petroleum and is a suspected carcinogen and known mutagen, tumorigen, and reproductive effector.


photo credit

Friday, August 20, 2010

a bird in the hand...


The focus of this blog posting is not a plant, but rather a precious animal that came into our lives this week. Freddie, as we have come to call him, is a baby blue bird that I found outside the back door Tuesday night. He was on his back and thrashing about just steps from where I park my car in the driveway. (It should be noted that we aren’t quite sure what this bird’s sex is, but he looked like a Freddie to me so we just went with it).

It took me a few seconds to realize he was a baby bird, because he didn’t even have all his feathers yet. Once I turned him over on to his belly (I was wearing gloves), he immediately fell back on his side, and started making the sweetest chirping sounds I’ve ever heard. Evidently, this little guy could barely even walk. I cradled him in my hands and he rested there, silent and exhausted. I have no idea how long he had been struggling.

I placed him, gloves and all inside the mesh fencing that surrounds the tomatoes, thinking he would at least be safe from most predators until I could figure out what to do. I called Walden’s Puddle*, a fabulous resource for injured and orphaned wild animals in middle Tennessee, and left a message.

Their outgoing message had some extremely helpful information. As per their instructions I looked for a nest but couldn’t find one. (It was getting dark, and there are not many tree branches that could be easily reached.) They recommend bringing nestlings inside overnight, and keeping them in a small box with rags.

When Whit got home, we went to work making an appropriate box/shelter for him and relocating him inside. It’s really important not to handle baby birds very much, they are so fragile. I was surprised at how involved Whit wanted to be with helping this baby bird. I could tell Freddie had gotten to Whit too, and we were both going to do what we could to help this little guy.

[It’s important to differentiate nestlings from fledglings, since fledglings should be left alone. Nestlings are baby birds without all their feathers that spend all of their time in the nest being fed and staying warm. Fledglings are baby bids that are fully feathered and experimenting with flight, while being watched from afar by their parents.]

Have you ever heard that momma birds will abandon their young because of the scent of a human? This is a myth! The only time a mother might abandon her young because of human interference is if she sees her eggs have been tampered with, because this means a predator may be nearby.

I could tell Freddie was hungry; Nestlings are usually fed once an hour. So as per Walden’s Puddle’s instructions, we attempted to feed Freddie soggy dog food. In this way, as Whit pointed out, even Cooper was helping our foster bird child. We put a small amount on the tips of our fingers and Freddie sucked away. Feeding Freddie was one of the sweetest things I’ve ever been a part of, Whit even got a little misty-eyed.

The next challenge was keeping him warm. Walden’s Puddle suggests placing a heating pad under the box, but we didn’t have one available. My electric range top stays warm when the oven is on, so we kept the oven on low all night and set Freddie’s box on top of the electric range. (Whenever I start to tell this part of Freddie's story, people always have the most horrified look on their face when I mention the word oven.)

On Wednesday morning, Freddie awoke with even more energy than the night before. It was surreal to hear a bird chirping in the kitchen. I was thrilled that he had made it through the night. We fed him some more, and I decided to work from home until Walden’s Puddle called me back and I could drop him off there.

But I was still determined to figure out where this little guy had come from, and set out to find the nest once more. Low and behold, I found it! It was in a flower pot about halfway up the Baker’s rack I keep on my deck by the back door. There in the back of the pot was a nest made out of moss, and three baby birds that looked just like Freddie!

This would mean that Freddie fell out of the nest (several feet down), somehow got to the edge of the deck (about 6’ away), and then fell another few feet down to get to where I found him. I was skeptical that he could do all this maneuvering but this had to be his nest! I called Whit at work to let him know and set about reuniting Freddie with his family.

I took a few last pictures of Freddie and then placed him back in the nest with his siblings. I peeked out the window a few hours later and saw what I presume to be the momma bird, worm in mouth, making her way to the nest. I wish the nest was positioned in such a way that we could watch the goings on from inside, but alas we cannot.

A few hours later, Whit asked me how Freddie was doing and I looked out the window to see a little baby bird trying to stand up on the deck floor. I’m pretty sure Freddie had fallen out of the nest again. I quickly picked him up and put him back in his nest and started fretting about whether that had been the right nest, whether his siblings/mom had rejected him.

On Thursday, Whit counted FOUR baby birds in the nest and I was so relieved. Come to find out, blue birds often build their nests about 4’ off the ground. Also, they can have several broods a season and the older siblings typically help care for the new babies. It makes me feel better imagining an extended of family of birds watching over these 4 precious babies.

I’m hopeful Freddie and all the nestlings stay in the nest until they have more feathers and/or start to practice flying under the tutelage of their bird parents. I'm excited and nervous about watching Freddie and his siblings practice flight. I definitely feel like I have a vested interest in this brood and their well-being, and I look forward to updating everyone on their status.

A big ‘thank you’ to Walden’s Puddle* for providing us with the information necessary to help Freddie. It is such a wonderful non-profit organization, which like many these days is struggling to make ends meet. They are actually having a fundraiser this weekend, tickets and information can be found here.

*Walden’s Puddle is a non-profit organization dedicated to the rehabilitation of wildlife by providing treatment and care for sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife, as well as encouraging education which promotes a greater understanding and appreciation for wildlife and its habitat. Walden’s Puddle is unique in being the only professionally staffed non-profit organization and wildlife rehabilitation facility in Middle Tennessee.

Walden’s Puddle is properly chartered as a charitable non-profit corporation by the State of Tennessee and is approved by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501c3 organization. All donations are tax deductible. 615-299-9938 / P.O. Box 641 Joelton, TN 37080

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

guarding my garden!


Despite the 4’ tall mesh fencing, some critter/person is still nabbing all of my ripe Roma and Big Boy tomatoes, and stomping all over my Sedum in the process. For whatever reason, the Black Cherry’s have remained safe, and I’m hoping Mr. Stripey will look so strange to the tomato thief that those will be passed by as well.

I think I reached the peak of exasperation last week when once again we realized we had been had; without sign of a struggle with the fence or remnants of the ill-gotten treasure, it was gone without a trace. I became convinced that stealing someone’s vegetables was the lowest form of larceny, and began devising plans for video surveillance of the garden.

Maybe garden surveillance is a bit extreme, but short of that I'm running out of options. The 'Roma' and 'Big Boy' are still growing so much and I'm hopeful that I will be able to harvest just a few more this season. They are growing so much in fact that I had to use the nearby Butterfly Bush branches for support!

It is extremely frustrating to not be able to enjoy the proverbial ‘fruit’ of my labor, and equally frustrating that I’m not able to share with friends and neighbors. On a positive note, I have discovered that grilling cherry tomatoes is absolutely fabulous. We now put them on skewers with other chopped veggies and they have such a great flavor!

The basil is kicking it up a notch and the Rose of Sharon has really hit its stride too. My peppers have slowed down, and I finally cut back the Baptisia. Thankfully, I was able to collect some Hollyhock seeds before I cut them back to the ground; I’ll start those in the greenhouse this fall.

I have especially enjoyed watching the Monarch butterflies flutter around the Butterfly Bush lately. To watch them float around the lilac blooms is like witnessing an ethereal dance that defies gravity. Their elegant movements will mesmerize any visitor to the garden. These are truly amazing animals and I feel honored to host them on their migration.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

reap what you sow


This image is the bloom from a Rose of Sharon that seeded itself next to my deck in the back of my house. It was a pleasant surprise and a welcome ‘Good Morning’ from the garden when I let the dog out this morning.

