Thursday, January 31, 2013

Shrubbery Garden - Elegant and Easy


I get to my local library often, and the elegant shrubbery garden that surrounds three sides of the building is always changing.  The garden was donated by Dorothy R Yeck and named after her.  The design was created by Craig Jaynes who is a talented landscape designer.  The ever changing garden caught my eye this week.  It was a mild gloomy day here in South West Ohio, and the Woodbourne Washington-Centerville  Public Library caught my eye as anything but gloomy. 
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Evergreens, like these Gold Thread Junipers, sometimes referred to as False Cypress, set off the lovely red fruit of the Ilex verticillata , “Red Sprite”. 
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The Ilex “Red sprite” stays small and grows only to three and half feet high and about four feet wide.  Nice plant in this border because it stays within its boundaries.
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The Rhassus Frangula, “Fine Line” is the tall thin shrub here.  It will spread to about two – three feet wide, and it’s delicate leaves give this plant a wispy appearance.


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This bright blue shrub is a Picea pungens glauca “Globasa” – a compact shrub with blue needles.  


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Juniperus ‘Gold Cone’, is a columnar evergreen that will not grow more than two feet wide.  The leafless shrubs around the Juniper, are Caryopteris, ‘Worchester Gold’ and Caryopteris ‘Longwood Blue’ Even thought the Caryopteris is a deciduous shrub, the seed heads remain for some winter interest.

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Featured at the front door of the library are Hydrangea quercifolis “Sikes Dwarf”.  Again, this deciduous shrub holds onto the dried seed heads that rustle in the breeze.

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Pinus nigra “hombrookiana” is the round pine on the right.  Staying small in height of about 3 feet, this shrub can spread to 6 feet wide. The ‘army’ green needles make this a good backdrop for this shrubbery border. 
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Syringa “Prairie Petite” is a dwarf lilac that has ‘large panicles packed with tubular, purple flowers’ as described by Craig Jaynes in his plant summery of this garden.

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Aronia, melanocarpa “Viking” has shiny black berries from September through December.  (These few are hanging on into January.)
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Beautyberry has these wonderful purple berries.  Callicarpa D “Early Amethyst is the botanical name for this plant.  I’m told that Beautyberry will bloom with small, pink blossoms and will produce more berries if planted in groups. The stems of this shrub make great winter decorations in planters and holiday decorations.
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Liriope and an ornamental grass grouped at the entrance of this library garden, are not in the original shrub garden, but they certainly add texture to the winter landscape. The liriope is a grass-like plant that gets spikes of berries in the fall and is sometimes called lily tuft, or border grass.  Just to the rear of the liriope are Oak Leaf Hydrangea, a native shrub.

As these photos show, the shrub garden is in a narrow border surrounding the front three sides of the library.

All the plants chosen are dwarf or columnar so that the maintenance is minimal.  Ask  questions when you are planning a space in your landscape, and choose plants that 1) have color, 2) have texture, 3) have seasonal features like blooms or winter berries, 4) will grow to mature size that will fit into the space.
Do you have a space where the plant material outgrew the allotted area?  I’ve learned this lesson the hard way on several occasions. Envision the look you want, plant the right plants, and above all, enjoy your garden. 

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Winter Gardening Chores and Tips


Many simple chores that do not take an exorbitant amount of time outside (it’s too cold), should be getting checked off of your to-do list. What a benefit to have these chores finished when the spring finally arrives. 
If you didn't get around to mulching the beds before, it can still be done if the mulch material is not frozen stiff.  Materials like pine needles, straw, leaves, and evergreen branches can be used to protect small plants. 
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Pine Needles as Mulch
Pruning is one of those chores that seems to intimidate the gardener.  I've actually had folks ask if pruning would kill their shrub or rose.  Not likely, if one doesn't get all Edward Scissorhands about it! Mainly, pruning is making judicious cuts on branches that may be too long, or that are rubbing an adjacent branch.  Taking no more than 1/3 of a shrub is recommended to prevent the plant from stress. Pruning dormant trees including fruit trees, and summer or fall flowering shrubs at this time is preferred.

