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Showing posts with the label flowers

Backyard Peonies Are Back - March 2024

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Over the years, we've had a tough go-of-it with peonies in our yard.  I suppose you can say that we were totally spoiled when we lived in Elmhurst.  We had a number of peony plants that were very productive.  But, in Downers?  Not a lot of luck.   I have long suspect that was a result of too-much shade, so that lead me to a number of years of moving them around.  From the far back to near(er) to the house.  And then, in 2022, I moved a couple of them out to the IB2DWS bed.   And guess what happened?  We got our first peony bloom in 2023.   Or, should I say 'blooms'.  The IB2DWs peony produced a number of blooms.  And, so too, did the ones by our curved-kitchen-window bed .   Each year, they emerge in late Winter/early Spring with their redish-purple tips.  Here's the 2023 version when they showed-up in early April .   Last year, because of the production, I decided to leave them as they were - a mix of front and backyards.  I'm now re-thinking that and have some ear

Dahlia Tubers @ Home Depot - February 2024

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Last year, I started to learn how to put together cuttings from our garden into countertop arrangements .  I made a number of them from late Summer to Fall that were primarily anchored by the Disneyland Floribunda roses.   By the end of the season, I came the conclusion that I needed to get outside of my foliage-gardening 'comfort zone' and start to add some flowers.    On a late-season whim (sale), I planted a few new (to me) flowering perennials including May Night salvia , coneflowers and some Agastache 'Blue Fortune' to the front IB2DWs beds.   I also pulled the trigger on a small dahlia tuber order from Longfield - where I pre-ordered some Melina Fleur (Decorative) and Cornel Bronze (Pompon) tubers .  My (current) plan is to put those in by the Disneyland Roses on the side of the house.    I also bought some Cut-and-Come-Again Zinnia seeds that I'd like to start inside and move to my containers in the back  - to replicate the look of a  combo of Zinnias and E

Parkway Tulip Tips Shoot Up - February 2024

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We've had a VERY mild Winter.  There was a span of about three weeks when it was brutally cold and it seemed like it snowed every.single.day.  But, overall...it was mild.  And that's likely turned a number of gardening variables on their ears.  Emergence.  Bloom time.  Exposure to late Frosts.  And, more, I'm sure. One of the 'mild Winter' related change that I saw VERY early in January was that the tulip bulbs that I had planted around the parkway tree had ALREADY come up, out of the mulch.  By January 5th.   J A N U A R Y. That seems VERY early.  It was BEFORE that three-week spell of 'brutally cold' weather that I mentioned above.  But, tulips being tulips, the foliage didn't mind the weather.  (or...the snow blanket was sufficient insulation.) I'm *very* aware of mulch volcanoes around trees and worry that every year - when we add another layer of mulch - that I'm burying things and creating problems.  Everyone says that you're supposed t

Cut and Come Again Zinnia Seeds - For Sowing Indoors - January 2024

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I've said it before:  I'm a foliage gardener.  I'm most comfortable talking about, working on, planting foliage plants.  I'm also a shade gardener, so that's (kinda) why I'm a foliage gardener.  Last Fall, I began to address a significant garden deficit:  conifers .  Via CSCF. Conifers Should Come First .  Those conifers came in a flurry in the late Fall. But, so too, did something else:  flowers.  I planted some new (to me) perennial flowers: Midnight Masquerade Pentsemon , a Pow Wow Wildberry Echinacea and some May Night Salvias - all in the IB2DWs extended bed.  I also tucked in a pair of Stachys monieri Hummelos (Betony) on the other side of the driveway that has upright, purple flowers.   In my 2023 recap post , I included a mixed list of lessons learned/things to think about going forward and included on that list:  plant more flowers.   Get out of my comfort zone and think about adding flowers to a combo bed and cut garden.   I started the 2024 season