Recently, I have been reading the book ‘grace from the garden: changing the world one garden at a time’, written by Debra Landwehr Engle. It’s full of inspirational gardening stories and I highly recommend it. In one of the last chapters of the book, I read the following garden poem:

for the garden of your daily living:
plant three rows of peas,
1. peas of mind
2. peas of heart
3. peas of soul

plant four rows of squash,
1. squash gossip
2. squash indifference
3. squash grumbling
4. squash selfishness

plant four rows of lettuce:
1. lettuce be faithful
2. lettuce be kind
3. lettuce be patient
4. lettuce really love one another

no garden is without turnips,
1. turnip for meetings
2. turnip for service
3. turnip to help one another

to conclude our garden, we must have thyme.
1. thyme for each other
2. thyme for family
3. thyme for friends

water freely with patience and cultivate with love. there is much fruit in your garden because you reap what you sow.

tomato thief


We have a tomato mystery on our hands presently. At first, a ripe ‘Big boy’ tomato went missing from the vine. I chalked it up to perhaps a critter or hungry neighbor. But today I have discovered that 2 ripe Roma tomatoes were swiped from the vine. I am at a loss.

If it is a critter, than how do they know the precise moment that the fruit is ripe and why are there no left over tomato parts strewn about the garden and lawn? And why would a hungry/thirsty critter ignore the seemingly more manageable ‘Black Cherry’ tomatoes which remain unscathed?

I have more questions than answers, but I have a plan. I will put up some kind of wire or netting to discourage any potential critters. And then if I still see ripe tomatoes go missing I will have to assume that a tomato thief of the human variety is involved.

There are still many green Roma tomatoes ripening, and even a few more Big Boy tomatoes that should be ready soon. The ‘Black Cherry’ tomatoes continue to perform well and I probably harvest about 4 everyday. I’ve had to improvise support for the Black Cherry’s by tying twine to the electrical meter support since they’ve outgrown the 5’ stakes.

Mr. Stripey still has no fruit, but lots of flowers! And I’m hoping the bell peppers start growing more fruit soon. For a few days we feasted on jalapeño peppers from the garden and they were SO hot. I think they were the hottest jalapeños I’ve ever put in my mouth. I wonder if home-grown = hotter?

The ornamentals are doing well too. Half of the Rose of Sharon is blooming really well. The Black-eyed Susan’s and Butterfly Bush are blooming like crazy. And there are no pest or disease problems to speak of. Things are good in the garden, but I do wish it would rain more often!

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

le jardin de pizza


It has been 3 weeks since my last blog post and all I can say is I’ve been busy; and so has my garden. Last night we made a pizza using homegrown Roma tomatoes, basil, and bell peppers. It was so delicious, it has inspired this ‘pizza garden’ blog!

Part of the reason I have been too busy to blog was that I read 'My Life in France' in record time for my first book club meeting. Julia Child's book was absolutely delightful in every way; I felt as though I was travelling and eating all over France with her, ergo the blog's title. [Pizza, however, was not a part of her French culinary escapades.]

Pizza gardens are gardens that simply contain the ingredients one may want to put on a pizza. Looking into it, I found that ‘pizza gardens’ all usually contain at least tomatoes and basil. The rest of the ingredients/plants could include sweet peppers, hot peppers, oregano, onions, parsley, eggplant, scallions, rosemary, jalapeños, cilantro, spinach, etc.

This theme could be wildly popular with kids too; picture a raised vegetable/herb garden actually in the shape of a pizza pie, with dividers made to look like ‘slices’ of pizza! It was a lot of fun enjoying the ‘fruits’ of my vegetable garden labor. And as the Roma’s continue to ripen and the garden yields more peppers, I hope to try another pizza soon!

There are ‘Black Cherry’ tomatoes ripening everyday, from the bottom of the plant upward. That tomato plant is now almost 7’ tall. I also harvested my first ‘Big Boy’ tomato over the weekend and will be trying that soon. ‘Big Boy’ only has a few more tomatoes ripening so I’m a little disappointed in its yield.

‘Mr. Stripey’ has yet to produce any fruit, but I am hopeful as it continues to grow and flower. The other no-name tomatoes are still growing, but remain fruitless as well. The jalapeño plant is producing lots, though I have yet to actually try one. And the red bell pepper is growing like a weed, but hasn’t set fruit yet.

The Black-eyed Susan’s are blooming profusely, and look great next to the sedums which are finally flowering. The butterfly bush and Verbena are flowering nicely as well. Although I was surprised that the butterfly bush I relocated across the drive has a lighter bloom color, almost a soft pink/purple as opposed to the lilac of the parent plant.

The Rose of Sharon are starting to bloom more, but are darker in color than I was expecting. Now, the blooms are lilac with a darker, magenta eye. The hollyhocks have completely petered out and I see no signs of seed pods so I’ll be cutting them all back soon.

The mint is almost taking over that planting bed, but it is nice to smell. The evening primrose is still blooming, and its fragrance is light and lovely in the evenings. We’ve received plenty of rain lately, so I’ve been able to cut back on watering. Also, our mid-to-upper 90 degree days have cooled slightly. Until next time, happy gardening!

the image used above is not my creation, instead i found it here.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Cooper, my garden companion


Whenever I garden, my trusty watch dog is looking out for me. At the top of our hill, Cooper sits and keeps watch over the goings on of the street below. Now he may be simply looking for squirrels to chase, but I think he is genuinely looking out for me and our homestead while I am busy gardening away.

He sits there, at attention, sometimes for hours. And he always resumes his post in the exact same spot. Occasionally, he will take advantage of my inattentiveness to slip off and play with the neighborhood dogs or chase squirrels. For the most part though, he is my constant garden companion and watch dog.

I was pleased to discover a plant that I thought might be a ‘weed’, turned out to be garden phlox (Phlox paniculata). I had kept several of this tall plant with strap-like leaves in the hope it was something worth keeping and I’m really glad I did. They bloomed bright fuchsia this week, and after passing the ‘phlox test,’ I knew I had something special.

What is the ‘phlox test?’ I believe Dr. Alan Armitage taught me this, but I’m not totally sure. Basically, if you pull the flower petals out of the stem and they remain as one flower unit instead of separate petals, than you have a phlox. Seems elementary (and it is) but I have found this technique very useful in plant identification. After all, there are hundreds of phlox species ranging from groundcovers to 4’ tall perennials, and a wide variety of flower color.

Bright fuchsia is not a color I would have ever picked for my garden, but I love it. It’s so vivid and eye-catching. This phlox is supposed to bloom throughout the summer and into the fall. We’ll see how it looks with the other summer blooming flowers…

The tomatoes and herbs are doing well. The Black Cherry’s are the first tomatoes to start turning a reddish color. My singular jalapeño fell off the plant, so picked it up and may try it out soon in some cooking, despite it’s small size (about 1 ½” long). I need to fertilize the veggies again, maybe today. I try and fertilize a few times a week with a liquid fertilizer.

I’m still a little befuddled by the Hollyhocks and Rose of Sharon. The Hollyhocks bloomed well, but only bloomed white. And the Rose of Sharon (there are five plants in total) have had less than three blooms combined. I have neighbors with Rose of Sharon’s that are covered in blooms.

