Sunday Whites

Today, with triple digit heat, these white blooms were like a cool oasis (especially when viewed from indoors!).

I'm thinking about planting more 'whites' next year!

Hope you had a great weekend!

Mandy's House is Pink and Green

Okay, so it's not really Mandy's house that's pink and green - it's my fabulous Mandevilla! Ever since I grew hyacinth beans a few years ago, I've been hooked on vines. They're easy, showy, and fun to watch because they grow so quickly.

And it's not too late to add one to your summer garden . . . so check them out the next time you're at your local garden shop! I'd love to know your favorite plant this summer . . . perhaps it's a mandevilla of another color?

I'd like to introduce Sharon

I know you'll like her - she's a real rose. She's also the perfect guest - knows just when to appear and always leaves long before you're tired of her.

Sharon has a long and interesting history, too; she's the inspiration for poems and novels and songs. She's rather modest though, so if you want to know more, check out her Wikipedia page. And finally, she's quite photogenic as you can see. I snapped this photo of her this morning and think it captures her loveliness. What do you think?

Pickled Bird of Paradise

If Peter Piper picked a peck of crocked plants,
Where's the peck of crocked plants Peter Piper picked?

Bet you can't answer that one! Where would one find a peck of crocked plants? If the plant in question is a Bird of Paradise and the quantity is a bit more than a peck (20 gallons actually, which is 10 pecks) - then the answer is on my porch, of course! Remember the antique pickle crock we purchased last fall? (You can read about it here.) It's now the home for a lovely Bird of Paradise. This BofP should not be confused with the other birds who love the porch and make their nests in every available flowerpot - I'm referring to the nervy little Carolina wrens!

As we'll still in pollen season, the rest of the porch is quite dirty, but in a week or two we'll have it spic and span and can enjoy this new addition. And hopefully this plant will not be too large to come inside next winter . . .

Hope your week is off to a great start - as promised, garden etiquette is coming up in a few days (I was sidetracked by a busy, fun weekend)!

One of the these things is not like the others - & that's not dandy!

This week my Dianthus / Pinks are in full bloom and that makes me very happy. Pinks are such an easy plant to grow - requiring little attention and delivering big color each spring. This variety is called Maiden Bloom and it has performed really well for us - from eight small plants six years ago to this spreading group of blooms! There's one little problem this year, however. Can you spot it?

Take a closer look - see that familiar fluffy white lollipop?! That's right - it's a dandelion! Little spring weeds are inevitable and usually quickly removed, but this year lots of pesky dandelions are popping up in the lawn and flower beds - did I mention there are lots of them?! We've never had a problem with dandelions before and I have a theory, but, alas, cannot reveal it in the interest of neighbor relations!

So, what to do with a dandelion like this? The obvious answer is to remove it before it gets to this point, but I didn't see it. Isn't that just like a weed? Keeping its head down during the early stages? I could just leave it, but the thought of those seeds blowing over the garden and becoming 50 tiny dandelion plants is just too much . . .

So while I ponder my attack, you might want to think about adding Pinks / Dianthus to your garden - there are so many great ones from which to choose and here's a sampling:

Photos courtesy All Americas Selection & NCCE.

I'm thinking of a word . . .

Laura of White Spray Paint fame asked a simple question about the plants pictured on my post yesterday. Her question exposes the reason I'll never have a true garden blog - I don't always know the names of the plants in our garden! In my mind, I'm the kind of gardener who keeps a fabulous garden journal - complete with notes, drawings, little seed packets, maybe even pressed flowers . . . you know the type of journal. In reality, I have three journals - each one containing some sketchy notes and lots of empty pages. One year I actually did great drawings of several beds, but as fate would have it those beds were redesigned when we hired a landscape designer the following spring and I've yet to capture the new beds. It's only been five years though . . .

But, back to Laura's question about the plants - what are they? I know the general name of all but one - the one pictured above. And it's not that easy to identify a plant if you don't already know the name - it's like finding a word in the dictionary if you don't know how to spell it. What's especially annoying is that I have known - and should know - the name of this because it's not some exotic plant - it's as common as jasmine or a Lady Banks rose!