Getting To Know Rudbeckia Black Beauty - January 2024

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I was nosing around on a bulb and seed site recently and came across a new (to me) perennial:  Rudbeckia Black Beauty.  Rudbeckia is something that I've heard (and seen) from Roy Diblik on YouTube and at his nursery (Northwind Perennial Farm) in Wisconsin.  But, this particular variety is something that I don't think I've come across.  Visually, it is quite different (at least to me - the novice when it comes to Rudbeckias).  Check out the photo below of Rudbeckia Black Beauty from DutchGrown.com :   Photo Source - Dutch Grown dot com .  This is *not* my photo.   What does that photo show?  For me...it shows a lack of petals.  This looks (to me) to be a flower that has already bloomed and drop all of its petals, doesn't it?   But that's not what is going on here; rather this is a (dare I say) unique coneflower that doesn't have any petals.   From Heritage Perennials comes this description : This is an unusual and bizarre selection of Coneflower, the flower heads

Confirmed: Sawfly Larvae on Disneyland Roses. Treatments and Planning - December 2023

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Earlier this growing season, I discovered that most of our Disneyland Roses were having their foliage destroyed by someone or something.  The leaves were spotted and some of them were eaten-up and looked like lace.  Here's a post from June 2023 that shows one of those eaten-up leaves .   I applied a granular fertilizer all season - starting in early Spring - and I wasn't sure if the foliage damage was a result of the granules clinging to wet leaves, but it seemed far-fetched.   The foliage-eating continued all season, but by July, I decided to take some action and switched from just straight Rose Fertilizer to a 2-in-1 feed and care product from BioAdvance .  My hunch was that SOMETHING was eating the leaves and the 2-in-1 is a 'systemic' product. That means it isn't something that takes root immediately and eliminates the pests.  Rather, it feeds the roses and - via the roots - takes up the insecticide and carries it to all the plant material.  I've used a simi

Dahlia Tubers Ordered - Milena Fleur and Cornel Bronze Ball - December 2023

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In my 2023 recap post, I included a list of ten 'lessons learned' or takeaways from the year .  They were a mix of looking back and a few looking ahead.  One of them was about flowers.  I wrote that " Flowers continue to be a little bit outside my comfort zone. Change that. I started this Fall, but plenty more room to grow/go. Countertop arrangements need flowers. Try some dahlias, too. " When I said that I 'started', that meant the late-season plantings like the Blue Fortune Agastache , a Pow Wow Wildberry coneflower , a pair of May Night Salvias and some purple foliage Pentstemons (all IB2DWS).    And, I've had a lot of fun with the Disneyland Roses - including in arrangements.   I've also done a little bit of dabbling with Dahlias over the years.  But, I've always treated them as annuals and haven't invested much in the tubers.  I grew Night Queens .  And some orange ones.  And Cactus dahlias, too .     Over the years, I've kept a

Hellebores - Planting in December in Zone 6a? December 2023

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I went to the orange big box store to look for a Winter Rose Pointsettia this weekend and while I didn't find any of those (they had just the traditional pointsettia), I did find a large rack of Hellebores.  They're all white ones that are in quart nursery containers.  They were (originally) listed for $9.98 and now have been marked down to $4.99.  They're an all white-turning-to-light-green flower variety.  See below for the hellebores: I'm wondering to myself....can these be planted in December?  I mean...the ground isn't QUITE frozen yet and they ARE hardy to our zone.  Would they survive?  Or, could I just keep them alive as houseplants until Spring?   A quick search on the Web turns up answers like this : Container-grown hellebores can be used as houseplants. They prefer to be grown in garden soil but will survive indoors. Give them plenty of light during the winter months and indirect light in the summer. This action will mimic their natural environment of be

Winter Protection for Roses - Mounding Biosolids on Crowns - December 2023

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Every Fall, I've gone about protecting our Disneyland Roses (Floribunda Roses) from Winter using an insulation method of laying Fall leaves around the bush.  Typically, I take a small ring of chicken wire and create a ring.  Anchored by a bamboo pole, I erect the chicken wire ring around the rose and fill the center with leaves that I pick up off the lawn.  Some of those leaves are chopped up with the mower, some are just raked up and piled in there. This post from November 2022 shows how I set up that Winter Protection for roses last year .   H ere's another post showing Fall 2020 that shows similar chicken wire rings and leaves that I used to overwinter the crowns of our Disneyland Roses. That system seemed to work just fine.  It wasn't elegant, but (*knock on wood*) I haven't lost a Disneyland Rose yet.  But, my roses are starting to get large and unwieldy.  That has made the chicken wire rings more challenging every year.  So, I went off on the Web to see if there

