Posts Tagged 'Sources'

Blue Flax (Linum lewisii) in the early morning

One of the delightful treats in the early morning on my photographic rounds looking for the birds of the season is seeing the Flax that persist from planting wildflowers in previous years.  These are a lovely shade of blue that is present only in the mornings and then the flowers close by mid-afternoon.  The plants are quite rugged and compete well with the grasses.

The shade of blue in the flax flowers matches that of the bluebirds that I saw this week on the garden fence.  It was the first really good look at the bluebirds that I have gotten this year.

Female Bluebird

And right next to the bluebirds were the first of the Bearded Iris coming into bloom in the long row that we have planted just for picking.

Bearded Iris starting to bloom

Twenty feet away is a little patch of columbine that came from seeds via the American Horticultural Society seed exchange last year.

Columbine 'AHS seed exchange'

I think these will be a favorite for years to come.

Another patch of blue is the Jacob’s Ladder that is just now appearing in the Camellia garden.

Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum)

Well, in addition to the beauty of these flowers and birds, I had another reason for focusing on blue this evening.  I received an email from Seneca Hills indicating that they were going to be leaving the retail business.  This was just two days after my receiving another delightful order of rare delights (a white flowering Glaucidium palmatum and a Hylomecon japonica).  It made me sad to see this transition even though I know that small businesses, like gardens, depend upon an intensity of effort that is usually transitory in nature.  Ellen Hornig, the owner, ran an excellent nursery with great plant stock and fine service.  I for one will be reminded of Ellen Hornig and Seneca Hills every time I look at one of those primulas or peonies that they have contributed to our garden.  I wish her all the best.

Hummingbird Clearwing Moth (Hemaris thysbe)

It’s a good sign that the season is advancing when I see the first of the Clearwing Moths hovering about the garden.  They look like miniature hummingbirds with tiny sunglasses and are among the prettiest moths that you will ever see.  A couple of Allium in the rock garden were the main attraction.  This one hung around long enough that I could definitely see the long feeding tube in use sipping nectar from the flowers.

Clearwing moth

Clearwing detail

I had a major surprise this last week in wandering our woods.  As I was checking out the daffodils that I had planted last Fall at the bottom of our hill I encountered a three-leaved plant which (once I concluded wasn’t poison ivy) looked like it might be a Trillium.

Three leaves among the daffodils

I sent a picture to my eldest in Boston and he suggested that it looked a lot more like his Arisaemas.  And indeed, as I walked further down toward my neighbor’s stream it was clear that it was a Jack-in-the-pulpit without it’s most salient feature.  At the time I walked about the area hoping that even more plants had found their way across the boundary.  But alas, I saw none.  I have so far resisted taking such beauties either from my neighbor or the public land along the creek near the railroad tracks.

Just two days later though I was planting some Bellwort in the woods and looked up from my planting to see a Trillium — oops no, an Arisaema.  You would think I would recognize it by now.

Baby Arisaema

This one was more than 50 feet onto our property so that’s a very positive sign that we will get more in our woods.  So I took a more determined look and behold, let the real Jack stand up

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)

So I now count 4 Jack-in-the-Pulpit in our woods — whoopee!

One of the new arrivals in the Camellia garden this week was a little Iris that we picked up at the Garden Vision visit last year (since we went there for the epimediums who know that some of the other little plants would be such hits).  This is a little crested iris with fantastic coloring.

Iris cristata 'Dick Redfield'

It is hard to have too many of the crested Iris since they seem to multiply and fill their allotted space so charmingly.  I need to try them out in the woods next by taking some of the clumps that are growing so well.

Another delightful little iris blooming right now is the Iris gracilipes.  This one came from my visit to the open house at Asiatica last year.

Iris gracilipes

Again I went for other things but came back with this little Iris as a bonus.

Daydream Tulip

Well, it is Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day and I hardly know where to start.  This is the time of the year when there are entirely too many flowers for a single post.  The tulips, daffodils, flowering trees, and many little spring ephemerals are dashing through their season right now.  The unfortunate hot weather that we had at the beginning of the month has pushed flowers to almost 2 weeks ahead of last year.  Knowing that there will be other flowers to follow, I’m just enjoying each day’s surprises.

In addition to the Daydream Tulip pictured above another very nice one at this season is Monte Carlo.

Tulip 'Monte Carlo'

We grow it in the full sun with Iris Bucharica.

Iris bucharica

And together they make a great combination.

Iris bucharica and Tulip 'Monte Carlo'

I was pleased to see that the Glaucidium palmatum that we planted last year has indeed flowered.

Glaucidium palmatum

It’s planted next to a host of Celandine Poppies.

