Why I Oughta...

I've had so much fun with the handful of dahlia tubers that I have in the garden this year that it has me thinking/dreaming of what might be next year.  More dahlias?  Yes, please. I'm going to try to save the couple of Melina Fluer and Cornell Bronze tubers that I planted this year.  And, I'll probably buy another couple of each just in case.   But, there's a WHOLE world of dahlias out there.  I've learned that I'm MOSTLY drawn to smaller blooms - pompons, balls, etc.  Not so much on Dinnerplate dahlias.  I also like shorter ones that don't require staking.  But, I'm open to trying a taller one next year.  Poking around the Web and watching some gardeners on Instagram has turned me on to a handful of potential dahlia tubers that might go on my 2025 wish list.   Here's some that are top of mind - right now.   Dahlia Burlesca.  Via White Flower Farm .   They are short(er) at 28" and have sunset-hues on ...

Yesterday, I posted a photo of a cut flower arrangement with dahlias, zinnias and Disneyland Roses .  I thought it would be useful to document those plants - as they sit at the end of August.  This is when they're going to (or should) pop-off with blooms.   The Dahlias and Disneyland Roses are two totally different stories.  The Dahlias seemingly are thriving.  The Disneyland Roses?  Dying.  Literally. They've dropped so much foliage.  And have so few blooms.  They look sickly.   The dahlias are full and lush.   Below are a few photos showing the current state of the sideyard - in late August 2024. First, below, is a look at - from right-to-left - a Melina Fleur dahlia, a Disneyland Rose in the middle and on the left...another dahlia.    A bit further to the left are a couple of things that I'm NOT certain of- but I think they're Nicotiana Jasmine and some Zinnias.  Next, below, is the middle Disneyland...

#17 on my 2024 to-do list was to keep going with countertop arrangements .  Last year, I started to bring in some cut flowers and arrange them on our counter.  This year, I've grown more flowers (ahem...comfort zone and all that) and have been bringing them in for the past few weeks. The latest is a two-fer.  A container of dahlia blooms and a smaller one full of Zinnias and some Disneyland Roses.   You can see those two below:  Right now - late Summer/early Fall - is when I'm seeing the most blooms, so it is arrangement go-time.  

Back a couple weeks ago, I shared the latest pizza oven build project update:  I set the floor and the first chain of the dome .  I went with an isolated floor, so the first 'chain' of the dome is set at the same height as the floor.  But, instead of being set on a 50/50 blend of mason's sand and fireclay, I set the dome chain with refractory mortar - BETWEEN - the joints.   Today, I'm sharing how the dome is going vertical.  Thanks to my brother-in-law (not Equation Boy/Man, rather on Nat's side), I have an indispensable tool (IT) or dome gauge that allows me to easily set each brick of the dome at the right distance and angle.  You can see it in the first photo below.   The other thing that I did was to cut-down the Masonite template that I used to create the floor and placed it *inside* the dome to keep the floor clean from errant mortar and what-have-you.  I'll pull it out when the dome is complete.   The first photo shows ...

Three weeks ago, I noted that the Anemone 'Lucky Charm' flower show was just getting started with the emergence of those purple, sphere-shaped buds that stand at the top of thin, upright stems .  Today, that show is happening in full-force.  If history is any guide, these will bloom all Fall.  But right now, they're showing-off with a light-purple petal show in the 'kitchen curved' bed in our backyard.   See below of the current state of this little colony of Fall color.  Something to think about is using these in other spots in the garden.  They get 'part sun', but are really the ONLY blooms left to pop-off in our foliage-heavy garden.  I could use these elsewhere to provide some late-season action.  NOTE to future Jake:  Divide these in Fall. 

Earlier this season, I planted a dwarf Spring Grove Ginkgo tree , a Korean Maple ( Northern Glow Maple ) and a clump of Inferno Coleus in a new island bed in the middle of our front yard.  I used shade cloth to protect all of these from the hot Summer sun, but with the calendar turning to late-August (and Nat saying that it was looking a little 'Sanford & Son'), I recently took the shade cloth down.  And, here, below is how everything is faring this Summer.  The photo shows the Ginkgo, Maple and Coleus all doing well.  I say 'well' because they're not dying.   The top of the Maple saw some damage, but I'm pretty sure that's due to the shade cloth.  The Ginkgo is putting on tiny, curled leaves.  And the coleus is thriving.   Here's what this spot looked like BEFORE I created this new island bed .   My plan for [Fall 2024] is to connect this bed to the driveway and sidewalk and cover it in mulch.  Guess I need to start ...