This train of thought took me back to middle school and our perennial substitute teacher Mrs. Harris (I've changed her name for obvious reasons). Whenever a teacher was absent, Mrs. Harris filled in. She was an elderly lady who came to school dressed for church - suit with matching shoes, perfectly applied makeup (and by perfect I don't mean lightly), handbag with scarf tied to the handle. She never looked at a lesson plan, but rather had her own diversions to keep us busy. One was the Dictionary Race. She'd say a word and the first student to find it in the dictionary won. I loved this game - my secret was to start with with the dictionary opened at the middle. But, mostly we 'worked on' Spelling - remember Spelling? The purpose is to learn new words - definitions and spelling. Well, the way we studied Spelling with Mrs. Harris was for her to sit serenely at her desk and say, "I'm thinking of a word . . ." Then we would guess until someone correctly named the word and she'd check it off her list and say, "I'm thinking of a word . . ." as if she was saying that phrase for the first time. Even 5th graders knew how pointless this was, but it was a fun break from routine studying. So today I'm recreating this by sitting at my desk and saying, "I'm thinking of a plant . . ." And, I'll be waiting for someone out there to shout out the right word! And if you don't hurry I'll have to touch up my foundation or rouge!

As for the other plants, they are: Cherry Laurel (Otto Luyken), Camellia (this was already planted when we moved in and I don't know the variety, but it's a late bloomer and not as susceptible to blight as our December bloomers), Hawthorn (again not sure of the variety - I thought it was a Winter King, but when I looked it up in Dirr's the foliage is different).

So, Laura thanks for the question that led me down memory lane (that's M.E.M.O.R.Y., memory). Let's see who answers . . .

Springtime Wish List

What's almost as good as having tulips, Lenten roses (aka hellebore), and other lovely spring flowers in your garden? Having friends and neighbors who plant them and let you enjoy - and photograph - them!

Here are some plants I'd like to see in my own garden next year - especially the tulips! (Now that I know the chicken wire trick . . . )

In case you haven't heard of this squirrel-thwarting technique, come a little closer and I'll whisper it: you place chicken wire over the soil after bulbs are planted - according to my sources, your bulbs are then safe from digging critters! shhh~~

So even though my garden is a bit bare this spring (or I should say all the color comes from daffodils because they're deer-proof!), I've been enjoying the beautiful flowers growing in other gardens. And, I'm putting these on my wish list for next year . . . because by then I'm sure we will have the deer/squirrel situation under control!

What's blooming in your neighborhood this week?

The Obligatory Daffodil Post & Poem

Finally all my daffodils are blooming and I feel compelled to blog about them - I promise this is the last time this spring! They're just so cheery, though, aren't they? And when you pass a large display of them like this one . . .

. . . you must think of William Wordsworth's famous poem, "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" (or I should say I always think of it and then can only recall the first few lines). If you've also been trying to remember this classic spring poem, here goes:

I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud ~ William Wordsworth, 1802

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
and twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
in such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
what wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Thanks for stopping by today, I'm off to lie on the couch and dream of golden, dancing daffodils! Hope you'll join in the reverie . . .

Please note: the giant daffodil is not real; do not be alarmed! It's actually a beautiful sculpture at nearby Fearrington Village.

Why is this vine so sad?

Can a vine be sad? I don't know, but this one is weeping . . .

Yesterday my husband and I spent the day in nearby Winston-Salem - it's about an hour away and a great place for a one-day getaway (or staycation, in 2009 parlance!). There are several antique shops that we like to investigate, including the one where we bought our giant pickle crock. No luck this time, however (although that could also be interpreted as lucky). We stopped at Old Salem and while walking through the town saw this vine.

On closer inspection, you'll see what we saw - it's weeping! Many vines 'weep' when pruned, especially this time of year. I'm not sure if this vine was pruned yesterday or the day before, but it was certainly 'bleeding sap' (as old gardening books say).

The vine itself was very pretty - bare and twisted and intricately surrounding the fence. But when the drops of sap caught the sunlight, it was positively sparkling. The sap from some vines is an irritant while the sap from grape vines is used in cosmetics (in French it's called les vignes pleurent - doesn't that sound nicer than grape vine sap?). Companies like Caudalie use many parts of the grape plant, including the seeds and sap, in products that tone, firm, and cleanse. So, if you have vines to prune this Spring, watch for the oozing sap . . . you might even check your favorite garden book or website beforehand to see if the sap is harmful or beneficial - it could keep you from weeping!

The End ~~

The March Star

Dear March, come in!
How glad I am!
I looked for you before.
Put down your hat --
You must have walked --
How out of breath you are!

Emily Dickinson captured my thoughts exactly with her whimsical poem about March! I am so glad March finally came and I was looking for it for weeks . . .

And, when it came, it brought blooms for our Star Magnolia (Magnolia stellata).

For the first time in several years the blooms were not damaged by late ice or frost - and so they are perfectly white and really lovely in the stark winter landscape.

If you're looking for a small ornamental tree (zones 4-9), consider this graceful early bloomer. It's easy to grow and, according to a neighbor, easy to propagate . . . I'll be trying this myself in a few weeks and will let you know!

In the meantime, I'm off to read Emily's poem in its entirety (click here).

