Hostas, plants in the liliaceae family are beautiful shade or part-shade accents or ground covers. They have tall spikes of flowers in the summer(which some people just trim off) but they are grown for their beautiful foliage. They come variegated, one color, bumpy, smooth and in a variety of colors. Hosta's foliage dies back in the fall and they are some of the first plants to start putting up shoots in the spring. I have found that when they are first starting to come up is the best time to divide them. They are a great pass along plant. You can get just a few from a friend, or nursery and in a few years, have a large collection just by continual dividing. They are very hardy, and it is difficult to get the whole plant if you want to clear an area and move them all to a different place. The little bit of root stock that gets left will generate a new plant.
My hostas have of course suffered along with all the other shade loving plants that I haven't been able to move to shady areas. I was just starting to get a good collection in the front of my house in front of the azaleas pre-tornado. I already had quite a few out in back in the fern glade and along the East side of the house. All but a few were pass- alongs.
My sweet sister, Sandi, in Wisconsin has a beautiful shady area near her deck that is hosta heaven. they are huge, and a beautiful dark green. Hostas seem to me to do better and grow larger in the usually more cool weather up North. She gave me several plants a few years ago when I was there on a visit, and of course they are some of my favorites. I have noticed that since they get more sun the leaves have adapted by becoming more elongated, and a lighter green.
I have relocated many of my hostas to an area under the deck, where they are a little bit more sheltered, but are still getting too much sun as the leaves have been yellowing in the sun and heat of this hot summer. I do have plans for a little bit more shrubbery to be put in this fall, so I hope that the little bit of extra shade will help. The ones we have in front of the front porch are looking particularly stressed, and I doubt it will get more shady there anytime soon, so they will have to be moved this fall and something else planted there in front of the azaleas, which are doing well, despite all the sun exposure. I figure that if the azaleas can make it through this summer, they can take just about any abuse.
Susan
Monday, July 30, 2012
Friday, July 27, 2012
Fragrant garden 4/Wow does that Jasmine smell good!
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| Confederate Jasmine |
Trachelospermum jasminoides
Confederate Jasmine, Trachelospermum jasminoides is not a true jasmine, but I'm glad to have it on my fence. It is a lovely evergreen vine and I think that Birmingham is on the Northern end of its range, so it needs to be in a South facing location. It likes a bit of shade as well. The sun heating the concrete driveway probably helps keep it warmer in the winter. We have had it for about seven years and it has totally covered half of the fence. I keep the roots really well mulched. If we ever have an extremely cold winter again, it may die back. In the deep South, it needs to have more shade. It can use some pruning to keep it under control if you have a smaller area, or it gets too thick. I have two climbing roses on the fence as well, and need to keep it trimmed back away from them.
The lovely smell of the blossoms always reminds of our trip to India in the mid-nineties when we traveled to the wedding of our dear friend Faizal. There were jasmine blossoms hung on the wedding pavilion and all of the ladies had jasmine in our hair. A little bit of heaven.
Faizal's family live in a small village in the State of Kerala. I was entranced by their garden. I had never seen pepper growing before. The pepper grows in long thin pods. The soil there was red, like the soil in the Southern US , and the trees in the garden were all planted down in a bowl shaped indentation with a small berm around them. I assumed that this was to take advantage of the rain during the monsoon season. There is a distinct wet and dry season there. I was entranced by all of the large leaved tropical plants. Many different kinds of bananas and plantains grow there, and we were given a small banana at the end of every meal to "aid in digestion". It does.
Faizal's family were very kind hosts and one afternoon his family treated us to a traditional meal served on large banana leaves. There were many different kinds of sauces and stews and we sat on the floor with a leaf in front of us and made small balls of rice with our hands which were then dipped in the sauces and stews. It was all very delicious and lots of fun. Many of the dishes were spicy , so they also served a sauce made from cucumbers and yogurt to cool the palate. Another wonderful experience.
Our trip to India and the colorful and lovely wedding is one of my favorite memories.
Susan
Thursday, July 26, 2012
So Happy To Find St. Francis
Another very hot and dry day in Alabama. Yesterday was high 90's and no rain in sight. Watering seems futile, but we try. You know conditions are tough for the plants when even the natives like the wild ageratums look wilted and dying. I just watered them yesterday. I will be out there with the hose again tonight. Night watering is not supposed to be as good for plants and morning, but in conditions like this, I opt for night so that the water has some time to soak in before it evaporates entirely. I do hope we get some of the predicted possible rain tomorrow. The probability is only around 30% though, according to the weather channel. This summer has reinforced my plans to plant only native shrubs in the fall. I will only have to baby them for a year instead of forever!
