Snippets of Foliage and Winter Garden Art January 15, 2013

Making good use of January indoor time is important to me as a gardener. I like the creative momentum that builds up after the fall garden clean up is over, the holiday distractions are finished and I’m really ready to get going on something nature oriented. Ogling the seed catalogs and various juicy pictorial based websites are the creative outlets I rely when digging or designing are not a palatable option. But, it’s still not actively DOING something, or CREATING and THAT is what energizes me.

So, I went out into the garden and took little snippets and bits of plants that were looking lovely and decided to have fun with them. I played Portrait Studio! I did this once a few years back when I entered the Gardening Gone Wild Photo Contest and learned an invaluable little photo trick from David Perry, one of my photography idols.

I had loads of fun creating these foliage based shots (no blooms here just yet). I hope YOU enjoy them too!

This was a sampling of one style of the artwork I created over the weekend, I’m saving the rest for later. Now, to figure out what  else is going to keep me busy for a while…. Oh ya, I have a book coming out soon!!!

Devotedly Hoarding and Dividing Spring Perennials March 28, 2012

It has turned out that I have a great passion for collecting Heuchera, Heucherella and now some Tiarella too.  Especially in part due to the eye candy of plants at the Terra Nova website. Dan Heims of Terra Nova Nurseries has built an empire of Heuchera and MANY other tempting delights. I never thought of myself as one of those gardener’s who would have a fixation for assembling great numbers of any one genre of plant, but these seem to be my thing. All right, you got me. That’s not ENTIRELY true I must have Euphorbia too!

My current favorite 'Berry Smoothie'

I did have quite a love affair with Nandina of ALL types for many years, they still have a place in my heart, just not as ardently. I had an extremely prized ‘Threadleaf’ Nandina that made it to an impressive size at one home. I couldn’t bear to dig it up and take it with me as it seemed to complete the spot near the front door where it thrived.

You could add on to my list of devotions, Hellebore’s and Conifer’s now, thanks to my friend Mitch, a serious collector. His influence on me has been profound in a Plant Porn kind of way. I go to his garden for a biennial fix. Mitch is going to give me a division of some of his gorgeous Blue ‘Willow’ Gentians. I am SO excited!

It occurred to me the other day as I was out on spring garden clean up day two of probably ten, that I had not divided the Heuchera’s since I had been at this house. So, I grabbed my camera to show you, if you have never done it. It’s a shame that many people simply let them die and don’t realize that Heuchera can be divided incredibly easily and with a fabulous ratio of success!
When your, let’s call her the “Mama” Heuchera gets to about 4 years old or so, you will begin to see the foliage diminish slightly and she will develop finger length “Pups” that stick up about 3-4″ with a little tuffet of leaves at the top. I know this is terribly technical, but, stick with me!

What I like to call a Heuchera "Pup"

In late March, I will either, dig up the whole plant, or if she’s a tough broad, sometimes I will just rip chunks off of her right from the ground. You will usually see anywhere from 5-10 “Pups”. Some that will be large and fat, about 4″ long and an inch around and some that are really small, only a few inches long and 1/3″ around. Yesterday, I got more than 40 divisions out of 5 plants. That’s a pretty great ROI on plants that are not inexpensive!

Simply plant them back in the garden, roots side down. Then hurry up and wait! Smaller ones take longer, larger ones just take off. Easy peasy! Try it and save yourself a few bucks to go out and get obsessed about a new plant to spend your money on.

Hmmmmmm…. Terra Nova has these new Kniphofia I have been eying.

AM Snow and PM Spring in the Garden Today March 23, 2012

Other than the sounds of snow thawing and water draining out of the unbelievably soggy lawn, you would never know that I woke up to snow this morning at 7:30am. It was a winter wonderland. Not an altogether happy one on my part, having just come back from a month away, where it was 70 in Philadelphia for 2 weeks and then 80 in Houston for almost another week. But, considering it is March in my beloved Seattle ‘Burbs, I know better than to whine. Much.

Here are some pics from the garden today. Clearly, my Euphorbia’s of ALL flavors are glorious in their Pre-Easter nodding fashion. The Hebe’s  and Heuchera are pulling their weight too, and my winter container designs are quite striking in the early spring sun. I’m not sure how much of a hurry I may be in to trade them in just yet. Enjoy!