This Year's Amaryllis Bulbs - December 2023

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'Tis the season for indoor Winter gardening.  It wouldn't be the Christmas season around here without growing some Amaryllis flowers from bulbs.  I've worked with the kids for a number of years to plant and grow some Christmas flowers.  Here's a look at last year's Amaryllis bulbs .   We picked three bulbs out at Wannemaker's Holiday Open House in November and planted them up.   The three varieties we selected were new to us:  La Paz - a Spider Amaryllis.     This La Paz is a Spider Amaryllis or 'Cybister'.  This post details how they're different: Over the last decade, Cybister Amaryllis have become increasingly more popular. Originally hybridized in South America, Cybister Amaryllis have narrow, somewhat spidery flower petals that appear more species-like than their big saucer-shaped cousins. La Paz has upper dark coral petals, while the lower petals are greenish-white edged in dark coral with darker midveins and a starburst green throat. Gardenia

Agastache 'Blue Fortune' - Two Planted IB2DWs - November 2023

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Another day, another award-winning perennial that takes me outside my foliage-gardening comfort zone.  This time, it is Agastache 'Blue Fortune'.  And I bought and planted a pair in the original IB2DWs bed in front of the Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grasses that make up the back border.  Just like with others...I know OF Agastache.  But, a quick spin online sold me on Blue Fortune.  From Bluestone : Oodles of soft lavender-blue flowers are held over large deep-green, minty licorice-scented foliage. Unique bottle-brush like flowers of Agastache are very attractive. Leaves feature silver undersides. Exceptional performance in the sun-drenched garden.  Low maintenance, tolerates heat and drought once established. Butterflies and hummingbirds love to sample the nectar rich blooms.  2004 Great Plant Picks award winner. Done and done.  I took the two they had.  And put them in the IB2DWs bed amongst the Creeping Jenny and All Gold Hakenchloa Forest Grasses.   I'm posting this in N

Pow Wow Wild Berry Echinacea Planted IB2DWs - November 2023

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A few days after my last post about new flowers, I'm picking back up on fall planting list - with something way, way, way out of my comfort zone:  Echinacea.  I have no coneflowers.  I have little sun, but that's not the point.  I've been way out of my element with echinacea with little understanding of the entire world.  But, let's get uncomfortable, right? I found and bought one (a single...yes...I know...that's a mistake) Pow Wow Wild Berry Coneflower.  I saw this on the side of the container: And went online. Walters Garden sold me with these details : This variety is incredibly impressive for a seed grown Echinacea. It’s no surprise that it is a 2010 All America Selections winner. In our trials, we noted how floriferous the plants were. Each stocky, relatively short plant carried a bouquet of fragrant, 3-4”, deep purple-pink to near-magenta flowers on stiff, branched stems. More branches result in more flowers per plant and a showier display in the landscape.

Two May Night Salvias Planted IB2DWS - November 2023

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What's something that is pretty common in gardens around here that I've lacked?  Salvia.  I've picked-up-and-put-down dozens of Salvias over the years.  Why?  Because I wasn't sure.  Wasn't sure about anything Salvia-related.  Size?  Will they flop?  Are they too tall?  And more questions like that. But, when I found a couple of containers of May Night Salvia at the end-of-season sale at the orange store, I whipped out my phone. What did I find? From Monrovia : Tall spikes of indigo blue flowers top compact mounds of soft, green foliage. This showy perennial is excellent for mixed borders, flower beds and patio containers. From Walters Garden : This award winning salvia is a top performer in the landscape. Dense spikes of deep violet-purple flowers are produced in early summer and will continue longer if deadheaded. Bluestone Perennials says : 1997 PPA Plant of the YearOne of our favorite Salvia. Spikes of the deepest blue begin in late May and continue through th

Late August / Early September Floribunda Rose Bloom - Disneyland Rose 3rd Flush of Season - September 2023