After my friends Michael and Laura so generously gave me stepping stones and rocks from their garden redo,I was able to build a pathway going down a little hill and a garden area in what had been just a weedy , waste area. The little garden area comes to a point where the pathway divides at the bottom of the hill. I planted a crape myrtle purchased from the Birmingham Botanical Garden plant sale at the back and 3 lorapetalum to the rear and right of the crape myrtle. A lone, blue hydrangea sits to the left. Then I put Stella D'Oro daylilies to the front of the crape myrtle. It seemed as though something was missing, it needed more of a focal point than the crape myrtle. A Saint Francis statue seemed like just the right thing, but of course, when I decided that was what was needed, I couldn't find one. It took months of looking to find just the right size. I even looked when I was in North Carolina, no luck.
I found St. Francis
Photos taken in August, 2012
Just about the time I was about to give up and put something else there, a friend, I think it was Molly or Lynn, told me about a place in Pelham, about a half hour drive down Highway 31. Meyers Plants and Pottery seems to be the best place in the area to find garden statuary and decoration at reasonable prices. They have an interesting selection of bottle trees and colorful artwork to put on fences and posts. I was in heaven, and there was just the right size St. Francis. He makes me smile every time I look down there and see him sitting behind the daylilies!
I think I mentioned in a previous blog that he escaped damage in the tornado even though the crape myrtle was bent and broken and there were big branches down all around him. The crape myrtle has recovered and looks beautiful right now with lavender colored blooms. I still haven't found just the right little bench to put down in that area, but it will show up when it shows up. I will wait for the perfect one.
If you are not doing so already, please pray for rain and cooler weather for all who are suffering in this heat and drought!
Susan
After my friends Michael and Laura so generously gave me stepping stones and rocks from their garden redo,I was able to build a pathway going down a little hill and a garden area in what had been just a weedy , waste area. The little garden area comes to a point where the pathway divides at the bottom of the hill. I planted a crape myrtle purchased from the Birmingham Botanical Garden plant sale at the back and 3 lorapetalum to the rear and right of the crape myrtle. A lone, blue hydrangea sits to the left. Then I put Stella D'Oro daylilies to the front of the crape myrtle. It seemed as though something was missing, it needed more of a focal point than the crape myrtle. A Saint Francis statue seemed like just the right thing, but of course, when I decided that was what was needed, I couldn't find one. It took months of looking to find just the right size. I even looked when I was in North Carolina, no luck.
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I found St. Francis
Photos taken in August, 2012
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| View of back garden . The back part behind crape myrtle and in front of retaining wall used to be my shade garden. There was a large oak tree and a sweet gum tree shading the area, as well as the Southern magnolia which is now half the size it used to be. |
I think I mentioned in a previous blog that he escaped damage in the tornado even though the crape myrtle was bent and broken and there were big branches down all around him. The crape myrtle has recovered and looks beautiful right now with lavender colored blooms. I still haven't found just the right little bench to put down in that area, but it will show up when it shows up. I will wait for the perfect one.
If you are not doing so already, please pray for rain and cooler weather for all who are suffering in this heat and drought!
Susan
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Relocated plants
Yesterday morning as I was out for an early walk around the neighborhood, my up and around the corner neighbor, LaVerne hailed me. She was out watering her shrubs and ferns. Prior to the tornado she had had a beautiful large fern garden out under a huge oak tree. I know she misses it as much as I miss mine. She had had many more specimens than I did, though. Quite a few made it through, and she is trying to keep them alive.
LaVerne told me she had just cut back an angels trumpet plant that is growing in front of her house. "Before it takes over the neighborhood" she said. She asked if I would like some of the seed pods. Being a plant addict, and not having an angels trumpet, I of course said yes. She said it is a datura and I was able to find a reference to them in only one of my books, the encyclopedia of garden plants. I didn't look on the internet, but I am sure they are easy to find if googled. The flowers on the datura evidently point up, instead of down which is how the angel trumpet flowers I am familiar with grow. They need full sun and average well-drained soil. The encyclopedia says they sprawl, but gracefully, and they need plenty of room and perhaps some support. It says they can be used in perennial borders, pots, or shrub borders, but be sure to put them in a spot where you can smell the fragrant flowers in the evening. It sounds like this may be a good one in a large pot on the deck. The pods she gave me are still green, so I need to let them dry and then collect the seed and use them next spring. I hope I am successful.
It is very very hot and dry here again, so we are back to full scale watering, especially the new sod.
