Hollyhocks and Hosta

It sure feels like fall

2009-09-09T15:18:00.004-03:00

Every year I'm always surprised how suddenly fall arrives. Nothing gradual, just baking hot summer one day, and then something different is in the air. It's still hot, but there's a smell, a feeling, a change in the atmosphere. I can't name it, but I know it's a relief.

I love the fall. Even though much of the garden is on the down-swing, that too is a relief. There will be much work cleaning things up, but I don't mind that. A lot of the plants are starting to look pretty tired. The daylilies especially. You can hardly remember how magical they were just a month ago.

This summer's perennials were the best since I've moved to the villa. Of course, for a lot of them, it was the third, or at least the second, season since I planted. The border along the top edge of the shady yard appears to have been there for decades. And to think just three short years ago, I would fantasize about putting a perennial border there.

The border's got hostas, hydrangeas, daffodils galore, hellebores, ferns, leadwort, celadine poppies, Virginia bluebells, and I'm thinking real hard here, but I'm sure there are things I'm forgetting. Crocosmia, impatiens, foxgloves, columbines, vitex. It's a pretty long border, maybe 30 feet long, and about three and a half feet deep. Lots of room for lots of plants.

Then there's also the new border that runs along the right side of the level part of the yard. It's about four feet wide and probably about the same 30 to 35 feet in length. That bed was my salvation for the farmers market. I grew 'Persian Jewels' zinnias there that I used for filler in my flower bouquets. Gorgeous colors in rusts, cream, yellow, orange, red and some bi-color mixes of all of those. I know it's crazy to have a gardening blog without pictures, so I'll get photos posted as soon as I can.

I guess it would make sense to expound on the farmers market, since I briefly mentioned it. Polly and I shared a booth for the summer at the Morgantown Farmers Market, and we've had a ball. Of course Tom was right at the heart of the fun, and he's been more help than I could have ever hoped for. He's been beside me working the whole time, and for that matter, he did a phenomenal amount of work at home when I was not there.

We sold mixed bouquets, zinnia bunches, cucumbers, peppers, garlic, tomatillos, and a few tomatoes. Surprisingly, we sold a bunch of cucumbers, which is just amazing. Since we kept track of the quantities, we have a good idea how much we moved. Huge fun plus we made a little bit of money. Not much, but that's all right. We're just learning about being urban farmers.

The bottom yard is now consumed with gardens. One has mostly zinnias with a short row of green beans, the cukes, the three tomatillos, and two pole bean towers. The center garden, the one that's been around the longest, had the garlic and our potatoes. I also had a row of larkspur and the row of peonies, which really need to be moved to make room for more veggies.

The third garden had the tomatoes (26 plants) and the peppers (28 plants) along with a Romanesco type zucchini, some Swiss chard, and a row of parsley. I forgot to mention the parsley. We've been selling cut herbs lately, and the parsley is a big seller. We've probably sold 20 bunches in the last three weeks. Also rosemary, thyme, a little sage, winter savory, and poppy pods with seeds in them.

I'd like to sell some bittersweet soon, and I've got sweet wormwood to sell also. We'll be at the market in two weeks. This weekend we're having a birthday party for dad's 90th b-day. And next weekend, we're going to Summersville Lake to hang out with Nan and Henry.

So, lots of news here. That's how it is when I haven't posted for months. Pictures forthcoming. Promise.

2009-05-11T09:53:00.002-03:00

It's May, and we've had very good rain so far this spring. The garden beds are all moist and workable. I've got many, many plants ready to be moved into the ground as soon as I'm sure it won't get below 50 at night anymore. This week is supposed to be cool, so I'm trying to hold off until the weekend at the earliest to plant anything that isn't a tough perennial. I've also been taking many pictures to post, just haven't gotten around to posting them yet.