I have found many tips for improving my Hollyhocks next year, like pinching off new growth a few times before flower buds appear. And I can also conceive that since this is the first growing season the Rose of Sharon have been in the ground, maybe they are focusing more on foliage than flowers. Bottom line, these plants may just need more sunlight.

This is an unfortunate conclusion, because I have only one ‘full sun’ planting bed. And it’s getting very crowded as is. But alas, since these Hollyhocks and Rose of Sharon are so important to me, I’m sure I’ll be relocating some to the west side planting bed this fall.

Another Hollyhock issue that has developed is Hollyhock Rust (Puccinia malvacearum). This fungus is characterized by yellow-orange bumps throughout the leaves and stalks of the plant. At this point, there’s not much I can do except remove unsightly foliage.

In the fall I will be sure to cut back the Hollyhocks hard and destroy all foliage instead of composting. I may consider an early spring fungicide application as well as spread the plants out more to improve circulation.

My garden is on the cusp of having lots of blooms and veggies by the end of the month. I hope I can keep up with all of the watering until then. It’s been topping out in the mid-nineties here lately with rain showers few and far between.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

tall tomatoes and such



Now my tomatoes are taller than me, 5'-5". Well Big Boy and Black Cherry are at least, with Roma (pictured) right behind. Mr. Stripey had a later start and I’ve even relocated him once so I’m not surprised his growth is dwarfed by the others. I may have to buy several more, larger stakes to secure the three larger tomatoes, which continue to reach for the heavens.

The three large tomato plants all have multiple baby tomatoes that grow larger and more numerous everyday. I need to prune out some of the excessive foliage and suckers ASAP. And, I have a baby jalapeño! So far, however, that’s my only pepper.

I won’t be posting photos of my herb pot anytime soon, it has seen better days. The thyme is doing great and the parsley is fine, the variegated basil even looks to be making a comeback. But the cilantro has ‘gone to seed’ and looking worse each day. I’m hoping I’ll be able to harvest some coriander, but I’m not holding my breath.

I have planted a new basil plant and hope to add others as I count more tomatoes everyday! The Rosemary is doing great and has probably doubled in size since I planted it earlier this year. And the mint is going gangbusters, taking over the driveway planting bed.

Also in the driveway planting bed, the last remaining Hollyhock flower buds are blooming. Still all white! And the Rose of Sharon (pictured) has begun to bloom! I have counted only two blooms so I’m hoping for more. It is one of my all-time favorite flowers; admittedly this may be because they remind me of my grandparents, but nonetheless, gorgeous.

Back across the drive, in the west side planting bed, the Black-eyed Susans have begun to bloom. They will look great alongside the pinkish reds of the sedums and daylilies close by. Along with the tiger lilies, the pink/red, orange, yellow combination is actually quite lovely.

Also, I have discovered that a beloved annual, Verbena bonariensis, has reseeded itself. While not the most ideal location (in the front of the flower border), it’s a welcome surprise! This annual has rose purple flower clusters at the end of slender square stems growing 4’ or more in height.

I prefer this plant in the back of the flower border, and often pinch it back a few times to induce a more compact habit. Once it starts blooming, you will have color on into the fall. Another benefit is this plant attracts butterflies and gold finches. The only downside is an occasional powdery mildew episode; if this occurs, I just cut back all affected foliage.

And finally, a favorite perennial planted on the bank at the rear property line, the evening primrose (Oenothera), has begun to bloom! I don’t know much about this plant, but I’m delighted that it seems to have spread and I now have at least twice as many plants as last year. [I believe it spreads by seed, because one popped up in a nearby pot.]

I’m amazed that this inconspicuous plant has thrived where it has, competing with the likes of ivy and euonymus. As the name suggests, swirls of buttery yellow blooms open up after the sun goes down. It’s great in combination with the tiger lily; especially since they both bloom at a height of 3-4’. The flowers are truly beautiful, and the perfect crescendo to a summer day.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

baby tomatoes!


While replacing the tomato stakes last weekend, I discovered I had baby tomatoes! There are baby Roma’s, and Black Cherry tomatoes. Still no fruit on any of the pepper plants or Big Boy and Mr. Stripey, but all have flowers. I think I’m still on track to be harvesting the first tomatoes at the end of the month.

The status of the herb ‘garden’ is virtually unchanged. I did have an opportunity to use some mint in a recipe I tried last week, Jamie Oliver’s ‘mini shell pasta with a creamy smoked bacon and pea sauce’ from his book, Food Revolution. It turned out quite well, click here for a link the recipe.

The Hollyhocks are still blooming (all white) and while I get annoyed with the mint most of the time, it is nice to have something covering up the Hollyhock’s unsightly legs. Also in the driveway planting bed, there are many flower buds forming on the Rose of Sharons, and the butterfly bush and black eyed susan’s that I relocated to the driveway bed are also doing well.

Out front, the Hellebores still have flowers, and the Oakleaf Hydrangeas are doing so well. This seems to be a particularly good year for hydrangeas in our area. ‘Not of this World’ is the first of my Daylilies to bloom, and the tiger lilies are still going strong. In the west side planting bed, the sedum is also about to bloom.

I’ve only had to water a few times all season, thankfully; that has saved time and money. I’m still fertilizing the veggies and herbs once or twice a week with a liquid fertilizer, but that’s really the only maintenance I’ve had time for lately.

the tiger lily: a welcome volunteer



Now the tiger lilies (Lilium) are blooming! A native of Asia, this plant has naturalized ditches and hillsides all over North America. I am happy to welcome it in my garden, though I keep it restricted to the very back of my west side border. It also is sprinkled all over the bank at the rear property line, where it receives no maintenance from me.

The beautifully detailed orange bloom stands tall, at about 3 ½ feet. The foliage is a medium green and looks similar to that of the Daylily. It is a nice transition between the spring and summer blooming flowers and the color complements most any other flower in the garden. These volunteers can be aggressive, and seem to spread by underground rhizomes.

Because of the foliage, and the name ‘Lily’, I had assumed that this plant was a cousin to the Daylily (Hemerocallis). After my experiment, however, I’m thinking that’s about all they have in common. Daylilies make a poor choice for the cut flower garden, with blooms lasting only a day (hence the name). I wondered how the tiger lily would do as a cut flower…

I was already cutting back some of my Baptisia to make more room for the veggies when I realized how nicely the Baptisia foliage complimented the Tiger Lily bloom. So I grabbed a vase and cut off a stem of Tiger Lily flowers and buds and added the Baptisia fronds. Instantly, I liked the combination, but knew it probably wouldn’t last.

To my surprise, the Baptisia leaves still look great, nearly a week later. The Tiger Lily flowers and buds continued to bloom for days (the blooms close up at night). It ended up being a great, long-lived cut flower combination!

[The photo on the pavement was the initial arrangement, and the photo on the deck was taken after several days.]

Friday, May 28, 2010

oh happy day


Well it’s happened; my hollyhocks have begun to bloom. This is a momentous occasion. Just think, twenty one months ago I was harvesting Hollyhock seed from the stand of flowers outside of THE Hollyhock house, and now I have my own stand of blooming Hollyhock flowers!