I had a little bit of time this morning before it got too hot, to weed between my stepping stones in the path that goes through my little rock garden. Friends Michael and Laura( who also gave me most of the stepping stones when they were re-doing part of their garden to put in a pool) have given me some dwarf mondo grass starts. The grass is in its second year here, and seems to be following the "first year sleeps, second year creeps and third year leaps" pattern of most ground covers. It is trying to send out new little plants, but the weeds are trying to thwart their success. Another constant battle. The weeds don't just grow between the plants, they grow right up in them, so they are constantly being disturbed. I have lost a few, but most are green. I end up having to replant some of them after I remove the weeds from between their roots. Today I went to buy yet another bag of pine bark mulch to put between them to try to hold back some of the weed growth. It is not just weeds, either, there are also new little purple coneflowers poking up between the stones. Those I keep and put in pots for relocation.
Some of the purple coneflowers are starting to look a little bit straggly, but the black eyed susans are spectacular right now. They like to spread themselves around as well, and are very welcome to go most places. They are such a cheerful looking flower, and look good with the all the zinnias that have seeded themselves around also.
This morning I also relocated my in-ground rosemary plant to the rock garden. I have slowly been clearing spaces of plants and weeds in that area to have more room for herbs so that I can plant more vegetables where the herbs are now. I think the rosemary was getting to much water and had too much rich soil where it was, because it was beginning to look stressed. They thrive on neglect, really. I put a lot of sand in the rocky soil before I planted it at the top of the garden. It looks much better there, too. I hope it will like its new home, and get quite large there.
Well, enough writing for today.
Susan
LaVerne told me she had just cut back an angels trumpet plant that is growing in front of her house. "Before it takes over the neighborhood" she said. She asked if I would like some of the seed pods. Being a plant addict, and not having an angels trumpet, I of course said yes. She said it is a datura and I was able to find a reference to them in only one of my books, the encyclopedia of garden plants. I didn't look on the internet, but I am sure they are easy to find if googled. The flowers on the datura evidently point up, instead of down which is how the angel trumpet flowers I am familiar with grow. They need full sun and average well-drained soil. The encyclopedia says they sprawl, but gracefully, and they need plenty of room and perhaps some support. It says they can be used in perennial borders, pots, or shrub borders, but be sure to put them in a spot where you can smell the fragrant flowers in the evening. It sounds like this may be a good one in a large pot on the deck. The pods she gave me are still green, so I need to let them dry and then collect the seed and use them next spring. I hope I am successful.
It is very very hot and dry here again, so we are back to full scale watering, especially the new sod.
I had a little bit of time this morning before it got too hot, to weed between my stepping stones in the path that goes through my little rock garden. Friends Michael and Laura( who also gave me most of the stepping stones when they were re-doing part of their garden to put in a pool) have given me some dwarf mondo grass starts. The grass is in its second year here, and seems to be following the "first year sleeps, second year creeps and third year leaps" pattern of most ground covers. It is trying to send out new little plants, but the weeds are trying to thwart their success. Another constant battle. The weeds don't just grow between the plants, they grow right up in them, so they are constantly being disturbed. I have lost a few, but most are green. I end up having to replant some of them after I remove the weeds from between their roots. Today I went to buy yet another bag of pine bark mulch to put between them to try to hold back some of the weed growth. It is not just weeds, either, there are also new little purple coneflowers poking up between the stones. Those I keep and put in pots for relocation.
Some of the purple coneflowers are starting to look a little bit straggly, but the black eyed susans are spectacular right now. They like to spread themselves around as well, and are very welcome to go most places. They are such a cheerful looking flower, and look good with the all the zinnias that have seeded themselves around also.
This morning I also relocated my in-ground rosemary plant to the rock garden. I have slowly been clearing spaces of plants and weeds in that area to have more room for herbs so that I can plant more vegetables where the herbs are now. I think the rosemary was getting to much water and had too much rich soil where it was, because it was beginning to look stressed. They thrive on neglect, really. I put a lot of sand in the rocky soil before I planted it at the top of the garden. It looks much better there, too. I hope it will like its new home, and get quite large there.
Well, enough writing for today.
Susan
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Fragrant Garden 3
Today when I returned home from church I noticed a swallowtail butterfly, a hummingbird with an iridescent green back, and several bees all feeding at the lantana. We have a couple of confetti type lantana with pink and yellow and white colored blossoms. I stood there for quite a while and the hummingbird would take off , fly across the street, or over to the neighbors and then come right back. I was very still, and it flew within a foot of where I was standing.
We have a very useful herb growing next to the driveway near the lantana, and next to the lavender.
