Why I Oughta...

The pair of Ruby Slippers Oakleaf Hydrangeas that are planted near the Dawn Redwood tree are in bloom.  Late July.  With long, slender bloom heads that are turning from light green to pink.  Below are a couple of photos that show both of them.  There's also an Alice Oakleaf Hydrangea that I relocated here, but that one isn't as advanced as these two.  Planted in May of 2022, these Ruby Slippers are a dwarf variety of Oakleaf Hydrangea that I bought at the Morton Arboretum annual plant sale .   In the photo above, you also can get a peek at some of the recently-planted Sun King Golden Aralia (Japanese Spikard) that also came from the Morton Arboretum sale .    The last time that I peeked at these in the [garden diary] was about a month ago when I revisited this 'garden edit' .   I feel good about the border and the little slice of the garden that fronts this, the part *behind* the Nootka Cypress - sort-of adjacent to this - is another story.  That elusive garden path is

Out in the front yard, I am seeing my first Dahlia bloom of the season:  a Melina Fleur Dahlia that is (right now) short and stout with the bloom nestled in amongst the dark green foliage.  These were planted outdoors about six weeks ago after being started in nursery pots indoors .  I left this one on the plant (for now), but hope to cut some of these as they pop-off in the coming weeks.   Below is a look at the first Dahlia bloom of the season - the Melina Fleur Dahlia:

A few days ago, I posted an update on our Cardoon - with its purple, spikey (but soft) bloom on the largest bud .  Today?  That first bloom is joined by two others that have all taken on a thistle-like form.  That means the primary bloom is just over a week-old (from when it first opened) and appears to have some staying power.   To say that this plant is dramatic is an understatement.    I could see it in the middle of a large container - like these .  

Over the past few days, our Cardoon (planted IB2DWs in full sun) has begun to bloom.  I posted a pre-bloom photo last week and talked about how I had to fend of aphids and bag worm to get to this point .  The first purple, pointed bloom emerged from the largest artichoke-like bud in the center of the plant.  It started small and soft-to-the-touch.  No smell at all (at least that I could detect).   Below is the first morning of the bloom.   Below is a wider-view of all the buds that will (hopefully) follow the first one: And, below is an even wider-view of the plant - showing how it is planted close to our driveway. The next morning, the initial bloom opened-up wider.  Below are a couple photos showing the second day of the Cardoon flower bloom:

The last of the Dahlia tubers are in the ground:  I planted four Cornell Bronze Dahlias that I bought this past winter from Longfield Gardens.  I started them in nursery pots indoors, then moved those to the patio to get acclimated.    I've put in six Melina Fluer dahlias - three in the sideyard and three in the front porch bed .  Then, I put in four Orange Nugget dahlias in the new sideyard bed .  And, now I've put in four (2 in sideyard and 2 IB2DWs) Cornell Bronze dahlias.  13 total plants for the season.  Cut flower season. These are behind the others, but with a little water and a lot of sun, I'm thinking they'll close the gap quickly. 

More flowers.  That's a big breakthrough for me as a gardener in 2024.  Last week, I posted photos of the Zinnias and Dahlias that I planted IB2DWs and in the new seed bed.  Today, I'm sharing the details of another new (to me) flower:  Nicotiana 'Perfume Deep Purple'.  I bought just one and planted it in the conifer garden - IB2DWs.  Below is the sign from The Growing Place that talks about the dark purple blooms and the smells that come with this flower: I've had Nicotiana Jasmine before , but it didn't reseed.    This new one is purple (vs white) and it is also in full sun.  Below is what it looks like at the time of planting: Below is a photo that provides a little context - this is in the new (as of last Fall) conifer garden.  

This is the second granular feeding of the season for our Disneyland Roses that I've been trying to put down right around the first of the month - so this one is a day early.  See below for a few photos - showing the fertilizer application as well as the state of the three remaining rose bushes with blooms.  The one closest to the fence is having some trouble, so I've been spraying them every week with a Neem Oil brew to help kill whatever pests and/or fungus that is taking over. 