Poppies galore

The poppies came from a gift of single plant.  They are now abundant in the gardens and woods.  They pull up easily so it’s hard to call them invasive…

Celandine Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum)

As long as we’re doing yellow it’s hard not to take note of the Primula veris which just enlarges it’s clump every year.

Primula veris

And one more step down the yellow brick road is the Bonfire Euphorbia which is just starting up.

Euphorbia polychroma 'Bonfire'

Among the many little things that I have mentioned as delights in the garden was the Roadrunner Trillium which I found at Garden Vision in Massachusetts last year.  As it turns out this little gem is even nicer than I had imagined.  The flowers persist and have turned from white to a beautiful shade of pink.  What could be nicer…

Trillium pusillum 'Roadrunner' pink phase

Of course the real reason for the visit to Darrell Probst’s Garden Vision Nursery is to see and take home epimediums.  That’s what we did last year.  And here are a couple of the results…

Epimedium grandiflorum var. higoense 'Bandit'

Notice the chocolate banding of the leaves.  A beauty.

Epimedium grandiflorum 'Tama-no-gempei'

And even before we went the kids had gifted Beth with a special variety from the same source.

Epimedium x rubrum 'Sweetheart'

Note the wonderful banding on the heart-shaped leaves.

Epimedium 'Sweetheart' leaf

I could go on and on, but to close out this post I need to mention the first flowering of the lovely little Anemone nemerosa ‘Knightshayes Vestal’.

Anemone nemerosa 'Knightshayes Vestal'

It’s a double that kind of sneaks up on you as it opens.  Very nice indeed.

Adonis amurensis (unusual cultivar)

I first encountered the Adonis at a meeting of the North American Rock Garden Society in Reston last year.  Asiatica Nursery was exhibiting plants for sale at the meeting and I saw these pretty little giant yellow buttercups for sale.  I know that little and giant don’t go together but they were big for buttercups.  At $20 a pop I decided there other things I needed more.  But after the meeting, as I began to read about these little gems, my gardener’s lust began to grow.  So I ended up ordering two and paying for shipping as well.  When they arrived they looked fine but the only buds fell off before they bloomed and then the plants kind of faded away.  So I thought that I had failed in some way, but I reserved the space to try again this year.  And I did place an order with Asiatica in January.  So I was a bit surprised and quite pleased when I saw the Adonis emerging this year.  I was even more pleased when the flower actually opened because it is definitely a distinctively different and very pretty double flower.

Adonis side view

The new arrivals for planting this year look nothing like this one.  They are much more like the enhanced buttercups that I was expecting.  After looking around the web and getting amazed at the variety in the Adonis that are grown in Europe and Japan, my current thesis is that this one must have been mislabeled when it was shipped to me last year from Asiatica.  It looks very much like the variety ‘Sandanzaki’ that they are selling this year.  The clincher would be if the center of the flower opens yellow as it continues to unfold.  In any case it’s a beauty and we will hope for vigorous expansion.

It’s a little surprising to me that the Adonis is so little used and rather hard to find.  There may be other mail order sources in the U.S. besides Asiatica but I don’t know of any.  If you want to see them in profusion this is the ideal time to visit Winterthur in Delaware where the Adonis are a lovely part of the March Bank.

Adonis on the March Bank in March 2009

There is an awful lot happening outside right now, but it is hard not to pay some attention to the Clivia that is bursting forth in the house.

Kaffir lily (Clivia miniata)

This is a very mature plant that badly needs to be divided (I say this every year).  It is putting out four such flowering stalks at the moment.

On the outside there is really too much to relate in a single post.  I will share some of the pictures of things that have caught my fancy but, all in all it’s a splendid time of year.  There are the new arrivals, courtesy of Christmas gifts from the kids.

Primula kisonana

This one is said to spread by underground stolons.  I say go for it…

Then there is the miracle plant.  The Oconee Bells (Shortia galicifolia) were lost from the botanic world for 88 years after they were originally discovered in 1788.  The tale of their rediscovery makes very interesting reading.  This is another spring ephemeral but with interesting foliage as well.

Oconee Bells (Shortia galicifolia)

The Bloodroot have been having a field day at the foot of the Pin oak.

A cluster of happy bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)

So far, none of the multiflowered Bloodroot’s purchased from last year have poked their heads out of the ground.

The Daphne is fully in bloom.

Daphne (Daphne odora 'Aureomarginata) fully in bloom

It is hard not to walk past without stopping to smell those flowers.

And then let me close with the Star Magnolia.

Star Magnolia (Magolia stellata)

I submitted the opening bud phase as my contribution to the March GGW photo contest.  So it’s only fair that I display the resulting flower as well.  Also a lovely scent I might add.