It is melissa officnalis, or lemon balm. Lemon balm is a perennial in the mint family that grows in sun or shade, but it really likes partial shade the best, and it likes moist, well drained soil. How it and the lavender are existing next to each other in the same planter behind the retaining wall, is a mystery to me. I didn't pay too much attention to water requirements when I stuck those plants together several years ago!
Lemon balm is a very useful herb both medicinally, and for culinary purposes. Lemon balm has been used as a remedy for colds and flu for centuries,also to relieve menstrual cramps and headaches. The crushed leaves have been used on insect bites and wounds, and can be added to bath water. In the kitchen ,the leaves make a delicious tea, and a good flavoring in soups, salads, and any dish that would be improved with a lemony addition.
Lemon balm is also used in perfumes and cosmetics.
Lemon balm does die back for the winter, so if you want to preserve it , it can be harvested and tied in small bundles then hung up to dry. Dry leaves retain their fragrance.
Bees love the nectar in it's tiny white flowers. Lemon balm has been grown for its nectar for 2,000 years!
Two of my favorite sources for herbal information are: (unbelievably for this first one) The Readers Digest Magic and Medicine of Plants because it has good color illustrations, and identification descriptions and also The Complete Herb Book by Maggie Stuckey. I have been using and taking notes from these books for years.
Susan
We have a very useful herb growing next to the driveway near the lantana, and next to the lavender.
It is melissa officnalis, or lemon balm. Lemon balm is a perennial in the mint family that grows in sun or shade, but it really likes partial shade the best, and it likes moist, well drained soil. How it and the lavender are existing next to each other in the same planter behind the retaining wall, is a mystery to me. I didn't pay too much attention to water requirements when I stuck those plants together several years ago!
Lemon balm is a very useful herb both medicinally, and for culinary purposes. Lemon balm has been used as a remedy for colds and flu for centuries,also to relieve menstrual cramps and headaches. The crushed leaves have been used on insect bites and wounds, and can be added to bath water. In the kitchen ,the leaves make a delicious tea, and a good flavoring in soups, salads, and any dish that would be improved with a lemony addition.
Lemon balm is also used in perfumes and cosmetics.
Lemon balm does die back for the winter, so if you want to preserve it , it can be harvested and tied in small bundles then hung up to dry. Dry leaves retain their fragrance.
Bees love the nectar in it's tiny white flowers. Lemon balm has been grown for its nectar for 2,000 years!
Two of my favorite sources for herbal information are: (unbelievably for this first one) The Readers Digest Magic and Medicine of Plants because it has good color illustrations, and identification descriptions and also The Complete Herb Book by Maggie Stuckey. I have been using and taking notes from these books for years.
Susan
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Turkey Creek Nature Preserve
Today was the Float Your Boat fundraiser at Turkey Creek Nature Preserve. People who attended paid to float little, colorful, balsa wood boats on the creek and over the falls( like rubber ducky races) There were several heats and then the final for the prizes. I was there to volunteer at the Vulcan Trail Association booth.(my hiking club) The Vulcan Trail Association has been building a new hiking trail at Turkey Creek and the grand opening for the trail will be in late September.
If you haven't visited the park, please do. Its a great place to get in the water, sit on the rocks and cool off in the hot summer weather. Really fun place at any time of the year.
Talked with lots of great people and enjoyed the outdoors. Our booth was next to The Stoneshovel booth. Stoneshovel is owned by Arnie Rutkis, who designs and builds native plant gardens. He propagates the plants and had several different kinds for sale. Arnie also built the beautiful garden at Turkey Creek Nature Preserve. One of Arnie's boats won first prize in the final float race! The prize was a nice Patagonia duffle bag from Alabama Outdoors.
Arnie has been in some of the classes I've taken at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens,and when I get back to planting more natives, he'll be my source for plants. You can find out more about his business at www.stoneshovel.com or e mail him at arnie@stoneshovel.com. Please check him out.
The Vestavia Hills Library has a fairly large Go Green section and I have been enjoying checking out the books. This week I found a book called The Heirloom Life Gardener , by Jere and Emilee Gettle.
They own the Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company in the Ozark Mountains in Missouri. In a world where agriculture has been taken over by corporate agriculture and factory farms with monoculture crops from hybridized and genetically engineered seeds, it is becoming more and more important to buy and grow your garden with heirloom varieties of plants and seeds. The produce tastes much better and is much more nutritious than the hybridized food most people eat which is bred for shipping and long shelf life, and to withstand the herbicides poured on the fields to kill the weeds.
It seems that more and more heirloom produce is showing up at farmer's markets, good thing.
The story of how Baker Creek got started is quite fun to read. I'm only about a third of the way through the book, so will keep you updated, but if you like gardens, you'll find this book interesting.