This weekend I planted Powis Castle and Silver Mound artemesias, 30 or so Tiny Tot gladiolus, an equal number of giant glads, and a mix of pink and whites. Tom is going to be stripping grass off the next vegetable garden today. That will be a huge accomplishment. Our present garden is completely full with three rows of potatoes, three rows of garlic, two short rows of onions and radishes, and a couple of areas full of different kinds of annual poppies. There is also a row of peonies that will look like something this year. They're pretty big now. I'll try to get photos posted sometime this week. Try, I said!

February Dreams

2009-02-20T15:24:00.002-04:00

Mid-February finds me dreaming about spring. The weather has been decent, sunny, but cold. We had a few warmish days in the last two weeks that made the early tulips, snowdrops and daffs poke their noses up from the garden beds. I was surprised to see once clump of snowdrops blooming already. They're in a protected spot, but I forgot that they pop up with the tiniest rise in temperature. They give me hope.

Most everything else is still deeply asleep in the ground, so we'll have to satisfy ourselves with photographs that remind us of the seasons to come.

Midsummer 2008

2008-07-17T18:31:00.005-03:00

All the words I can think of to describe this season's garden sound trite. Gorgeous. Fantastic. Bursting with color. It is all of this, but the words don't mean a thing compared to standing out there and actually viewing the scene.

Pictures capture the opulence somewhat better, although nothing beats spending real time working and playing out in the yard.

It's also really fun to compare the gazebo plants with how it looked last year when we first created the patio and garden.

These lilies are on the shadier side of the yard. The white one is fragrant and has about a half dozen flowers, and it is more than five feet tall. I love it.

Let's Dream a Little

2008-01-28T14:06:00.001-04:00

We're having a fairly warm day here in Morgantown.

It's about 45 degrees outside, and I'm having to control my urges to go out and stare at the ground. I'm not sure about other gardeners in my climate, but in the last few weeks of winter, I spend a ridiculous amount of time bent over searching for any signs of life in the flower beds. Usually I'm rewarded with the tip of a crocus or a daffodil, but realistically, it's only late January. Not much should be happening out there.

SO! Let's fantasize!

I looked through some photos that I took last summer and was heartened by the lush foliage and sparkling flower colors that I know will be out there once again in a few months.

These clematis flowers are out along the street on a trellis that's tucked under a pink dogwood tree. They get a little protection, but still have sun a good bit of the day.

And how about these hostas? Don't they make you want to get out the hammock and take a nap along side of them? The purple leaf plum they're under gives them (and me) the shade they need to keep cool in the summer heat.

This pink rose was one of maybe five rose plants that were here when I bought the house. It's pretty easy to take care of, although I should probably use a fungicide on it to keep the leaves nice throughout the summer. Its flowers are so beautiful, I even used this picture for my desktop.

This apricot-colored rose was completely loaded with flowers for most of the summer. I have no idea what the cultivar is. All I do know is that it is gorgeous. I hope it keeps growing and growing for years to come.

These hostas are in the same area as the other ones. They are some younger plants that aren't quite as big as those established ones. I probably planted at least 20 to 25 clumps of hostas throughout the different parts of the yard. Next year they'll look a little more like something, so I'll be sure to get more pictures.

Mid January Calm

2008-01-14T15:58:00.000-04:00

Living with January snow on the ground and clouds darkening the days might seem like a prison sentence to some. But a snug house (with a fireplace if you're so fortunate), soup cooking on the stove, and the good sense to appreciate life's small pleasures can make January a month to savor. These cold winter days create perfect opportunities to resettle ourselves, plan, and dream of what we'll do in the garden in the warm months ahead.

Whether it's my Scots-Irish heritage or just the fact that I've lived in this rather dreary part of the world all of my life, I feel very content when the wind and the snow keep me indoors. I've read more books this winter than I have in years. Many changes have occurred in my life recently. There was a time not long ago that I couldn't have sat still long enough to read for hours. That's all changed now. I'm at peace.