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Yesterday, I shared a few photos of the Disneyland Floribunda Rose in its native environment : a flower bed in New Orleans Square in Disneyland Park.  Today, I'm taking a look at the three (more) mature Disneyland Roses that we have planted in full sun on the southside of our house.  They, too are in bloom; having just started their third flush of pink/salmon/orange flowers on medium-length stems. Below are a few photos showing these floribunda roses: This is the third 'flush' of blooms for the season. Early June - First Blooms Early August - Second Blooms Late August/Early September - Third Blooms (this post) In 2022 (last season), I was seeing blooms last all the way into early November.   It seems that this third flush of blooms is a bit earlier than 2022 ( last year, I saw them all the way at the end of September ), so perhaps that fourth bloom will be pulled a bit forward, too.  While I was out there admiring the Disneyland Roses, I also sprinkled them with rose food

Disneyland Rose - In New Orleans Square in Disneyland Park - August 2023

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Over where Frontierland blends with New Orleans Square in Disneyland Park, you'll find a series of rectangular raised beds that are surrounded by low, wrought-iron fencing.  Inside those beds (at least...during the Summer) are the one-and-only Disneyland Rose.  They have a somewhat formal planting with a low boxwood hedge around the perimiter with the taller Disneyland Roses in the middle.  See below for some photos showing the park's namesake Floribunda roses: I have posted about 'in situ' Disneyland Roses before with a bed of them being planted out by the street here in 2019  along Harbor Boulevard.   The Disneyland Roses that we have at home aren't quite this tall, but with six now planted, I'm hoping that we'll get there...eventually.   I've covered other " Horticulture at Disney Parks " things here on the blog and these photos of the Disneyland Rose inside of Disneyland Park are now tagged there , too.  

Anemone 'Lucky Charm' Blooming - August 2023

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There are a few plants in our garden that are there because I was drawn to them.  There are a few that were simply impulse-bought.  There are others that I was influenced by others like Roy Diblik , Austin Eischeid or Erin the Impatient Gardener.   Then...there's this other set:  They are the ones that exist in our yard and garden because of Nat.     That list of Nat-influenced plants includes the Saucer Magnolia and any/all of our Allium.  Another one of those that Nat-influenced plantings are anemones.  I've likely written this story before, but the connection with Anemone flowers comes back to our wedding day.  We've had them (now) in both of our houses (not in Equation Boy/Man and Vic's house that we lived in for two years) since last year when I planted three from Northwind Perennial Farm. Here's a post from more than ten years ago (eeek!  ten years!) of the plant that Nat's Mom gifted us for our garden back in Elmhurst .  And h ere's a post from Augus

Dusty Miller Annuals - Zone 5B - August 2023

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Yesterday, I posted some photos showing the French Marigolds that I planted as bedding plants in our front porch bed/border and mentioned that some volunteer Dusty Millers arrived to change the look of that curved bed.  Last year, I planted 36 small Dusty Millers in front .  As annuals.    They're hardy down to Zone 7 - by all accounts .  But here in Zone 5B?  We had a bunch of them come back for year two.   When I say a 'bunch of them', I really mean a BUNCH OF THEM. I planted those French Marigolds across the front of the bed.  And today?  I can't see half of them.   See below for the current state of this front porch bed and how vibrant the Dusty Millers - planted in 2022 in Zone 5b - are today: There are French Marigolds under there.  Somewhere. See below for a peek at the edge where the Marigolds run into these.   Dusty Millers are grown for their white, ornamental foliage.  They provide a little Mediterranean vibe to the garden.  But, I am discovering that they al

French Marigolds As Bedding Plants Update - August 2023

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This year, I planted a couple of flats of Dwarf French multi-color Marigolds that arrived as plugs from the Home Depot as bedding plants across the front of our front-porch bed.  They come in flats of four eight packs and I think I put down a couple of them.  Maybe 60 of them-or so.    Below is a look at their current state - across the front porch bed: They've REALLY put on some size in the past few weeks.  Peek here at this post from mid-June that shows them when I was digging out that front natural edge .   And, for even more contrast, check out this photo below showing Spring-time (right when I planted them) when the tulip foliage was still hanging around: I've planted many things over the years along this front border, but I think I am coming back to these multi-color marigolds.  First...they're orange.  Love that.  Second... they're French - which we first saw at Luxembourg Gardens .   I planted these all the way across the front, but the Dusty Millers from last y