These flowers are descendents of the very flowers that Frank Lloyd Wright himself may have planted but certainly planned for and gazed upon. I feel like I have a small piece of exquisite American architectural history growing right here in my Nashville garden. It has been a long journey but totally worth it.

Right now, there are only two white flowers blooming, but I’m hoping that some other colors will show up soon. The flowers at the Hollyhock House ranged from pale pink to rosy-pink. I guess now I’ll research how they are pollinated so that I can have some more seeds to plant for next year.

I think packaging and selling seeds from the flowers at the Hollyhock House would be an amazing fund-raising opportunity for the Hollyhock House. If you’ve been there, you know they need every dollar they can get for restoration and maintenance. I think I’ll send them a note right now!

Thursday, May 27, 2010

got water?


Ironically, since the great flood of 2010, the city of Nashville has been short on water. One of our two water treatment facilities was badly damaged during the flood. In addition to our reservoirs being wiped out, our treatment capacity was down 50%. Since then, we have been on various levels of water restriction.

It rained last night for about 30 minutes, thank goodness. We are still under water restrictions and unable to water landscape plants. However, since my boyfriend ‘outed’ my illicit water usage to a neighbor at a cook-out last night, I will freely admit here that I have watered a few plants with tap water in recent weeks.

The plants I’m illegally watering happen to be my (4) tomato and (3) pepper plants which I’m hoping will be excused since they are ‘crops’ that we will draw nourishment from. Besides, I’m merely using a Yazoo growler which I carry by hand from the kitchen to the garden. There are no hoses involved!

I still remain vigilant in all other realms of water conservation and plan to use any water caught in outdoor containers to water the garden. I wasn’t even going to mention the time someone I live with forgot about the water restrictions and cleaned out his cooler with the hose in the driveway…

But in all seriousness, this water restriction has had a huge impact on our local community. This week, car washes in Davidson County were allowed to re-open for a few hours each day. Along with car washes, many other businesses have been hit hard by the water restrictions. If you own or work for a pressure washing company, pool company, irrigation company, or landscape company, your livelihood is probably in jeopardy.

I was talking to a neighbor from Australia last weekend about the water restrictions. She said that water restrictions like the ones we’ve been living with for a few weeks are a way of life in parts of Australia. In fact, the local government tests the amount of water in your soil and will fine you if the water content is too high!

Our water reservoirs have stabilized to 85%, and they say the other water treatment facility will be operational within the next week. I sure hope it is. But in the meantime the water restrictions have been a good reminder of what we should be doing anyways, conserving water.

bugs are gone!



The ant/aphid infestation on my Rose of Sharon is completely gone. And since spraying my hollyhocks with Sevin I haven’t seen any more hollyhock sawfly larvae chomping away. They still haven’t bloomed, but I’m hopefully every day when I come home from work to catch a glimpse of color.

Last weekend I removed a portion of my Black-eyed Susan’s in the west side planting bed to make room for two more pepper plants and give my rosemary some more space. In addition to the new red and green bell peppers, I also planted an heirloom tomato in the driveway planting bed. I’m hoping it will get enough sun there, because I’m running out of space elsewhere.

Mr. Stripey, as he’s called, is an old-fashioned beefsteak that will have yellow and red stripes outside and mostly yellow coloring inside the fruit. It has tiny leaves and the flavor is supposed to be sweet and mild. We’ll see in approximately 56 days!

I think I initially underestimated the support my tomatoes would require. But now I regret skimping on the stake size, because my ‘big boy’ and ‘black cherry’ tomatoes have already grown almost to the top of their stakes. So, I will have to purchase taller/stronger stakes to support these veggies and re-tie all of the tomatoes. Bummer.

I also (finally) replaced the pansies in my pots by the front steps with a ‘lemon chiffon’ million bells (Calibrachoa) in each pot. I’m not usually one for monochromatic pot plantings, but my front door is hardly used and there’s enough going on in the nearby planting beds to warrant simple pots.

My oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) have started blooming on both sides of the front door and look really great behind my patch of catmint (Nepeta) to the right of the front door. To balance that, the Nepalese columbines I planted on the left side of the front door bloomed well and are slowly taking over one side of that planting bed.

The Hellebores are still blooming and look great next to the sensitive ferns (Onoclea sensiblis) out front. My Iris have finished blooming and I need to weed the bed by the mailbox to get it ready for the daylilies which will start to bloom soon.

The only other annual I have added this season is a ‘Mini Blue-Veined’ Supertunia. I added this to my blue pot with the Salvia and Spirea. The salvia has already started blooming and the Spirea will soon follow.

My herb pot is not looking so good. The cilantro started to bolt last week, so I cut off some of the flower buds. The basil, which has been looking ill ever since the floods, now looks awful. My parsley and thyme are the only things doing well. They seem to have had good drainage and decent sun where they are. I may have to start over with new cilantro and basil, maybe even from seed.

Monday, May 24, 2010

surprise!



Look what popped up in my secret garden: a surprise foxglove! I have no idea how it ended up here, the last time I grew foxgloves was over 3 years ago at my old condo. And while I have a few plants that I transplanted from there, I am really miffed about the origins of this welcome garden guest.

Foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea) have beautifully colored tubular flowers born on tall spikes. The really beauty of this flower is in the intricate patterns revealed inside the flower ‘tubes’; it’s definitely a flower that merits a closer look. Flowers can be pink, purple, or yellow with detailed patterns of darker stippling in the flower’s throat.

A native of Europe, Asia, and Africa, this plant has medicinal as well as ornamental uses. Medicines derived from foxgloves are called ‘digitalins’ and have been used to treat heart conditions since the late eighteenth century.

Foxgloves have worked their way into modern pharmacology and now their derivatives treat patients in atrial fibrillation, especially if they have been diagnosed with heart failure. But some foxgloves can be toxic, so it’s best not self-medicate.

Even more surprising to me is how well it is blooming in deep shade. Previously, I would have recommended planting this biennial in sun to partial shade. Because it’s a biennial, I’m not counting on seeing this beauty next year. But here’s to an adaptable garden guest that I will enjoy in the meantime!

Thursday, May 20, 2010

anticipation


When I got back from vacation I noticed that the leaves of my hollyhocks were looking more like lace doilies than foliage. (aka something had been eating them) But my disappointment over the leaves quickly turned to eager anticipation once I noticed several flower buds! The largest of my Hollyhock plants are now almost 4’ tall and it will only be a matter of days before I see the fruits (in this case flowers) of my labor.

The Hollyhock Sawfly (in larval form) is the culprit of the leaf damage, I’ve since learned. There are probably hundreds of these tiny green worms munching away on my precious plants. I’ve read that they are fairly easy to control, especially when treated early. I plan on using Sevin to combat this pest. I hate to use chemicals, but I will not lose my hollyhocks!

Everything else in the garden in doing great. The peonies are done blooming; the tiger lilies are about to start. The sedum ground cover is blooming a carpet of yellow. The tomatoes are growing fast! My herb garden is doing well, except for the basil which seems to be in decline. We’ve had A LOT of rain in Nashville these past few weeks which has kept everything green and lush.

Monday, May 10, 2010

the flood of 2010


My city, Nashville, is recovering. Last week, 15 inches of rain fell in less than two days, leaving much of the city underwater and without electricity or phone service. I’m told that Bellevue and Antioch got the worst of it; but directly across the street from me, my neighbor’s home became engulfed by a raging river of flood water.