Another note to self about Fall Planting:  just look at this Royal Purple Smokebush.  Talk about 'easy'.  I put it in the ground late last year - very late - at the end of October .  And, have mostly forgotten about it.  Today?  It is more-than-doubled in size and is doing its dark-foliage thing.  I watered this a little bit this Summer and was always struck by the SOUND watering it made.  The foliage is different than other leaves and has water run-off of it almost like tyvek.  The house wrap.  Weird comparison, I know.  But, that's the best I one that came to mind.  Water sort-of 'beads' on the leaves and then drops down to the mulch.   Here, below, is how it looks currently at the end of August: We didn't get any of those 'clouds' of seedheads (yet), but that's ok.   This is probably 15-to-18-inches tall right now, so it has plenty of height left to grow into.  That means it will get us a little bit ...

Planted in the Fall of 2021, we have a small Ginkgo tree planted IB2DWs - closer to the sidewalk than our house.  This marks the third full growing season and the tree is starting to become something.  It was TINY when it went in.  Not much more than a pencil-thin trunk .  This year, it put on some top growth - so much so that it toppled the support post I had in place.  I subsequently replaced it and wired up the leader to get some top-growth.   Below - you can see the current state of the tree.  About six-feet-tall and getting a few limbs.  All of this without much irrigation.  

One not-so-bright-spot in the garden this year is the small London Planetree in our parkway.  I planted it in late 2022 and it has maybe 1/5th the foliage that it had the day it went in the ground .  NOT GOOD.  I did NOT give this tree very much water this year, but once I noticed this thing in decline, I've been watering it daily.  Below is a look at the tree - with a lost leader and some TINY leaves.  Will this pull through?  We need a good Fall season for that to happen:

I bought and quickly divided a nursery-grown yellow, orange and red Zinnia named Zowie Yellow Flame earlier this season in a spot IB2DWs .  It produced a few early flowers that I clipped off some of the tips in hopes that it would 'bush-out' and get bigger.  The result?  Mixed.  It has certainly been pretty prolific with blooms.  But, it is tall and NOT super wide/fat/bush-like.    Below is what it looks like in late August:  I don't know a ton about collecting Zinnia seeds - specifically what happens with hybrids like this one - but I'm going to dry a couple heads and harvest the seeds.  I'll throw them into a mix and direct-sow them in my sideyard next Spring.   And, maybe I'll even throw some down IB2DWs to fill-in all the blank space over there. 

Last Fall, I planted a couple of small end-of-season conifer sale Weeping Norway Spruces IB2DWs.  The first one was planted in the legacy bed - closer to the house - and the other one was further down closer to the sidewalk.  Fall Planting seemed to be right for these as they have given me *KNOCK ON WOOD* very little trouble this season.    They came out of the gate with some tiny pink cones this Spring .  And, by late May, they had put on some new growth that required me to 'wire-up' a leader .   One of the things that I noted on these trees was that late Fall - after I had planted them - they started to put on little 'knobs' of growth.  What looked like tightly-clustered, stubby limb-starting-points.   When I watched them put on new growth this Spring, it mostly came from these little knobs.  So, I've begun to learn a little bit about the 'buds' of conifers like this Weeping Norway Maple.  They set buds (kind-of) like their ...

Back at the very beginning of COVID - when the world was grinding to a halt, I was $30 cash as a birthday present from Nat's Grampy.  I used that money to buy a tree - the Grampy Tree.  That tree was a London Planetree.  I stuck it in the backyard, along the northside of the fence, about 2/3rds of the way back.  It suffered some shock at the beginning, but figured itself out and got established.  Today, it is growing up an dout and putting on new foliage growth far beyond my reach. Below is a look at the tree as it stands today: It has plenty of room to keep growing and it sure looks like this planetree has put down enough roots to drink from when I sprinkle the adjacent beds.  

Just yesterday, I posted a photo that hinted at the idea that on of my dahlia tubers - an Orange Nugget Dahlia - was growing two different color flowers .   Today, the top bloom opened-up and it is anything but orange.  Have a look at the photo below showing a perfect, dark purple ball (or pompon?) Dahlia perched on top and then peek below in the foliage for an Orange Nugget Dahlia hiding about half-way down the plant.  Two blooms, same tuber.   If you look closely to the left of the purple bloom, you'll see a couple more buds being set.  What color will they be?  I'm guessing purple.  