My garden is slowly developing into the magical place that I knew it could be. In two years I have planted many trees and shrubs: Mariesii viburnums, weigelas, at least six kinds of hydrangeas, blueberries, cherries, butterfly bushes, peonies, chaste trees, leyland cypress, honeysuckles, azaleas, boxwoods, skyrocket junipers, and Washington hawthorns. And that's just the woody plants. Perennials, bulbs, myrtle, and several clematis vines are also in the new beds.

I'm not sure where my need for a garden came from. I suppose it was inevitable once I had seen what astounding plant varieties exist in the world. My trips to public gardens and arboreta in different parts of the country, plus having worked at a couple of them, gave me so many ideas to work with. The colors, the forms, the delicate intricacies of the different species within a genus—I have been fascinated by the plant world almost to the extent where I am more comfortable working in my garden than anywhere or with anyone else.

But, of course that's not realistic. I've got to work somewhere that I can profit from my labor. Here, I enjoy the pleasure of creating my secret world. But by working for someone else, I can make something new. I can expand my palette of colors and increase the variety of plants being used in this area. So many who work in the landscape business are merely dressing up a house. While that is a function of the landscape, a few evergreen shrubs around the foundation of a house could hardly be thought of as a garden.

This spring I think I may advertise myself as a gardener. Then we'll see what happens. For now though, I'll just keep enjoying the season as it comes and keep loving the view I've got from my kitchen window.

Growing Like Weeds

2007-07-30T15:08:00.000-03:00

The vegetable garden keeps getting more jungle-like everyday. We put the tomatoes in on June 10, so in six weeks they've really exploded. We've got them tied up (several times and in several places). They're finally starting to have tomatoes, plus they're loaded with flowers. I'm really hoping to have plenty to can and to make tomato soup.

The cucumbers have been producing for about a week and a half already. I've probably picked at least 10 so far. And you can see from the picture that the green beans have also taken off. I'm starting to see tiny beans forming. I'm pretty sure that they're going to really kick into gear while we are in Colorado. That's kind of a drag since it will be up to other people to pick them. I so much prefer to have beans that are really young and tender. But, if they get big, it's also good to can them that way. I also love to make those old-fashioned beans that you cook for an hour with bacon thrown in. I could eat a whole pot of those by myself! With two and a half rows, there should be plenty of beans for every way we want to make them. Even raw!

Best Summer Ever

2007-07-17T07:53:00.000-03:00

With the rest of the country suffering from so much drought, I'm reluctant to brag, but we've had more rain this summer than I can remember for several years. As a result, things are lush and green and everything I've planted this year is growing like mad.

I love this 'Indian Summer' rudbeckia. It's planted with tall daisies and 'Ruby Star' echinaceas. Even though the daisies tend to flop about, I still like all the the volume and height along the deck. They're just right for the space.

At the end of the border between the side yard and the back yard are two spectacular clumps of crocosmia. I didn't realize that they were hardy in this climate until I saw these established plants here. Gorgeous.

Break's Over

2007-07-08T13:58:00.000-03:00

It's a lazy Sunday afternoon and Tom and I just got home from a whirlwind trip to Charleston and Beckley to meet with friends and go to a wedding. We had great fun with T's old friend Rocky and his adorable sister Sue and her husband Joe on Friday. We had a fantastic dinner together. Saturday morning we popped in on another couple of friends of T's, B-man and Joyce. We meant to stay about a half an hour while the air conditioning was being recharged in the Blazer, but we were having so much fun together, we didn't get back on the road until after noon. Great folks, and I'm glad to have met all of them!

Since this is a gardening rather than a gabbing blog, I guess I should stick to the subject. Last week we finally had a couple days of good rain, during which, I suppose, I should have been blogging, huh? Anyway, everything outside is fresh, green, and bursting to grow and bloom. The daylilies are competing to show themselves off. It's great to finally see some flowers on the divisions I planted last year and this spring. I just sort of stuck them in here and there to get them in the ground, but the colors all work beautifully together, so that's no problem.