Northwest Flower and Garden Show – Symphony of Flower Bulbs February 16, 2012

The Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle just ended and as I spend the countless hours editing my numerous photos, I realize that I have much too much great color, design ideas and details to share with all of you for one simple blog post. And far be it from me to ever be simple!

How will I be able to share as much of the show as I possibly can with you, without short-changing any of the fabulous elements that make up one of the biggest shows in the country? (Our Seattle show is 2nd in the US only to the Philadelphia Flower and Garden Show- where I will be in about 2 weeks!)

My plan is to show you parts of the show by thematic element rather than by designer, vendor or big garden display, in a number of posts over time. Hopefully you will follow along and maybe even feel like, if you couldn’t attend the show, that you got a great sense of what you missed. Maybe you will even be motivated enough to attend next year. With a theme for the 2013 show like “Hollywood” there is bound to be some serious fun. I can’t wait – maybe I will even decide to jump into the spectacle once again!

If you want to delve yet even deeper into the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, you can Tweet with other #NWFGS fans on Twitter here or you can “Like” the Facebook page here, and chat with all the other devoted show Followers.

Today’s post will focus on flower bulbs which were more than voluminous throughout the entire show. From basic to exotic, spring was definitely filling the air with fragrant bulbs. I found bulbs in almost every single corner of the show, so it’s as good of a place to start as any!

In later posts I will cover Orchids, Lighting, Miniature Gardening, Terrariums, Water Features and so much more. We ought to be able to get some of our spring groove on well into the warm weather to get you going!

Still can’t get enough of the show? I know, I understand that you need your fix, here is a short list of Blogs and Articles that have also posted about the Northwest Flower and Garden Show to give you even more variety at a glance. In the next post I will share some other ones too:

http://bggarden.com/blog/

http://www.valeaston.com/

http://turnerphotographics.com/blog/2012/02/11/northwest-flower-garden-show-2012/

http://www.jpetersongardendesign.com/2012/02/northwest-flower-garden-show/

http://desertnw.wordpress.com/

http://nextgenerationgardener.blogspot.com/2012/02/2012-northwest-flower-and-garden-show.html

http://inthegarden.marthastewart.com/2012/02/06/northwest-flower-garden-show/

http://www.gardenhelp.org/garden-show/northwest-flower-garden-show-2012-its-a-wrap/

http://www.gardenfreshliving.com/2012/02/2012-northwest-flower-garden-show-highlight-video.html

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2012/02/08/2017056/paradise-found.html

http://reddirtramblings.com/?p=19357

http://bwisegardening.blogspot.com/

Please comment and share this post and if you are on Pinterest feel free to Pin these photos! If Pinterest is new to you, take a peak at my “The Personal Garden Coach” Boards to see what all the fuss is about- be warned it’s VERY addictive!

Choosing Winter Foliage That Says WOW! October 31, 2011

How do you choose your foliage palette for your garden? Does it vary from season to season or do you keep it a tight color scheme of just a couple of colors year round?

When I’m shopping and designing for a client in the Fall and Winter, it takes on a completely different feeling than in the abundant and effervescent summer when you can nearly throw a dart out in the nursery and hit combinations of plants that will play well together.

This time of the year I have to think much more about the textural effects and the vivid or subtle nature of foliage colors together. This raises my passion for this process to a whole new level. The challenge and yet sometimes the utter simplicity of this task when all is said and done are among my highest highs.

Recently, I had the fun opportunity to put together a couple of custom containers for a client to sell at a charity auction. I was short on time and even more short on plants at the ready. I made a special shopping trip to get a bunch of colorful options to go with the particular color of pots I had in mind.

The client’s only request was that they look very fall’ish. I was very pleased with the result, but even more so with the ease with which they went together. I based it on what I call my “Garanimals of Fall/Winter Plant List”. You can read more about this here. 

Carex 'Cappuccino', Leucothoe 'Rainbow', Heuchera 'Electra', Selaginella 'Aurea', Coprosma 'Tequila Sunrise', Euphorbia 'Helena's Blush', Creeping Wire Vine, Hebe

Now I’m onto another Fall and Winter design using foliage as the focus. I picked up a whole bunch of plants the other day and as I unloaded them from my car, I was tickled at what a great start I had from just the plants sitting in the driveway in boxes!