Up front, in the IBDWs section, I planted a Cornell Bronze Dahlia tuber that I started indoors in a small nursery pot .  I put the sprouted tuber in the ground in mid-June and now, two-months-later it is showing its very first blooms.   This dahlia suffered some rabbit damage early, so I put a chicken wire cage around it in hopes that it would grow up/out and have a big bloom season.   That season of blooms is NOW upon us.  Below, you can see the first Cornell Bronze ball bloom tucked in below the top foliage.  There are more on the way. But, something *else* is happening on this very same Dahlia plant.  For SOME REASON, I'm seeing a purple bloom about to open up - at the very top of the stalk.  Yes...purple dahlia.  On the same plant that is blooming those orange ball flowers.  See below - for a most-certainly purple bloom about to open up: What the what?  Is this a mutation?  A pollinator-caused result?  I have no i...

Yesterday, I showed off the one-gallon Limelight Hydrangea that I've grown from a cutting and how it was throwing off its first blooms .  In that post, I talked about how I was going to prune some of the limbs back to get it to be a little less 'leggy'.  This morning, I did just that.  But, I also did something else:  drenched it.  Here, below, is the limelight hydrangea after pruning off the tips.  I kept 3 sets of leaves on all limbs, but clipped off everything above that third pair.  It was looking a little droopy, still: But, a few hours later - after the water had time to work its way through the plant's system, here (below) is what it looked like - a lot less stressed: I'll make sure this thing is happy for the rest of the month, then come September - when the temps begin to drop - I'm hoping it will continue to put on some new growth. 

Back in the late Summer of 2022, I tried to get a couple of flowering shrub cuttings to root.  One of them - a Limelight Hydrangea cutting managed to get established that first month and put on some growth .   Ever since, I've kept it in a container and somewhat protected - both during Summer (in the shade) and Winter (buried in the ground).  Last Fall - October 2023, I upgraded it from a quart nursery container to a one-gallon nursery pot .   This year, I put the small container shrub in the shade of the understory bed and mostly neglected it.  It put on foliage and then....recently....it put on its first-ever blooms.  Four of them.  Two opened up, two more on their way.   See below for a peek: How nice to find this little treat.  Something I've neglected has FOUND A WAY.  It does, however, appear to be a little 'leggy', so I'm thinking that I'm going to give it a haircut to bring it down in size and try to stimulate a li...

Moving on to building the ACTUAL oven - starting with setting the floor.  The last time I checked in, I showed how I used a 50/50 blend of Masons sand and Fireclay to create a bed for the floor to sit-on that allows for a smooth, even floor surface.  And, just a few days ago, I showed how I experimented with the medium-duty refractory mortar to learn how to set the joints and work with the stuff .   As I've talked about, I'm going with an isolated floor and dome.  That means that I've cut the floor bricks to sit *inside* the dome.  It required a few more cuts, but it is the right move, imho.  My first job was setting the oven floor and landing.  You can see that layout below.  I aimed to have the herringbone pattern hit dead center and I tried to keep larger cuts near the entry to avoid having my peel 'catch' on them: This is a BIG MOMENT for me.  20 years ago, I thought about an oven.  Six months ago, I started the project.  ...

Last Fall, I planted three root-bound quart-sized nursery containers of a new (to me) ornament grass:  Undaunted Muhly Ruby Grass .  I put them in right at the edge of the boardwalk and sort-of created a new, tiny bed for them.  They were (mostly) going dormant by the time I planted them, so there wasn't any growth last year.  But, this Spring, they came back and have thrown up three masses of fine - but lazy - blades of grass.  All three are still around, despite not being deliberately watered at all.  The bed they're in is far to undersized, so the edge of the turf grass is running right up against the bases of the grasses.  But...all of that doesn't matter.  Because THEY'RE STILL HERE.  Below is a look at the three grasses: The headlining feature of these grasses are the plumes of seedheads that are created at the tips of the grasses.  So far...mine haven't produced ANY plumes, but they're ALSO not struggling.  A good reminder on...