I am one of the lucky ones with little to no damage. Some of my neighbors have spent a week cleaning up the debris and destruction. A lot of people are living in temporary housing while they work on their homes. Most people have electricity restored and they are making strides toward re-opening one of our city’s two water treatment plants.

Eight families in my immediate area lost all they have. When you drive down the streets, it looks like a war zone. The streets and cars are covered with a layer of mud. There are spray-painted X’s on windows. Waterlines come up halfway on some of the homes. Peoples’ whole lives are piled up at the curb, ruined. Fallen trees and debris are scattered everywhere you look.

In light of this, I’m taking some time off from blogging about my garden and would like to remind people of ways they can help Nashvillians. In the photo, you can see Anderson Cooper wearing the ‘We Are Nashville’ t-shirt by CoolPeopleCare. You can purchase these to directly support flood relief in our area. Find out more on their website.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

photo update - west side planting bed



Here's another photo update of the west side planting bed. WOW!

photo update - driveway planting bed



I'm amazed at how much this garden has changed in a matter of 2 months. I'll post the original picture of this bed next to a shot I took this morning. AMAZING!

veggies and such


The tomatoes I have included in my garden thus far include Roma, ‘Black Cherry’, and ‘Big Boy’. Roma is a smaller tomato that should have a plentiful harvest starting in 70-80 days from transplanting. ‘Black Cherry’ is a sweet-flavored, round dark cherry tomato that should ripen within 60 days of transplanting. ‘Big Boy’ is a meaty, large hybrid introduced by Burpee in 1949. ‘Big Boy’ will ripen within 80-90 days from transplanting.

So, by the end of June, I should be harvesting the first tomatoes. I would still like to add an heirloom variety tomato and some more varieties of peppers. I have already planted one Jalapeno pepper which will ripen in 78 days.

Everything else in the garden is doing great. My Iris is now blooming very well by the mailbox, white and yellow blooms. The Baptisia and Peonies are about to bloom. My Azalea in the secret garden is blooming wonderfully.

The only pest problems I’ve had continue to be the aphids and ants on my Rose of Sharon. I used soap spray on them last week, but it has rained off and on since then so I don’t think it’s had a chance to work yet. I’ll keep trying the soap spray.

The photo is of my ‘herb garden’ container and some other perennial plant containers that I keep directly off my back deck. I'll probably add a petunia or million bells to the blue pot soon. But, I love all the different colors foliage and the pots themselves provide right now, without a single flower!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

taking up space, in a good way!



I finally planted my herb garden (in a pot), Roma tomato (with stake), and all of my hollyhocks. In order to plant the tomato, I had to relocate some Black-eyed Susans and realized I just have too many. So, in addition to the previously offered sedum, mint, and creeping jenny, I would also like to offer some Black-eyed Susans.

When planting the tomato, I was reminded that all tomatoes are virtually vines. Because tomatoes try to root wherever the stem touches soil, planting lower will create more roots and better support. I removed the lowest pairs of leaves and then literally back filled the hole just under the first leaves. I put a 4’ green stake next to it and will use flexible cloth ties to secure it as it grows.

I also finally got to plant my new blue pot! I relocated an existing Salvia and ‘neon flash’ Spirea to the blue pot and will add some sort of flowering, trailing annual as well. The pot itself was already quite heavy and the thought of filling it with soil was less than attractive. For this reason, I put two empty plastic bottles in the bottom to take up some space (pictures). This is a great way to save soil and reuse some of those plastic bottles too!

The aphids (and ants) are still coming back on my Rose of Sharons, so my next step is to spray them with a soap solution. There are a variety of homemade soap spray recipes on-line. I think I’ll just mix some dish soap and water in a small hand-sprayer and see how that works.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

a redneck garden


After moving to Nashville I kept hearing the term ‘Redneck Garden’. This term refers to an ornamental garden that includes edible plants normally associated with a vegetable garden. [I’ve chosen to ignore other components of said ‘redneck garden’, i.e. beer can wind chimes and the like] I’ll concede the idea was a foreign one to me, having grown up with a separation of ornamental and vegetable.

However, when you think about it, it really makes sense. I don’t know many people that have the space for fully separate ornamental and vegetable gardens, at least in an urban setting. Also, I think most people forget how aesthetically pleasing some veggies can be. Not to mention, growing your own vegetables saves money! So why not grow veggies in our flower beds?

I’m totally on-board and look forward to having my very own redneck garden soon. Just think of the positive consequences this idea could have if implemented in low-income ‘food deserts.’ We could all be eating better and/or more cheaply if we grew a few tomato plants in with our holly bushes, as an example.

The attached photo shows peppers grown alongside Salvia and Black-Eyed Susans. The color combination is phenomenal. I think I’ll achieve a similar effect planting veggies next to my Butterfly Bush and Black-Eyed Susans. Aesthetic benefits aside, growing some ornamentals like Marigolds with your tomatoes will actually prevent pests.

At the garden center this week I found a variety of herbs and vegetable starters available. For $15, I picked up Italian parsley, variegated Basil, a variety of Cilantro, and a Roma Tomato plant. Those herbs, along with the thyme and mint (and Rosemary) I already have will complete my herb ‘garden’ (which will actually be a pot to ensure good drainage).

The Roma tomato plant caught my eye because my boyfriend really likes Roma’s. But I’m also trying to grow several different varieties of tomatoes to hedge my bet that some will thrive. I should be able to plant all of these this weekend, and I’m still searching for more tomatoes and peppers to add.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Ants and things


Things are growing great in the garden. I spent some time last weekend weeding several beds and trying to ‘thin the heard’ of mint, creeping jenny, and sedum. Would anyone like to come over and take home a sampling of these voracious ground covers?! I also mulched a little and amended the soil for the Hollyhocks which I will be planting this week!

The Hellebores are still blooming. The Rosemary is blooming now, pretty little blue flowers. The Peonies, Baptisia, and Iris will all be blooming soon. My Epimediums are now blooming in my side shade garden (picture). That’s a really neat perennial for the shade garden. They are also commonly referred to as Barrenwort and Bishop’s hat.

Epimediums are grown as much for their flowers as they are for their heart-shaped foliage which can take on beautiful fall coloring. Their tiny flowers are suspended ever so gracefully on their arching flower stalks. Epimediums make great accent plants and groundcovers, although they die back almost completely in our zone. I like to pair my yellow blooming Epimediums with purple-leaved plants like Ajuga and Heuchera.

I recently discovered ants on some of my Rose of Sharon. I fear the ants are ‘milking’ aphids which in turn are feasting on the new foliage. This morning I sprayed the bugs off with water, let’s hope that keeps them away. My next approach may be to use a soap spray. I generally try to avoid using any chemicals in the garden, but especially now that I’m growing edible plants, that would be my last resort.

There are ants on my Peonies as well, which are across the driveway. I have come to expect this every year on the Peonies. [Although at first it was alarming and I admit I sprayed my Peonies with ant killer chemicals that first year] A very knowledgeable gardener explained to me that ants help the Peony buds ‘open up’. So now I ignore the ants, and my peonies have never suffered because of them.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Spring Update


The garden is growing everyday and this has been a really pretty spring in Nashville. I haven't worked in the garden too much lately as I've been out of town and working on other projects around the house, e.g., cleaning my wood deck and outdoor furniture. It's still technically too early to plant anything tender, though I doubt we’ll get another frost.