Happy growing,
Susan
If you haven't visited the park, please do. Its a great place to get in the water, sit on the rocks and cool off in the hot summer weather. Really fun place at any time of the year.
Talked with lots of great people and enjoyed the outdoors. Our booth was next to The Stoneshovel booth. Stoneshovel is owned by Arnie Rutkis, who designs and builds native plant gardens. He propagates the plants and had several different kinds for sale. Arnie also built the beautiful garden at Turkey Creek Nature Preserve. One of Arnie's boats won first prize in the final float race! The prize was a nice Patagonia duffle bag from Alabama Outdoors.
Arnie has been in some of the classes I've taken at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens,and when I get back to planting more natives, he'll be my source for plants. You can find out more about his business at www.stoneshovel.com or e mail him at arnie@stoneshovel.com. Please check him out.
The Vestavia Hills Library has a fairly large Go Green section and I have been enjoying checking out the books. This week I found a book called The Heirloom Life Gardener , by Jere and Emilee Gettle.
They own the Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company in the Ozark Mountains in Missouri. In a world where agriculture has been taken over by corporate agriculture and factory farms with monoculture crops from hybridized and genetically engineered seeds, it is becoming more and more important to buy and grow your garden with heirloom varieties of plants and seeds. The produce tastes much better and is much more nutritious than the hybridized food most people eat which is bred for shipping and long shelf life, and to withstand the herbicides poured on the fields to kill the weeds.
It seems that more and more heirloom produce is showing up at farmer's markets, good thing.
The story of how Baker Creek got started is quite fun to read. I'm only about a third of the way through the book, so will keep you updated, but if you like gardens, you'll find this book interesting.
Happy growing,
Susan
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Fragrant Garden 2
Yesterday and this morning I saw what I think is a papilo glaucus, or Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly in the dark phase. It was visiting the zinnias, and is so very beautiful. I will check with some experts to make sure that is who our visitor is. I just googled and looked for pictures. My husband may be kind and let me borrow his camera for next time. My cell phone probably won"t take a good picture for ID. I'll need zoom capabilities.
Last night Sidney and Sophie, daughters of my husband's stepsister visited the garden. They were interested in the little fairy house and garden , which was an Easter Sunday project for young visitors. It is built under 3 Rose of Sharon bushes . Our Easter guests also put mardi gras beads in the branches of the bushes, so it is quite sparkly and colorful there. We had a great time playing ball toss, and then toured the herbs. I pinched off bits of the plants for them to smell and they took home some rosemary for their mom to attempt to root. I love talking about plants with young visitors.
Sidney and Sophie especially loved the lavender.
lavandula angustifolia, the name comes from the latin, lavare which means "to wash". The scent has a calming effect, and its oil has been called a "universal healing oil" The flowers are often dried and used as sachets, and it has been shown to be a a help in relieving intestinal gas. It is very good to use in the bedroom to help have a good night's sleep. It has also been used to help repel mosquitoes.
The ancient Phoenicians and Egyptians began its use as perfume and of course it is still being used for this purpose.
In the garden, it needs a dry sunny location. I have mine in a planter along the driveway retaining wall that sometimes fills with water, but once a year I add more sand to the soil there, and it has done well. Luckily, the water quickly drains.
If you are having a hectic day or are emotionally upset and need calming it is good to have some lavender available in the garden when you get home.
Susan
Last night Sidney and Sophie, daughters of my husband's stepsister visited the garden. They were interested in the little fairy house and garden , which was an Easter Sunday project for young visitors. It is built under 3 Rose of Sharon bushes . Our Easter guests also put mardi gras beads in the branches of the bushes, so it is quite sparkly and colorful there. We had a great time playing ball toss, and then toured the herbs. I pinched off bits of the plants for them to smell and they took home some rosemary for their mom to attempt to root. I love talking about plants with young visitors.
Sidney and Sophie especially loved the lavender.
lavandula angustifolia, the name comes from the latin, lavare which means "to wash". The scent has a calming effect, and its oil has been called a "universal healing oil" The flowers are often dried and used as sachets, and it has been shown to be a a help in relieving intestinal gas. It is very good to use in the bedroom to help have a good night's sleep. It has also been used to help repel mosquitoes.
The ancient Phoenicians and Egyptians began its use as perfume and of course it is still being used for this purpose.
In the garden, it needs a dry sunny location. I have mine in a planter along the driveway retaining wall that sometimes fills with water, but once a year I add more sand to the soil there, and it has done well. Luckily, the water quickly drains.
If you are having a hectic day or are emotionally upset and need calming it is good to have some lavender available in the garden when you get home.
Susan
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