I haven't gotten around to turning our compost bins this Summer.  But, that hasn't slowed down the natural decomposition that is taking place back there.  The last time that I looked at the bins was in Spring - March 2024 - when they were full from Fall and Winter scraps and weeds .  Since then, I piled on A LOT of things - Spring cleanup, cuttings from grasses, a bunch of turf/soil from various excavations/edgings.  And, lots of weeds - including a HUGE pile of tall Pokeweed.   The heat of Summer, combined with time has yielded some natural compression and decomposition.  Have a look (below) at the current state of the three bins.    Do I need to turn these over?  Yes.  Will I get to it before Fall?  I'm not sure.   But, as of now, I don't have room for Fall leaves.  So, that...will end up being the forcing factor. 

While I still need to set the floor, I decided to see if I could figure out how to make Refractory Mortar work by sticking a couple of bricks together.  I've never done ANY masonry work before this project, so I've quickly upgraded my masonry skills over the past few months.  Starting with pouring the concrete slab and then moving on to using (for the first time) Type S mortar to stick the first blocks into place in the stand, I've used different tools and techniques in elementary ways.    For the dome, I'm going to use Akona Medium-Duty Refractory Mortar that comes in 50# bags - because it is available and affordable.  Some folks use a homebrew of fireclay, portland cement and mason sand, but the guy at the brick distributor talked me out of that - by saying that fireclay was out of code around here.  So, he suggested two products - Firestop 50 or this Akona Refractory Mortar .   I mixed up a tiny batch and grabbed a few cut-offs to see if I cou...

The oven project is continuing to move head.  Last time I posted about it was the cutting and installation of the CalSil insulation board that I mounted on top of a pattern of mosiac tile .  That 4" of CalSil insulation is the base for the firebrick floor.  So, laying that insulation was the last big piece towards building the actual oven.    To get the floor in place and level, I opted to lay down a base of mason's sand (which has no rocks) and fireclay (the dried-up dust from cutting the firebricks that comes off the saw) that I combined 50/50 and wet to make a paste.  You can see this process in a few photos below.  I used a notched trowel to smooth out the paste.  Then....I began to lay the brick floor down like tile.   Next up - laying the full floor and the first layer of the dome.  As a reminder, I opted to isolate the floor from the dome with the dome bricks cut separately from the floor . 

Back in 2020, I discovered Toad Lilies and set about trying to plant a few of them in my woodland garden in the far back .  Like a lot of other things, these were shared by Erin the Impatient Gardener, who shared them in her own garden.   Come Spring 2021, I planted a few small containers of them in a little drift in the southwest corner of our lot .  The variety that planted are called Gilt Edge Japanese Toad Lillies and they were IMMEDIATELY destroyed by the (dang!) rabbits .    That's when I installed some rings of Chicken Wire to protect them.  I've left those rings in place for three-plus years now and because of that (I think), well....we *still* have Toad Lillies.  Not a lot of them.  But, they're still here. I posted the VERY SAME photos last year - about a year ago.    Here, below, are a couple of photos showing the remaining Toad Lillies.  These get ZERO supplemental water, so they're just doing their thing on their...

The road from direct sowing Nicotiana Jasmine seeds in a new 'cut flower' bed to seeing actual plants has been long and winding.  In May, I scattered a few packets of seeds.  And, then sat back and admired my seedlings .  But...it turns out... they weren't seedlings .  It was full of WEEDS.  TONS OF THEM.  All the way up to my head in height.  I got busy ripping those out and trying to leave the small, emerging Nicotiana plants in place.  Three weeks later...I'm showing the very first flowers have emerged.   These things are *supposed* to reseed, so here's hoping that this plant grows and throws down a lot of seeds.

I've tried to plant milkweed in various years via seed.  And, have never had any real success.  Either they didn't get enough water or the seeds didn't germinate.  This year, I didn't plant any.  But....we NOW have a single Milkweed plant.  A volunteer.  It is growing right by the Limelight Hydrangeas on the side/front of the porch.  I suspect that this came via the downspouts - as they exit near this location.  The seeds went airborne, drove down into the bed and irrigated via the downspouts.  It hasn't fruited, so I'm not sure it will come back next year. Below is a look at the volunteer milkweed:

The small colony of Lucky Charm Japanese Anemone is now a, well....bigger colony.  They've filled in the space in all directions.  And, we're just at the start of the late Summer bloom season that seems to last all the way until Fall.  Here's a look at what the three plants looked like last August - one year ago .  Barely touching each other and lots of mulch showing around them.  Today - see below: They've formed a mass or drift instead of three individual plants.   And, you can see the first few blooms opening up.  