I can’t wait to get my Hollyhock seedlings into the ground; there are now only five left, but they are thriving! Also, I’ve started looking around for veggie starters and haven’t seen any yet. But I’m sure in a few weeks I’ll have my pick of tomato and pepper varieties.

Right now, I’m just enjoying watching everything leaf out and come out of the ground. My peonies are now over a foot tall. I completely forgot about my Baptisia, until they poked through the soil (I think they bloom yellow). My Dogwood tree in the front yard is starting to bloom (white) and the Hellebores are still going strong!

My Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus) are now leafing out too. This always surprises me because they are one of the last woody plants to leaf out every year and it always makes me nervous that they may be dead. Throughout the early spring I do a scratch test on the bark to make sure it’s still green and confirm that they are still alive.

All of my Rose of Sharon are progeny of my grandparent’s Rose of Sharon. While this plant comes in a variety of bloom colors, mine bloom white to pale pink with a much darker center (see picture). This is literally one of my favorite flowers, and quite a low-maintenance plant to boot.

Ultimately, Rose of Sharon’s may reach 10-15’ in height and half that in spread. But it’s very easy to prune them into whatever shape you like. Also, their environment will play a role as they tend to be much denser in form and better blooming in full sun. I have seem them do well in partial shade too, though their appearance in more spindly. They work well as a single specimen or in a grouping.

This is a great old-fashioned shrub that I think is becoming more popular as people discover all of its assets. There are two main types of Hibiscus; one is a hardy woody shrub, the other more tropical type usually has larger blooms but needs to be cut back to the ground every year. I would recommend researching the colors/varieties and even seeing them in bloom before purchase. Or you can take your chance on seeds, which are usually plentiful in the late summer.

Monday, March 29, 2010

a word about Crape Murder


I saw something on my street this weekend that I’ve seen hundreds of times before, and it still gets me every time; someone cut their Crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia spp.) trees almost to the ground. Maybe murder is too strong a word, since more often than not they come back very much alive. However, there is no need for this plant cruelty and aesthetic nightmare.

Some people feel this is the best way to maintain these trees. Other Crape murderers feel they bloom better with this treatment. Conversely, with proper (sometimes yearly) pruning, a Crapemyrtle specimen can take on the loveliest of forms. And with time, your Crapemyrtle branches will develop into the most wonderful example of mottled bark you have ever seen (see photo). Here's a link to some helpful information regarding proper pruning techniques for Crapemyrtles:

http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/C944/C944.htm#Pruning

Crapemyrtles are wonderful small to medium-sized (15-25’ in height), non-native, summer-flowering, deciduous trees. They come in a variety of colors ranging from white to pink, to purple, to red, and every shade in between. Some varieties even have nice fall color on their fine textured foliage. Crapemyrtles come in a variety of shapes; more formal specimens have only a single trunk, others can be multi-trunked.

My favorite examples of this tree are in Georgia. The Founder’s Memorial Garden at The University of Georgia in Athens, and gardens throughout the Savannah/Charleston area immediately come to mind. This photo is a particularly old and refined specimen located at Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C.

Dumbarton Oaks is a beautiful (once private, now public) garden to visit if you’re ever in the Georgetown area of D.C. It was designed by the first female landscape architect, Beatrix Jones Farrand, through the patronage of Mildred and Robert Woods Bliss. It is a real gem!

Friday, March 26, 2010

longer days, more gardening adventures part 2


With eastern exposure, the planting bed across the driveway gets almost as much sun as the bed on the west side of the house. This planting bed sits between my neighbor’s fence and my asphalt drive and is only about 2’ wide. When I first moved in, it was nothing but Bermuda grass and I soon found out why. The soil is full of rocks. Every time I plant something new, I feel like I’m gardening in a rock quarry. On the bright side, the soil drains very easily.

Nevertheless I’ve removed most of the Bermuda (worst gardening chore ever) and amended the soil with soil conditioner. On the left is my recently transplanted butterfly bush, which I cut back to about 18” in height. The other 5 shrubs you see are Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus), a plant very near to my heart, which hasn’t quite leafed out yet. Between the Rose of Sharon groupings are several Hollyhocks (from the Hollyhock House!) that have over-wintered.

Beneath the shrubs are several sedum varieties as well as mint (Mentha). This aromatic herb (non-native) spreads quickly by way of underground rhizomes and I like to caution people that it should be planted in a contained/ well-maintained area. In the right corner of the bed are coral-blooming Canna Lilies. But after this past winter, I’m not holding my breath to see if the Cannas will make an appearance this summer (they can be borderline in zone 6b).

On the right edge of the photo, you can see the outstretched branches of a Mulberry tree (Morus), which has little to no landscape value. However, because this volunteer (which is actually rooted on my neighbor’s property) started growing in a fan-shape on my side of the fence, I’ve elected to train it as a ‘living fence’; to create a vertical screen between the two properties. Nothing against my neighbor, but I don’t prefer to see into her living room from mine.

The main goal of this bed is to increase my gardening space as well as improve the aesthetics of the space. Also, I’m not sure how much longer my neighbor’s fence will hold up, so I wanted to get some plants going ASAP. On one hand, it may have been more prudent to plant a row of Arborvitae or another evergreen, vertical screen. However, all of these plants were free to me, and will provide much more seasonal interest than a green wall.

And like the last blog post, this photo is not much to look at right now; but hopefully by this summer, there will be tons of beautiful blooms!

Thursday, March 25, 2010

longer days, more gardening adventures


Last Saturday I worked in the garden until after sunset, which now is almost 7:00! Thanks, Daylight Savings Time. I weeded, planted, divided, relocated, mulched, and watered. I worked mainly in the planting bed on the west side of my house (picture). With almost due west exposure, this bed gets the most sun of any of my planting beds and eventually this bed will be home to my future tomato plants.

An early goal of mine was to screen the a/c unit on the left and for that, I choose Euonymus 'Green Spire'. [Normally, I am NOT a proponent of Euonymus in general, but these plants look pretty good all year, are very cheap, and as far as I know will not become invasive.] The Euonymus hedge has been planted for a few years now with an initial investment of less than $50.

In front of the Euonymus hedge are ornamental grasses (still dormant), and a new patch of sedum that replaces the Black-eyed Susan’s (Rudbeckia) that I just relocated to elsewhere in the bed. The large shrub, butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii), which now reaches the top of the brick wall, is a personal favorite. In fact I plan to do another blog post specifically about this plant.

In front of the butterfly bush is Lambs Ear (Stachys byzantina). I believe I have the variety called ‘Big Ears’. This is a neat perennial with silver-green foliage and I can’t help but feel the soft leaves every time I’m nearby, they really do feel like lambs ears. In between the butterfly bush and lambs ear are my beloved peonies (which are just now starting to poke through the soil).

You can barely see the corkscrew willow (Salix matsudana) under the electric meter. This is a very cool, graceful plant with an extremely fine textured, medium-green leaf and yellow bark. Between it and the butterfly bush is my recently planted climbing rose (no clue what variety). There is a small trellis for the rose now, but I will probably run some wire for it to climb on this summer. The climbing rose takes the place of another butterfly bush, which I cut back and relocated to the planting bed across the driveway.