Narcissus 'Little Gem'

Paeonia mlokosewitschii at Sissinghurst

The daffodils are coming and lighting up the woods and hillside.  For us the first real display begins with the clusters of ‘Little Gem’ along the woodland path.  But along with these striking harbingers of the colorful flower displays yet to come are numerous tiny gems that are the delight of going outside in the spring.  Some are the flowers themselves and some are just the emergence of plants that you weren’t sure were still alive or had forgotten about.  Two years ago we saw some lovely Paeonia mlokosewitschii (often referred to as Molly the Witch) plants at Sissinghurst in England.

Last year I put in three very tiny Molly the Witch Peony seedlings from Seneca Hill Perennials (I notice they are sold out already for this year).  And two have come up very nicely this past week.

Molly the Witch emerging (Paeonia mlokosewitschii)

Nearby was the first flowering of the Jeffersonia that was a Christmas/birthday gift from the kids last year.

Asian Twinleaf (Jeffersonia dubia)

This is the Korean relative of the native twinleaf.  Both are to be treasured.

And literally right beside the Twinleaf is a little Hepatica seedling with intense purple color.  Both are tiny and flower almost as they come out of the ground.

Hepatica nobilis 'Lithuanian blue'

You have to go down to the ground to really appreciate the Hepaticas.  Sort of like Epimediums in that respect.  But they are flowers worthy of closer examination.

Hepatica asiatica var. japonica (single purple)

And out in the woods again is a little cluster of the Scilla bifolia that seem be thriving in the woodland environment.

Scilla bifolia 'Rosea' in the woods

Absolutely everywhere, in the yard and in the pasture, are Glory of the Snow.

Glory of the Snow (Chionodoxa forbesii)

They are also worthy of closer examination.

Chionodoxa detail

Less common is the pink variety, but I’ve put a few clusters of those in as well.

Chionodoxa forbesii 'Pink Giant'

The first of many bloodroot are emerging from the raised bed at the back deck.  This colony prospers underneath the giant pin oak.

First Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)

Another new little flower for us is a western version of the trout lilies that abound at our back deck.

Trout lily (Erythronium tuolumnese)

This one has clear green foliage and fully open and standup yellow flowers.  I had put some in the woods last year, but I think the deer ate them all.  It’s about two weeks earlier than the standard Erythronium americanum.  I’ve them put in next to the American Holly in the yard and we shall see if they chooses to colonize there.

I’ve focussed on the little plants above. But there is a slightly larger but charming new plant for us blooming at the back fence. It is a pretty white Iris Japonica that is probably blooming prematurely because I brought it back from Plant Delights in North Carolina.

Iris japonica 'Wuhan Angel'

Winter Aconite 'Eranthis Hyemalis' detail

I returned to Maryland late Wednesday night and on Thursday morning made a thorough tour of our hilltop.  It’s amazing what a week of warming temperatures can do.  I found many bulbs popping out and green growth everywhere.  When I left for Florida there were still patches of snow a foot deep and by Thursday only a tiny bit remained.  The Winter Aconite are always the first to really display their talents.

A nest of Winter Aconite

The original 5 bulbs continue to expand slowly and for a couple of weeks they are a cheery sight when you turn into the driveway.  Gradually they have been naturalizing in other parts of the yard.  This year I found yet another volunteer in a completely separate part of the yard.

Winter Aconite naturalizing into other garden beds

They are far from invasive and I welcome each little flower that I see.

Of course Crocus are also appearing in various parts of the yard – just the species types and not the big hybrids yet.

Crocus opening

It looks to me that are multiplying in the places where I manage to avoid prematurely mowing the foliage.

Crocus multiplying

The Snowdrops are continuing but now their distinctive green markings are more visible.

Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) with distinctive green markings

It’s incredible that they have been in bloom since early January.

It was delightful to discover that the first of the Primulas is also in bloom.  We have several small patches of Primula vulgaris that we planted after seeing them in the wild in England.  One little plant under the apple tree seems to be ahead of the others.

Primula vulgaris under the Apple tree

I took a little walk down through the woods, not really expecting to see much yet.  But, much to my pleasure, there is a little patch of what I think must be Scilla siberica in bloom.

Scilla siberica 'Alba' in woods

This is always a delightful experience.  To discover that which I must have planted but have no memory of at all.  Maybe that’s what my garden year is — just creating surprises for myself for the years to come.

I noticed that the Hellebores are not quite in bloom yet, but they are exotic in the way that they emerge from the ground with big buds that are beautiful all on their own.

Hellebore emerging

Similarly the Drumstick Primrose are coming back from last year and they make an interesting image as they emerge.

Primula denticulata emerging

I planted a couple of the plants that I brought back from Plant Delights before the rains came upon us.  One was this Helleborus hybrid ‘Green Corsican’.