Tomorrow I go to get another load to go with them, since I have to get enough large-scale plants for three large containers. I’ll be looking for Nandina, Leucothoe, Choisya and maybe an Aucuba if I can find a good one.  I have some great colors and textures to riff on. The flowers from the Hellebore will be fantastic in late winter. I love how they’re happily spitting out a few blooms now too!

Of course you know I’ll get some good shots of the pots when I’m done so you can see how they turn out.  :-) I would love to hear how you see foliage in the garden working for you and how you choose them for various areas and focal points.

Garden Designer’s Roundtable – Shining In The Shade June 28, 2011

Customers at the nursery where I work, as well as my own private clients, frequently lament to me about the challenges of frustrating boredom or lack of success they have with their shade conditions. This “woe is me” line of thinking does not linger long around me. I enthusiastically explain how they have bountiful, dazzling design options and plant choices to play with that others with no shade don’t have. Dry shade? No problem! Damp shade, even better! Bring it on, let’s get your garden where you want it to be together.

Fatsia Japonica

Why not take full advantage of this location and all it has to offer? Try new things, break out of your shell. You are not limited to Impatiens or dry barren areas. Now more than ever in the history of gardening, you have the ability to make a wide range of plant choices beyond the every day standard OR the defeatist attitude of  ”Nothing will ever grow well there.” I will simply have none of it.

Hosta and Paris in the garden of David Fishman

In my own garden, just like most people, I have several little micro-pocket zones of varying shade conditions. I have had a ball experimenting with different perennials, shrubs, grasses and groundcover. I like to think of myself as a test driver for plants. Then I know what to expect from them and I can speak with authority about the dodgy ones versus the top performers.

Dwarf Hydrangea and Japanese Forest Grass

My fascination with the unending variants that create shade conditions is a deep and wide river of exploration. For me, trial and error is truly the only way to learn what does and does not work. I’ve had my greatest success with some of the craziest combinations. If I had played by “the rules” on the tags or in the books, then I would have not been able to achieve some of my most creative pairings. If we all knew exactly what plants have a tolerance for what circumstance in every spot in the garden, designing and gardening would get very dull, very quickly!

Thalictrum and Actea

Sometimes I want certain sections of the garden to tell a story about how I would like them to be perceived by the person experiencing it. Maybe a bright and playful area of color in bright shade are followed up by a moody, quiet and contemplative space in full, deep shade. I want it all!

Double Flowering Hellebore

Cypress, Heucherella and Begonia

In my line of work as The Personal Garden Coach I’m usually in the clients garden with them to see each condition that they face. At my nursery job I have to learn to ask exactly the right questions to deduce what the customer actually means by “I have this shady spot, where nothing will grow.” I have to be like a detective to discern what they mean by “nothing”, how they define “shady” and what plants they have tried that don’t seem to be working.

“What’s shading the area?”

“Is it damp there, or dry there?”

“How do you water?”

“What plants have you tried so far?”

“Is it AM shade, PM shade, or shaded all day?”

Ultimately, I surmise a draft in my imagination of what the area is that they’re describing and advise some great plant suggestions. I can draw from my own experiences with shade conditions in many gardens that I’ve worked and create an action plan for design success, while tweaking it for their personal tastes or style.

Hosta, Heuchera, Heucherella, Coleus, Yarrow

Without the experience of failures and success in my own shade garden, I don’t think I would be as quick to assess difficult garden situations and turn the challenge around into opportunity for a gardener to create their vision.

Winterhazel, Sambucus, Fern, Molinia, Hosta

I also adore stretching the plants limits with the various fickle conditions that shade can deliver. From the most dark and cool shadowy corner under trees to bright shade where the garden gets glowing light but no direct sun. Both can offer a sense of experience that you can’t get with a full-on sunny location especially if you are an adventurous gardener!

Hydrangea Paniculata, Coleus, Pennisetum, Sage, Euphorbia

I could go on and on about the technical definitions of shade, design ideas and lists of plant selections that would be great for you to try. But, the ultimate bottom line is that you have to honor your vast set of options and try new things. Some may work and others may not. You have a boundless set of resources from plants to books and websites that few before our generation had access to, use them! A great nursery person, experienced friend or blogger can be just the inspiration you need to dive into the shade and conquer it.