Near the middle of the bed, there’s a medium green groundcover that has basically taken over this portion of the planting bed. As of yet, this Sedum has remained unidentifiable. I have probably 10 different sedums growing throughout my various planting beds; they’re great low-maintenance perennials that come in a variety of foliage and flower colors (I’m a huge fan). But this one grows faster than any I’ve ever encountered. I’ll probably remove portions of this to make room for my tomatoes!

The blue pot will eventually be planted with herbs and/or seasonal color, and probably won’t remain in the bed. Behind the pot, against the house are a row of tiger lilies (Hemerocallis fulva), which will bloom creamsicle-orange. This plant is also fondly called ‘ditch lily’, and is a fine example of what I call a ‘native invasive’.

In the right corner of this bed is a newly planted upright rosemary, although the variety name escapes me now. I’m so excited about this rosemary and once it fills out (about 4’ tall) I think it will really help to anchor the space. My kitchen door is right around the corner, and I’m looking forward to using this herb while cooking!

Behind the rosemary is a patch of Pachysandra terminalis ‘Green sheen’. It’s an amazingly care-free evergreen groundcover, probably deserving of its very own blog post. Pachysandra has beautiful shiny dark green leaves of a medium texture. While no one buys this plant for the bloom alone, the dainty clusters of white flowers are quite nice; mine are in bloom right now!

This is my favorite planting bed because of the variety of foliage and bloom colors that all work so well together. I’m also really pleased with the year round presence the pachysandra, euonymus, butterfly bush, lambs ear, sedum, and now rosemary will provide. But in the summer, this bed literally comes alive with all of the warm flower colors of plants that haven’t even come up yet.

Throughout the bed are Black-eyed Susan’s (Rudbeckia), Tennessee Coneflower (Echinacea tennesseensis), other sedums, and various daylilies (from my uncle). I’ll take pictures along the way to document the bloom/growth progress. Bottom line, the garden doesn't look like much now, but i promise, an amazing transformation is in the works!

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

a good day to be GREEN



Spring is upon us. Everyday, driving around town, I notice the new blooms of daffodils, crocus, cherry trees, and witch-hazel. But the only thing blooming in my garden right now is Helleborus orientalis, the Lenten Rose. This is one of my favorite perennials. It is beautiful, evergreen, versatile, durable, hardy, and above all else, extremely low-maintenance. What more can you ask for in a perennial?

I was first introduced to this awesome plant by Dr. Allan Armitage, while a student at UGA. He is one of the foremost perennial plant experts and a big proponent of Hellebores. While I call most plants by their botanical (genus) names, it is rare that most people (non-horticulture-types) would do the same. The Hellebore, I’ve found, is one of the exceptions to this rule. Another interesting thing about Hellebores is that the blooming part of the plant is not actually a ‘flower’ or ‘petals’ at all, rather they are sepals, or modified leaves.

There are generally two species of Hellebores available at retail garden centers: Helleborus orientalis (Lenten Rose), and Helleborus foetidus (Stinking Hellebore). Helleborus orientalis is the only one in my garden, so that’s what I’m talking about when I say ‘Hellebore’. However, H. foetidus is a lovely perennial in its own right with many of the same characteristics, but having finer leaf texture. [Also, I don’t find that it particularly smells bad and I’m afraid its common name may turn people away from a perfectly good plant.]

An evergreen perennial, Hellebores can form clumps of dark green, coarse foliage with blooms reaching 18”. There size increases over time, but I generally think of them as 12” tall perennials. Hellebores do well in full shade and full sun. However, the best balance of foliage and blooms probably occurs in a partial shade environment. Full sun exposure produces prolific blooming, but can scorch the edges of leaves. Hellebores will become quite drought tolerant once established, but prefer regularly moist soils.

Obviously there is a connection between the common name and the bloom time, Lent. It’s a great time to have something blooming in the garden since everyone I know is incredibly anxious for spring right now. Hellebores do not have very showy flowers, but the bloom is so beautiful and intricate, I find myself on hands and knees trying to get a better look. The true species has a creamy white-pink bloom that faces slightly downward and can have darker-hued splotching or fading on the interior of the sepals.

Hellebores have been cross-bred so many times that there is a kaleidoscope of color options to choose from. Blooms range from white, green, pink, purple, and everything in between. Sometimes there will be different colored-blooms on the same plant. Newer hybrids have created more compact and upright blooming varieties such as ‘Ivory Prince’, which is becoming very popular in the trade. The Hellebores in my garden bloom shades of pink, from rosy-pink to a purple-pink, the richness of which is hard to find elsewhere. Although gorgeous, this darker color does not stand out in the garden as well as the lighter blooming varietals.

I use Hellebores in my garden as accents in the perennial border alongside ferns, epimediums, and gingers. But they can make excellent groundcovers as well. They are highly effective when planted en masse for a bold flower display in late winter and a carpet of lush foliage throughout the year. The only maintenance I perform is occasionally removing scorched leaves in late summer/fall and spring fertilization when I fertilize the planting bed, that’s it!

I’ve been told (and have witnessed this in Dr. Armitage’s garden) that hellebores reproduce from seed eagerly. I have not yet experienced this in my own garden, but I remain hopeful; mainly because they are one of the more expensive perennials to purchase. Hellebores are native to Europe and Asia, but they will not displace our native species, so I advise planting as many as possible if you like what you read. I find Hellebores available for purchase year-round but I suggest buying them now, so you can see the flower color.

On a side note, the 6 Hollyhock seedlings are still surviving in the greenhouse and at least 3 plants appear to have over-wintered in my garden. This would be reason enough to celebrate but lucky for me it’s also St. Patrick’s Day! Happy Gardening!

Monday, March 8, 2010

the Greek word for Rainbow


This past weekend brought us beautiful spring weather and I was able to spend about an hour working in the yard on Saturday. The area I focused on is the small perennial bed next to my mailbox at the street. This planting bed sits at the start of a swale that runs along the front of my property parallel to the street. It’s an odd sort of depression that’s difficult to mow; from day one I envisioned a sinuous planting bed of perennials and shrubs to replace the grass in the swale and provide a colorful front border for the house.

Several years ago I was renovating my grandfather’s Iris bed in Knoxville and the process of dividing his Iris yielded several mulch bags filled with rhizomes. The flower takes its name from the Greek word rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors available in the genus. Now I know that the Iris I planted bloom yellow and white. But at the time I planted my rhizomes, I had no idea what I might end up with.

Iris prefer full sun to bloom well, and they can grow very tall. I have seen some flower spikes reach 3-4’ in height. At the time I didn’t have a spot that I thought would work well for the Iris, so I decided to start my ‘swale’ planting bed. Turning a patch of grass into a planting bed is HARD work; when your lawn is comprised of Bermuda grass, it’s even harder.

I added a few daylilies to the front of the bed as well, given to me by my day-lily breeding uncle. The effect is quite nice with blooms from spring through summer. They actually bloomed well the first year, which was surprising. They had a good year last year, but I didn’t keep up with weeding very well. That’s why I pulled out two garbage bags of weeds (for the composter). Then I cut each Iris fan back to three or four inches from the ground. That is a maintenance task best performed in the fall, but I suppose it’s better late than never.