What's Pink and Green in the November Garden?

Our crazy Loropetalum! Several years ago we planted six loropetalum bushes - very small ones. The plan was to use them as fill-ins with a bit of early spring color as a bonus. Well, all six have been transplanted at least once as we looked for a good spot for them. Two of them are now in a bed on the east side of the house and they are huge! One is over 15 feet and is eye-level with our bathroom window (which is upstairs!). It blooms several times during the year and we will probably have to remove it next spring as it is just too big - we can't prune it often enough to keep it under control.

The remaining ones are planted in a different bed and are a normal size . . . we think there's something strange about the soil where the giant ones are planted because there's also a lantana there that's almost 6 feet high (it's about 6 years old). We never fertilize or amend the soil - it's a kind of 'Little Shop of Horrors' area . . .

But, if you're looking for a carefree bloomer, this is it. The picture above was taken this afternoon - November 21! It is full of blooms, and you can really see how it gets the nickname 'fringe flower' and why it's a favorite of gardeners in this area. It's hardy in Zones 7 to 10, so give it a try if you're looking for great color (perhaps in three seasons). Enjoy your weekend!

Garden Ideas . . .

Are you already thinking about what you'll plant in your garden next year? Or, maybe you're bogged down trying to find a non-hoochy Halloween costume for your child or yourself? Either way, I hope you'll enjoy a few more pics from Reynolda Gardens. These are things I'm going to keep in mind when I choose plants next spring . . .

Thanks for stopping by . . . tomorrow we're off to Scotland!

Monet's Not the Only One With Water Lilies!

Who doesn't love water in the garden? And what's better than combining water with plants as in this simple water garden at Reynolda Gardens in Winston-Salem, NC.

Reynolda Gardens are open to the public with no admission fee - if you worked in the area you'd have a wonderful spot for lunch on sunny days! Originally designed in 1917 for the Reynolds family (of R. J. Reynold tobacco fame), the gardens were simplified in the 30s and donated to Wake Forest University in 1961.

I've visited Reynolda twice in recent weeks and here are my favorite pics of the water garden.

I'll have more snapshots of these lovely gardens over the next week. I'd love to hear about your favorite public gardens!

One Last Look at Chinqua-Penn - The Gardens!

Well, I'm back home after a really fun conference that included: lots of candy corn, a really sensitive wireless microphone, hours of standing and walking, a bustling trade show, lots of friendly faces, and tired feet from the aforementioned standing and walking.

To round out the week, here are a few more more snapshots from Chinqua-Penn. The gardens are not of the rare botanicals variety, but they are lovely and in keeping with the house (don't you love the massed containers in the photo above?). They make a wonderful backdrop for weddings and other special occasions. If you're interested in visiting, check their website for upcoming events, like the Great Gatsby weekend or outdoor concert series.

There are several large Osmanthus trees in the gardens. They were in full bloom and their wonderful scent wafted through the gardens and the open windows and doors of the house.

Interesting containers filled with ordinary plants, like this asparagus fern (which isn't a fern at all), add great color and interest to walls, steps, and patios.

The walkway leading to the house carries you through a wooded area complete with water features and unexpected plants and statuary.

One of the features for which Chinqua-Penn is noted is the pagoda. The Penns were inspired by pagodas they visited on trips to China and hired the New York architectural firm Harry C. Ingles to build one based on authentic designs. It served as a pool house and is located by the large swimming pool. Both the pool and pagoda are closed for refurbishment (and the pagoda has a large metal cover protecting it), but you can glimpse the lovely red roof and outline of the pagoda in this photo taken from the wooded area.

Once it's restored, this will be an even lovlier vantage point as the pagoda is filled with Rangoon temple bells that chime with the passing breeze. What a tranquil setting - the dappled light, lush plants, flowing water, and the tinkle of the bells . . . I'll leave you on this peaceful note.

What's Pink & Green in the Garden?

Amaranthus Tricolor, better known as Joseph's Coat of Many Colors. This fabulous plant has stunning color and likes our hot, dry weather.

I love this plant because it always makes me smile - not only because it's so pretty, but it makes me think of Joseph and his horrid brothers which then makes me remember the Sunday School play about them when I was in 5th grade which, of course, leads to thoughts of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical and its great soundtrack (who doesn't love the Joseph Megamix?), which leads me to think of Donny Osmond and that's where the smile comes in. I don't think about Donny nearly as much as I did 30 years ago (I wonder where my powder blue Puppy Love cassette is now . . .), but whenever I water my Joseph's Coat I think of Donny and that's a happy memory (even if he turned out not to be my dream husband)!

Stay tuned for more about my actual dream husband and his boring single-color coats . . .