I planted the third Emperor 1 Acer palmatum via the Morton Arboretum plant sale this Spring.  I brought it home in a small one-gallon container - and like the other ones - netted it with tulle to protect it from cicada damage .   The tree suffered a little dieback, but otherwise has been just trying to survive the summer heat.  Unlike the Emperor 1 I posted about two days ago , this one is in full shade all the time.    Now that we're back from summer vacations, I'll try to baby this one with a little bit more water than it has been getting and hope to put on some new limbs before dormancy arrives this Fall.

As part of an earlier 'garden edit', I moved a bunch of stuff around near the tree swing tree and pulled four Hakonechloa Macra (the green ones) Japanese Forest Grasses that were planted in the back of this bed to the front border.  That was in late April .  Today?  The four are still hanging on.  But, are clearly struggling.    Below is a look at them: These have been getting A LOT less water than they would normally get - but that's because they are now near the pizza oven site.  So, I've been holding off on watering anything that well over there.  With the heat of August bearing down on us, I'm going to try to keep them watered-in.

In late Spring/early Summer 2023, I planted a small (1.5 gallon) Emperor 1 Japanese Maple - Acer palmatum in what I call the 'kitchen curved bed' .  Right behind/amongst some Fanal Astilbes.  By last Fall, it was showing a little bit of new growth and put on new foliage .  A good sign.  This Spring, it was one of a few trees that I wrapped in tulle - to protect from cicadas.  Doing that, wasn't great for the tree and damaged some of the tips of the tree along the way.  No big deal because the trade-off of a few broken small branches vs. the tree getting killed by the cicadas seemed worth taking. This was also a spot where I did a 'garden edit'.  Moving a border of Ajuga Chocolate Chip in and widening out the front of the bed this Spring.   I removed the netting more than a month ago and today, the tree is rebounding a little bit.  Below is a look at the current state of our second Emperor 1 Japanese Maple: Looking forward to this one fil...

Late last Fall, I put in three Baby Blue (dwarf) Spruce trees.  Two IB2DWs and one in the back by the Linden espalier.   This one has been getting a little bit of water from when I water this bed, but not a lot of attention.  How is it doing?  Seems to be ok.  Below is the current look - where it has put on new growth this season and held on to some of the blue needles: That part - the needles - and....lack of real needle-drop - is the most promising.  Fall Planting seems to be the ticket for conifers.  It appears to have given this dwarf conifer enough runway to get established and - as of now - survive the hot part of the Summer.  We're not out of the woods yet - still another month of hot, dry heat.  But, with a little bit of attention, I'm thinking this one has a good shot. 

The basil that I've been growing for the past few seasons is named Italian Large Leaf Basil.  I've picked it up at the Morton Arboretum annual Arbor Day Plant Sale and have - for the past few years - tucked it into a raised bed along with some bush tomatoes.   Between summer vacations and improper pruning, my success with basil has always been middling.  I'd get plenty of leaves, but it always would bolt.  This year, I tried to be deliberate with pruning and taking it down to spots where it could 'bush out' a little bit.  And, when I see seed heads (those little clusters of basil) growing, I've either pinched them off or cut-off the plant BELOW that part.  That's lead to a good-sized basil plant this year.  And one that is producing a lot of, well...'large leaves'.   Here, below, is a look at the Italian basil plant at the beginning of August: It is healthy and happy and still producing a lot of leaves to use in the kitchen this Summer a...

The hedge of Sesalaria Autumnalis - Autumn Moor Grass - is throwing off a fireworks show of seed heads in our front porch bed.  I planted these last year - in front of the existing boxwoods.   And...they've done a really great job of getting established and putting on some size.   A look back at late Fall last year (October 2023) and you can see that they're not quite touching each other and were spaced appropriately.  This year?  They've butting up against each other side-to-side.  Pretty nice.  See below for the current view from our front stoop looking south: I split this front bed between these Autumn Moor Grasses and Summer Beauty Alliums.   The post I put up a few weeks ago showing the full front porch view really shows the difference between the Alliums and these grasses .  The alliums are MUCH more showy.   I'm thinking about a garden edit up here - removing the Summer Beauty Alliums and replacing them with ev...