Next I’m going to mulch the bed with soil conditioner. Most Iris growers do not recommend mulching, because the rhizomes can rot so easily (especially in our humid climate). But I think a light top-dressing of soil conditioner improves the soil and looks really good. I’m still debating whether or not to fertilize this area since I don’t want to give the grass (weeds) a head start. Regardless, I’m looking forward to better maintaining the area and lots of blooms this year.

The attached picture was taken in 2008, and I sent my grandfather a copy of it. After my grandfather passed away last summer, I found this picture framed in his bedroom. Every time I see the Iris blooming, I think of him and his love of gardening.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

using the 3-R's in the garden


As any good environmentalist or native Californian will tell you, it's always best to reduce, reuse, and recycle. In the garden, that means composting! Compost is a dark soil-like substance derived from decaying plant, animal, and other organic materials. This matter is broken down chemically, through aerobic decomposition, as well as mechanically, by various organisms and micro-organisms (think worms and fungi). Through these processes, waste matter becomes a highly valuable landscape commodity.

My composter, ‘The Earth Machine’, is an 80-gallon bin made from recycled materials and sold by the local government for $45 to encourage backyard composting. Not only do composters provide a valuable resource, they save space in our landfills! For a little over a year now, I’ve been putting weeds, plant clippings, coffee grinds, fruit and vegetable rinds, paper, and soil into mine. The main thing to avoid is anything that contains animal fat and pet waste.

I keep my compost bin next to my trash cans. Ideally, a compost bin/ pile should get at least 5 hours of sun each day. Mine probably does not, which is why it has taken a little longer to yield worthwhile compost. But the whole process takes little effort and there are a variety of compost bins available to fit every space and budget. A lot of people are concerned that the compost pile will smell bad and/ or attract unwanted visitors (i.e. raccoons, opossums). Rest assured, if you put the correct items into your compost bin, you will not have a problem with either nuisance.

I’m looking forward to ‘harvesting’ my compost this season and working it into my planting beds. But it’s important to keep in mind that compost is not a fertilizer. Rather, it improves the soil’s texture and tilth by providing organic matter and humus when incorporated into planting beds. This allows the plant’s roots to more easily take up nutrients and moisture from the soil. Here's to using the 3-R's in the garden, Happy Composting!

Thursday, February 18, 2010

to everything, there is a season


At work yesterday, I was elated when I caught a glimpse of the first signs of spring…daffodils coming up! It’s easy to think after 3 weeks of snow on the ground that we will forever be stuck in winter. But with those spikes of perennial daffodil foliage, we are reminded once again that even winter comes to an end. And with that end comes the promise of spring blooms!

This particular outcropping of white and pale yellow daffodils lies under a small grouping of reddish-pink blooming redbud trees, with the mulch path to the greenhouse running right through them. It’s an incredible combination of spring blooms.

Monday, February 15, 2010

in the beginning


During and after college I lived in 5 different apartments. Apartment living is great, except when you love and collect plants. For years, I schlepped far too many pots from one apartment to the next, always hoping for more sunlight and porch space than I was afforded. It didn’t help that I minored in horticulture and was able to amass quite a collection of free plants through my friends and classes, as any former roommate of mine will tell you. So, when I started looking for a house, gardening space was high on my priority list; if for no other reason than to finally get some of these long-suffering plants into the ground!

When I moved into my house in August of ‘07, 2 ½ years ago, all of the planting beds were full of annuals and a few dying conifers. Each planting bed had a thin layer of black hardwood mulch on top of black ‘landscape’ fabric. These are two of my most hated landscape materials. [Hardwood mulch leaches nitrogen from the soil and is not the most aesthetically pleasing. ‘Landscape’ fabric is a weed barrier which in turn becomes a barrier for light, air, water, and nutrients.] So the first order of business was to remove the fabric and top dress with fine-textured pine mulch (a.k.a. soil conditioner).

In the process, I removed all manner of weeds and various trash I found under the ‘landscape’ fabric. At this point in my horticultural knowledge, peonies were unknown to me. As I came across these bizarre looking bulbs, I threw them away! (This was particularly painful once I realized how expensive peonies are) Luckily a small grouping of them evaded me, and the next spring I was blown away by their beauty and fragrance. They’re not in the most ideal location in my garden from an aesthetic perspective, but so far I’ve been too apprehensive to move them. The peonies, a dwarf nandina hedge, a few perennials, and a pair of dwarf Alberta spruce are all that remains of the landscape I inherited.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

introduction

I’m surprised as anyone that I have started this blog. But after watching Julia & Julia, I realized that a blog could function not only as a motivational tool, but also hold me accountable to goals I’ve set. What I need motivation for is gardening, in my own garden.

I am a landscape architect by profession, currently working full-time on a 90-acre estate. And while I do have opportunities at work to get my hands dirty; I have little time, energy, or money to do much gardening at my own house. When people learn what my profession is, they immediately say one of two things, either ‘I’ve always wanted to do that’ or ‘I bet your house is beautifully landscaped’. So I feel pressure for my house and garden to reflect my passion for horticulture and design.

Sadly, last year I barely tended anything. I may have weeded and top-dressed with mulch once. The good news is it will be easy to improve upon last year; the bad news is there’s a lot to do. Mainly, I will focus on weeding, redefining, and maintaining existing plant beds. New gardening challenges will include: hollyhocks, vegetables, herbs, and mastering the art of composting.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

hollyhocks




During a trip to LA in the summer of 2008, I visited the Hollyhock House. What makes this visit so special to me is the souvenir I brought home: Hollyhock seeds from the Hollyhock house! This iconic piece of architecture sits perched atop Olive Hill in Hollywood. From this site, so aptly chosen for its views of the Los Angeles basin, you can see the Hollywood sign and the Griffith Observatory.

Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Hollyhock house for oil tycoon heiress, Aline Barnsdall. Hollyhocks were her favorite flower and Wright used stylized representations of them on architectural details and furnishings throughout the home. Completed in 1921, during Wright’s self-described ‘California Romanza’ period, Hollyhock House represents Wright’s first project in Los Angeles. The 36 acre parcel was originally envisioned as a theatrical community. However, because of artistic and budgetary differences between Barnsdall and Wright, only three structures were ever realized.

Today, only the main house and a secondary structure remain on 11 acres. The unkempt, sparse interiors and lackluster gardens left me wondering what had happened to the glorious house and grounds I had seen in countless architectural books. The only saving grace for me, were the Hollyhocks. The architectural stalks and backlit blooms of this incredible flower stood as a living witness to FLW’s inspiration. Amazingly, I found not only beautiful flowers, but also near bursting seed pods. I stuffed as many into my camera case and pockets as I could without looking too ‘obvious’. Never in my life had I wanted to grow Hollyhocks, but now I wanted to cultivate a multitude of them.

That was a year and a half ago. So what of my hollyhocks? Well, they were germinated over the winter of ‘08/‘09 in a greenhouse. I planted several of the beefier specimens in the skinny planting bed between my driveway and neighbor’s fence this past summer, here’s hoping they survived our record breaking cold winter. And the remaining seedlings currently reside in a greenhouse. 100 seeds became 18 seedlings, which have whittled away to 6. Since Hollyhocks are herbaceous biennials or short-lived perennials, I don’t have much time. If I could get just a few to bloom this year and hopefully go to seed, I would be beyond thrilled. Here’s to FLW’s brilliant marriage of architecture and horticulture.


For more information on the Hollyhock House, please visit their website.