Nandina 'Firepower'

Explore more Shade plant blogs of The Garden Designer’s Roundtable by reading more from this month’s guest writer Margaret Roach on her blog “A Way to Garden” and all of the other fabulous writers below.

Margaret Roach : A Way To Garden : Hudson Valley, NY

Andrew Keys : Garden Smackdown : Boston, MA

Debbie Roberts : A Garden of Possibilities : Stamford, CT

Douglas Owens-Pike : Energyscapes : Minneapolis, MN

Genevieve Schmidt : North Coast Gardening : Arcata, CA

Lesley Hegarty & Robert Webber : Hegarty Webber Partnership : Bristol, UK

Pam Penick : Digging : Austin, TX

Susan Cohan : Miss Rumphius’ Rules : Chatham, NJ

The Edible Front Yard- Ivette Soler February 1, 2011

http://www.amazon.com/Edible-Front-Yard-Grow-More-Beautiful/dp/1604691999/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1329676650&sr=8-1

When I think of eating produce that I can grow in my front yard, I can almost hear the cries of the neighborhood Lawn Nazi’s now. Grousing not so subtly when passing by for inspection, ”What about the green carpet of tweezed by hand, weed free, edged to perfection, pride of ownership that defines your island of possession and weekly proof of conquering nature?”

Surely Blueberry shrubs could be acceptable. They’re so pretty in Fall! Especially if I bake them a pie right? What about some Rhubarb? That can’t hurt if I have some strawberries growing underneath. Then they can have a Strawberry-Rhubarb pie! I could even have hanging baskets of berries growing on the porch. Certainly, the Lawn Inspector Generals can’t have a problem with that, right?

Simple- Strawberries and Lobelia!

Now, with the support of “The Germinatrix”- Ivette Soler and her brand new book called “The Edible Front Yard”, I have her chutzpah and encouragement to go for it! Ivette has written an entertaining and might I say, down right persuasive book for me to have the guts to stand up and plant my veggies, right here in my own front yard! Lawn Nazi’s be warned. I will not tolerate your irrational tyranny any longer.

With Ivette’s brand of witty and passionate support, her book is lighting the way to create a front yard landscape that is elegant AND tasteful, in the best possible way! The forward in her book is written by Fritz Haeg, the author of “Edible Estates”. Fritz challenges us to be brave, go forth and conquer our fear of the neighbors downward glances and make the display of your edibles beautiful!

Photos Worth 1000 Healthy Calories

Ivette has gathered hundreds gorgeous of photos of gardens and plants in this book that help tell the story of distinctive and beautiful edible plants. Photographer Ann Summa gets the bulk of credit, but there are also photos from edible gardening experts and designers from many varying locations. They give great example of aesthetic’s and variety of styles and ideas to springboard your integration of edibles into the face forward side of your landscape.

Style Advice for Star Quality Veggie-scapes

The “Rules For Front Yard Edibles” on page 15, gives four guidelines to follow so that your edibles to rise to the occasion. The performance AND the beauty necessary for making the most of the design and devourables is paramount. Ivette puts great weight on Beauty, Style, Regional Appropriateness, and your Home’s Architectural Style. Those are points that really ring bell’s with the neighbors and HOA so that they know you’re not going to be creating an eyesore.

The book is chock full of suggestions for ways to add edibles to your landscape that follow the four guidelines. Plus a whole slew of plant suggestions and even design renderings that you can copy in your own garden!

Fired up doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel about tackling this Edible Front Yard revolution! This book also has a great section on the Reality Check needed before you really get going such as, Climate, Boundaries, Grading, Structures, and Sunlight or lack of it. There are even some suggestions for shade edibles!

Red Sails Lettuce, Lemon Thyme, Hellebore, Jasmine and more!

My FAVORITE Page

Of course it would be imprudent for me not to mention the VERY BEST part of the book – THANK YOU, Ivette and Timber Press, the column on page 131 about Garden Coaches!!!! YES WE CAN be of great help to a gardener who wants to embark on this great new gardening adventure in eating. Saving you Money, Time and Labor is my specialty!