T and I are thrilled with the vegetable garden we started just about a month ago. Tiny pickles are starting to develop on the cucumber plants, and the peppers in the earth box I got from the Garden Writers Association conference last year have too many baby fruits to count.

The green beans are coming right along, as are the squash and the tomatoes. It's really very cool to have a vegetable garden again. We constantly battled deer, groundhogs, coons, and whatever other creatures wreaked havoc on my plot out in Greene County. I love the security of a defined yard here in Motown.

Making Shade

2007-06-18T18:25:00.001-03:00

Tom and I have felt that a little shade would do us and the Dadster some good up here in this really big, bright, HOT yard. The front porch is cool, but it's a front porch, and it's right on the street. We talked about what might be a nice addition to the sunken yard below the driveway, and before long we were deep into sod stripping, excavating, and paving. We already had the gazebo, which I guess was our inspiration to make the rest happen.

These pictures show our construction progress. We took tons of photos, but I whittled them down here to show what we did without, I hope, boring you to death.

We're Sod Stripping

2007-06-18T18:13:00.000-03:00

We rented a monster sod stripping machine. What a beast. It did a great job of cutting down through the roots of the cursed zoysia grass, but it shook us to pieces in the process.

Ready to Pave

2007-06-18T17:48:00.001-03:00

Once the space was all cleared out, the paving stones had to be moved down to the yard. We used 64 pavers and had to carry each one of them from the truck in driveway down the steps and all the way around the house to this inaccessible part of the yard. We're just about ready to lay stone.

Laying Stone

2007-06-18T17:34:00.000-03:00

The previous parts of this project were tough in the manual labor department. My muscles are the biggest they've ever been. Tomio too. Laying the pavers was difficult in a whole different way. The ground had to be excavated first, then built up with sand to get the stones level. We did a fairly good job of making them stable. I don't figure anyone's chair will upset.

Morning Coffee, Evening "Tea"

2007-06-18T17:25:00.000-03:00

Well, here it is! The shaded patio really changes the character of this part of the yard, huh? And, best of all, there's less grass to mow! The space surrounding the gazebo is about three feet wide and will be planted with various flowers and shrubs. I've got some things in pots to plant, but we've got to till and add manure and other stuff to the soil first. Still, we're pretty happy with how this project has turned out. Tom made the border of bricks around the fire bowl in about an hour. We're hoping it keeps us and our buddies from crashing into the fire.

Sunken garden

2007-06-04T17:09:00.000-03:00

This marvelous sunken garden area is at least 10 feet below the level of the street. It's protected on three sides: along one side by a mature row of California incense cedars, one side is a vertical wall, and the third side is enclosed by the house. I'm hoping that I can grow some marginally hardy plants in there like vitex and crepe myrtles.

View across the backyard

2007-06-04T17:03:00.000-03:00

This terrace directly behind the house is long enough for horse shoes at one end and formal gardens at the other. The 10 blueberries run along the edge of this lawn.

More details about the garden

2007-06-04T16:30:00.000-03:00

In this first year, I've planted 10 blueberry bushes, eight weigelas, two Marie's doublefile viburnums, five azaleas (deciduous and evergreen), 14 hydrangeas, five spiraeas, two burning bushes, a ninebark, two redbud trees and a Kousa dogwood. The perennials are too numerous to list, but they include hosta, baptisia, daisies, lilies, tiarella, catmint, dianthus, anthemis, iris, silver tansy, anchusa, daylilies, echinacea, rudbeckia, geranium, foxglove, astilbe, jack in the pulpit, brunnera, veronica, narcissus, crocus, tulips, centranthus, primrose, poppies, verbascum, winter savory, clematis, yarrow, and balloon flowers. You get the idea. I've got lots of flowers and herbs and shrubs. And I've got many more in pots for planting later!

Shady side yard

2007-06-04T16:24:00.000-03:00

This cool brick sidewalk runs right along the house, a feature that I am so glad to have. No bushes crammed up against the house, thank goodness.