Several types of pruners are available. See some of them here


pruning shrubs
Some of the shrubs and trees that can take a dormant winter pruning are Crape Myrtle, Pee Gee Hydrangea, Spirea, Butterfly bush, Flowering Plum, and Potentilla. Berry bushes will produce more fruit if pruned to encourage new growth.
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Flowering  Plum tree
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Potentilla 
Pruning early spring flowering plants like forsythia or azaleas will cut off the buds for this next season. Prune these early flowering plants just after the blooms have faded.  The full season of growing will ensure that next years’ buds are allowed to develop.

Rabbits and voles can damage the bark of shrubs and trees.  So, inspect the trunks around the ground for signs of rodent damage. 
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The tube barriers of hardware cloth or plastic needs to be as high up the trunk as a typical snowfall, and buried into the ground an inch or two.  This bark damage can effect the life of the shrub since the bark carries nutrition and water up into the plant.

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Severe Moisture Loss of Rhododendron
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Water, or rather the lack of water in winter is a problem that some simple maintenance on the part of the garden can eliminate.  Antidesiccants like Wilt-Pruf sprayed onto broadleaf evergreens like rhododendrons, azaleas, or holly can reduce moisture evaporation.  Likewise, if there is a thawing of the ground during the winter, a deep drink from the hose will keep the evergreens hydrated. 
This time of year is a great time to add organic fertilizers to the shrubs.  I use the excuse of a mild winter day to get outside.  Mostly, I apply fertilizer for acid-loving plants  like Espoma Holly-Tone  This fertilizer will not dissolve, but will be used by the microorganisms in the soil once the weather and soils get warmer.  I also like to add Sulfur, a natural element that lowers the pH of the soil -  a condition that hydrangeas like to produce blue blossoms. 
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blue hydrangea
Mop Head Hydrangea
I’ve had many inquiries about the low, or no blooming hydrangea that are certainly a disappointment.  Several things affect hydrangea blooms. Low light, too much shade, and since hydrangeas set buds in the fall, a late freeze or ice event can kill off those buds.  I was even ready to throw out the Ever-Blooming Hydrangeas as a waste of time after two seasons of disappointing performances.  But one thing that remedied my infrequent bloomers was adding Triple Phosphate
The N-P-K of fertilizers indicates the Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Potassium, three key elements for plant growth.  Phosphorous aids in the development of strong root systems, and the production of blooms.  The summer after I applied the Triple Phosphate to the soil at the base of the plants in late winter, I had more blooms that ever before.  Now is a good time to apply Triple Phosphate for summer blooming shrubs.  triple phosphate
These few winter chores of pruning, mulching, and fertilizing your plants now will pay big dividends with shapely shrubs that are full of blooming color. Other tips for winter plant care are in a previous blog, seen here.
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Middle Atlantic Chapter American Rhododendron Society

Thanks for letting me add to your to-do list.  Enjoy!

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

The Fairies Are Present–Krohn Conservatory


The winter here in SW Ohio seemed to be put on hold for a while last week.  So Saturday, we headed to the Krohn Conservatory in Cincinnati, Ohio.  The sun was shining and the main garden theme highlighted spring even though we are still in the midst of winter.  I cannot begin to express my delight at the color, and the aromas of the blooming plants. Let me show you a little of this delightful exhibit which runs through April 7 called An Enchanted Forest.
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The show’s designers are Josh Hill, horticulturist at the Krohn, John DeVore of DeVore’s Land and Water Gardens, and Lee Baker DeVore, a local artist who created the little houses. The rolling hills representing a spring woodland was remarkable.  And the little fairy houses were enchanting.  The hillside was made so real by the 22 tons of sandstone boulders the creators brought into the conservatory.
 
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As you can see, the tulips and hyacinths were showing there colors and drenching the room with luxurious aromas, and the tiny ferns, and ivy are tucked into the crevices of the logs and rocks.

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These Fairy cottages have a waterfront view.

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Fairies love tulips.  They use them as cradles for the ‘wee ones’ to sleep.


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Blue flowers in a fairy garden represent intrigue and fantasy, serenity, and secret intuition.
 
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The woodland garden is just beginning to come alive from the winter cold.
 
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Fairies have a peaceful setting along this babbling brook.

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The designers have made this woodland space authentic and so beautiful.

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Fairies use pansies in love potions.  And human should never pick a pansy if it has dew on it – dire consequences are to be expected!

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A lovely detail on this fairy house.  The lucky fairy, this one!

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From the tiny ferns, to the little ivy climbing over the rocks, this woodland garden is magical. And I might have seen a twinkle of fairy dust just out of the corner of my eye.