The How-to’s

The chapters and sections that cover the removal and reuse of the lawn, working with existing trees and plants, making the most of hardscaping, and maintenance of your newly designed Edible Front Yard are fantastic! Ivette has written them with a green hand and responsible attitude for todays new gardeners. Setting an example for the neighbors and young passers-by is a truly noble ideal in this day and age. Worms, Compost Tea, Organic Pest Control methods are all topics that we need to be preaching from the top of the compost bin and Ivette has set in motion a beautiful means of doing just that!

Eating out of your Edible Front Yard will not a be considered a subversive act anymore. Even Martha is talking about it! The Mayor of San Francisco has also turned a public space into a fruit and veggie bearing garden for all to enjoy.  This can begin to transform a community, create great relationships with spectators and promote biodiversity that goes beyond lawn and Lobelia. Not to mention the financial and physical benefits of growing your own produce and staying in shape while you do it.

I WILL reflect my own style with veggies in the front yard and I WILL be removing some lawn chores from my routine this Spring while I add some produce curb-appeal! Thanks Ivette!

*Leave me a FABULOUS comment for a free book give away of “The edible front Yard Garden” – drawing on March 1st!!

Early Flowering Perennial Performers For Impact January 24, 2011

When the garden centers start to receive the first shipments of perennials for the spring season there are consistently a few star perennials that get overlooked by gardeners. I think that the sea of intensely colored Primroses, Pansies and Violas that await you immediately on the front tables makes the lust for spring color too hard to pass up!

The hardiness of the Primroses and occasional reseeding of the Pansies and Violas are a fantastic bonus too. But, if you do choose to take those extra couple of steps and venture out into the Perennials section of the nursery, you WILL be very well rewarded indeed with plants that you may COMBINE with your inexpensive “color” and have the benefit of a fantastic seasonal bonus as well. Let’s take a look at some early season perennials that you might not have considered before.

First up is the elegant Hellebore. The endless options for these alone could have me going on here FOREVER. An absolute must for any garden, period. If you would like to see more of these on my favorite post on Hellebore’s, click here.

You may remember the Columbine or Aquilegia from your Grandmother’s garden, it’s been around forever. But, in the last few years a breeding resurgence has brought so many new varieties to the market and you can’t ignore the impact they can have in your spring garden any longer. Even the foliage that once played second fiddle on the plant is now becoming more and more attractive and long-lasting into the warm season, before going dormant.

These are an example of some of the new small flowering varieties from the Clementine series, ‘Dark Purple’ and ‘Salmon Rose’.

Another under used early perennial that I adore is Mossy Saxifraga. This vibrant and abundant flowering rock garden or ground cover plant is so easy to grow in part shade and the little matte of foliage that’s left after blooming is so charming for  the rest of the growing season. The Saxifraga is partnered in this photo with Spreading Phlox. This one is called ‘Candy Stripe’. It also has the mossy matte of foliage leftover after the initial bloom. This plant will frequently re-bloom if cut back after the first flush, if it’s not in too hot of a location during the early months of summer.

Armeria or commonly called Sea Thrift or Sea Pink, is a tufted little grassy plant that is captivating. The little flower heads stand up so erect and happy as if to be the first to greet me in spring! There is one in particular that I WILL be buying this year called ‘Rubrifolia’. I get so swept up in the madness of spring that I keep forgetting that I really want this bronze, grassy texture for year round interest. NOT this year!

When you pair Armeria with ANY variety of Erysimum or Wallflower, you have a DYN-O-MITE combination of fresh spring flowers and foliage! Add some Sedum ‘Angelina’ for vibrant splashes of foliage color too!

Two more perennials that garner tons of attention in spring for the electric colors they sport are Lewisia and Lithodora. Both are excellent for the hot sunny Rock Garden or edge of the border where they can be seen up close. The Lewisia is seen in this picture paired with the foliage of Sedum ‘Autumn Glory’.

Veronica ‘Georgia Blue’ is one of THE most versatile. long blooming and hardy perennials I have ever owned. The foliage turns a bronze in winter. It flowers for months on end and makes wonderful ground cover. I like to use it under early flowering shrubs like Azaleas.