Helleborus x nigercors 'HGC Green Corsican'

And then as I looked at a nearby planting spot I ran into one of the dangers of planting at this time of year.

A perfect planting spot under the Crepe Myrtle

As I mentioned earlier one of the delights of spring gardening is discovering something that you had forgotten that you had planted.  Another pleasure is discovering that a plant you had given up on was nonetheless coming out of the ground.  So it was in this case.  I had given up on the Adonis from last year because the plant disappeared so quickly after planting last year.  My reason told me that it was just plain PDP (prematurely dead plant).  But my hopes kept me returning to the spot to see if by chance something would come up anyway.  Well, I had given up and with trowel in hand I approached the spot and to my amazement saw the emerging Adonis.

Adonis amurensis emerging

So, no flower yet.  But I am hopeful that this may yet be the perfect spot for spring Adonis blooms.  And a cautionary tale for withholding that springtime trowel.

Helleborus x hybridus 'Heronswood Yellow w/red spot'

On my way to spring training I was able to stop at Plant Delights in North Carolina during one of their open house days.  It was a real treat to make my first visit there (I’m sure there will be others in the future).  The place is well named as it caters to the people who are delighted in the rare and unusual in the gardening world.  Part of what makes both the online presence and the actual place enjoyable is the personality of the owner, Tony Avent, whom I bumped into as I toured the grounds.  His enthusiasm for gardening bubbles over into his descriptions and interpretations of plant characteristics.  I noted that he seemed to push the boundaries of what could be growing in North Carolina and he responded that when he had failures he would go back and find another plant “higher on the mountain”, looking for the individual specimens that would survive.  In other words, a lot of intelligent experimentation.

The garden was open for touring but not a lot had come into flower yet because of the cold weather.   I saw a flowering cherry and camellias, but what particularly caught my eye was this Algerian Iris.

Algerian Iris (Iris unguicularius)

Very pretty and early -flowering to boot.

The garden was interesting for it’s winding paths which are heavily mulched and water features.

Garden pathways

Everything (and I mean everything) was labeled.  A lot seems to have been planted relatively recently but there were some really nice specimens like this Japanese Crepe Myrtle with cinnamon-colored bark.

Lagerstromia fauriei 'Townhouse'

The plants for sale were headlined by the Hellebores that were at their peak, with many interesting varieties to whet a gardener’s appetite.

Hellebores for sale

I came back with four new varieties but left this lovely double for the future.

Helleborus x hybridus 'Mardi Gras Double White'

There were a great many other interesting plants on display, including shade lovers, sun lovers, hardy and not-so-hardy, all of them carefully labeled with descriptions.  I think about seven greenhouses in all that were open to the public, though there are a great many more in production.

Row of greenhouses at Plant Delights

I spent about four hours going over the choices but could easily have spent longer.  As it was I came away with 18 tiny treasures that represent things that I either knew that I needed before I came or didn’t know that I needed until I came to Plant Delights  :)

Garden treasures from my visit

Well, maybe the title exaggerates a bit.  But the first of the orchids has come into bloom and it’s a lovely Cattleya.

Cattleya orchid under the kitchen lights

The orchids seem to thrive on living out on the deck in the summertime and then coming to a table the sunlit laundry room for the winter.  At least one of the other orchids is budding up nicely.

I went out this week on an annual run to purchase a living Christmas tree.  As for the last 5 years or so, I drove to Taneytown, about 40 min away, to visit Sewell’s Farm where they specialize in both cut and live Christmas trees.  I was disappointed that despite what the web site said they didn’t have any White Pines or Douglas Fir, only Colorado Spruce, Norway Spruce, and Concolor Fir.  I ended up with a Colorado Spruce which I think will actually be quite nice for a change.  I don’t like the prickly branches of the spruces, but the Colorado is nicer than the Norway and they are actually very pretty trees.  The bluish tint and the way the needle’s curl seems to make them appear decorated even before we’ve started.  Plus they smell very nice as well.

Colorado Blue Spruce for Christmas 2009

Putting up a live tree is an ongoing tradition for us which I described in posts last year (Our First Christmas Tree and Christmas Trees Redux).  Every year is a little bit different challenge of lifting and shoving to get it in place, but we like sharing the Christmas morning with a living tree.

We had a great Thanksgiving celebration up in Boston.  But on our return I found that we had been visited not just by deer (that happens all the time) but by a very angry deer.  Our poor Coralbark Maple was totally demolished.

Deer devastation of the Coralbark Maple

Detail of the deer damage

I haven’t got anywhere on the property where I’ve seen this kind of destruction.  It’s almost as though they were angry that they couldn’t get into the garden anymore.  I had only just planted the maple this year.  I doubt that I can take back to the nursery and say that it just didn’t grow…