The ‘Labrador Violet’ is a happy sower so if you love it, you will be happy with it all over. It doesn’t seem to me to be overly aggressive at all. In fact, I have loved it where ever it has decided to seed itself. A lovely colony of this sweet little violet has made its home under a Japanese Maple in my garden combined with Alchemilla Mollis or Lady’s Mantle. The winter burnished russet foliage color leftover from winter is striking with the intense apple green of the Lady’s Mantle.

The Pasque Flower or Anemone pulsatilla is a flowering plant that is very close to our hearts here in the Northwest as it’s a native plant that grows in the meadows of our mountains. In the spring near Mt. Rainier, hikers will make their way up while there is still snow in the fields to get pictures of these star attractions of the meadows in bloom.

With the fuzzy soft and ferny foliage emerging AFTER the 2-3 inch wide flowers in color ranges of red, violet, mauve and pink. It’s a fun, must have for an early season blooming essential.

If you’re a fan of foliage that’s delicate like fine lace-work, then you will be mad for the filigree leaves of Corydalis. A part shade beauty that is also refined, this will bloom in a mound of tube-shaped flowers dangling above the foliage like little chandeliers. This one happens to be one of the blue forms, but there are yellow and white as well. The cooler it’s location, the longer it will bloom! Pair it with Hardy Fuchsia, Bleeding Hearts, Hardy Geraniums or Astilbe for a stunning foliage combination after the lovely blooms have faded.

This overview of early blooming perennials is simply the tip of the iceberg for your plant choices. But, these are some of my favorites and some that I think should get a little more attention during the opening volleys of the spring nursery season. There are MANY MANY more that I can add to this list, and I’m sure I will as the season will soon be upon us. Be ready to go and explore new types of plants to add to your early spring garden beyond the conventional.

Do you have any perennials that you think should get more attention in spring? Drop me a note in the comments and I will be happy to go exploring for them. Who knows maybe we can start a new trend.

Gardening Gone Wild ‘Picture This’ Photo Contest January 11, 2011

The excellent ‘Gardening Gone Wild’ blog has a super-cool photo contest section on the site that you can read more about here: http://www.gardeninggonewild.com/?p=15262. Up to now I have been WAY to intimidated to throw myself in to the ring because I don’t really have the type of camera that I know could perform much better in order to even compete with all of those other fabulous garden photographers. However, this month I just couldn’t resist!

Professional photographer David Perry is the MUCH admired judge for this months photos, and he came up with an idea for the contest that even I felt like I could do! It’s called “Macro In A Mason Jar”. I think it’s utterly brilliant!

The idea is that you use the jar to balance the camera to get luscious macro professional looking shots. David Perry took it a step further and gave us some fun and creative ideas for the outer balance of the shot too. I had so much fun with this idea! I tried a few different flowers and styles of jars.

I think I have an amazing new idea for a photo trick that I can use forever. Thank you http://www.gardeninggonewild.com/ for inspiring my entry into the contest!

 

Winterhazel, Buttery Garden Goodness October 30, 2009

Resisting a good plant rescue is very hard for me. When I cam across a severed chunk of buttery Corylopsis Pauciflora a few years ago, it was about to go into the trash pile. Too good to pass up, I thought. And my gamble has rewarded me richly with pastry rich, butter colored, fragrant flowers in the spring and elegantly textured foliage.

Deciding whether I like it more in bloom, paired with deep pink Hellebore in April or with deep pink Chrysanthemums in fall is a tough challenge. Someone putting me up to a decision like that would very likely have to provide some sort of decision make pastry to sway me one way or the other.

Corylopsis is a spectacularly elegant alternative to Forsythia. When placed where you can appreciate the bloom and foliage up close, this plant earns it’s keep and gets better with every season. Pair it with darker foliage plants to really make her shine. I have it in a bed with Sambucus ‘Black Beauty’. Today, the Sambucus foliage has warmed from deep burgundy to a coppery bronze tone. Next to the Corylopsis it’s transcendent.

Winterhazel and Ghost Fern

The most alluring point of interest about this plant to me is not the bloom, it’s the lovely foliage. Delicate, and deeply textured leaves are each a work of art unto themselves. And when they reach fall, the colors of butter yellow turn to ocher yellows and rich rustic amber.

Buttery Winterhazel, Corylopsis Pauciflora