It is peony season around here.   When we were first dating, Nat was a blogger.  Her url was iheartpeonies dot com.  The very first thing that we planted in our first garden was a Sarah Bernhardt peony that was a division from Nat's mom's garden.  The story goes that the peony was her great aunt's peony that had been divided a number of times to be planted in various family member's gardens.   That peony ended up back in Nat's Mom's garden when we moved out.  I said - back in 2017 - that it was being 'fostered' .  But, it has stayed there these seven-plus years.   Our new garden didn't have any peonies.  Until 2018 when I bought a couple of tubers.  The first one was Sarah Bernhardt .  The pink peony that you think of when you think of peonies.  It has moved around a few times, but ended up IB2DWS and has grown quite a bit up there.  Last year (2023), I declared was our first REAL 'Peony Season' .  It was the first time that we had blooms; or

We have three Doublefile Viburnums that are grafted tree-form in shape in our backyard.  Two along the north fence line, one on the far west (far back) by the firepit.  I planted these in Spring of 2022 , making this their third growing season.  These have emerged earlier than last year (2023 - their first Spring) and I suspect the warmer, earlier Spring accounts for that earlier wake-up.  Last year, at the beginning of May, these were *just* leafing out .  This year, they're ALREADY blooming in that first full week of May.  This post is on May 12th, but I took these photos a few days ago when the shrubs were in full-boom.   They bud'ed out in March this year .  And now flowered in May.  They've put on some size - both height and width and are growing into their screening-purpose.    Last year, I posted photos of these blooms in mid-May .  So, these are about two-weeks ahead of 2023.   Below are some photos - first showing the top of the tree-form shrub.  Then, a look at th

A couple weeks ago, I posted some photos of the (very few) Lilac blooms that we were seeing on our flowering shrubs this year and mentioned that while I had two varieties, one of them - the Nocturne Lilacs - had never bloomed.   Even after being transplanted to a more full-sun location.  So, imagine my delight when I was out in the garden and noticed these dark purple tightly-would flower buds on the tips of some of the Nocturne Lilac tips: These are a couple weeks behind all the other Lilacs in our neighborhood.  But...a quick poke around the Web reveals that the two-week delay is EXACTLY by design .   The late blooming lilacs bloom about two weeks later than the common lilacs and include the Preston hybrids. They are fragrant, robust plants that can be more tree like and resistant to powdery mildew. ‘Nocturne’ is a profuse bloomer with deep violet buds opening to a lilac-pink lightly scented flower. Extending the Lilac season - love that.    "Deep violet buds" reads right,

In our old house in Elmhurst, our neighbor to the South had a massive hedge of mature Lilac shrubs.  They provided plenty of screening, but they also threw off a profusion of blooms each Spring.  When we moved, having Lilacs were on Nat's wish list.  Over the years, I've ended up planting four (two 'common' and two 'Nocture' ) and transplanting them, too.   The Common ones went in the ground in 2018 .  The Nocturne variety went in the ground in Summer of 2019 - a year later .    They never bloomed.  Too much shade, I suspected.  In the Spring of 2022, I opted to replace them with something that can tolerate the shade a bit more - and is evergreen .   That meant that I dug-up and moved all four Lilac across the yard to an area that gets more sun.   Their first year (in their new location), the Common Lilacs threw off blooms .  Surprisingly.  That was 2022.  Last year, I don't seem to have posted about them.   But this Spring?  We have blooms.  More than in 20

Last Spring, I took a shot on a couple of primroses at an early-in-the-season garden show.  I was pretty unfamiliar with them - hence this post titled: " Giving Primrose A Shot " from March 2023 where I figured I was lulled into a false belief that these early-blooming flowers would work in our Zone 5b (at that time, now Zone 6a) garden. We're suckers for blue blooms and the three Primula belarina 'Blue Champion' that I bought were pretty close to blue.  I seem to have ONLY posted about the blue ones, but if you look back at the photos in this post , you can clearly see that we brought home four Primulas that day;  three blue and one white one.   They went in and seemed to manage their first growing season without much drama.  By the very early days of 2024, I posted about seeing some of their foliage - despite the harsh Winter temps in the garden.   Today - about 90 days since then, they're in bloom.  And they're quite nice.  Below is the 'Blue Cha

Right around one month ago today, I posted photos of the inherited daffodil bulbs that were showing their annual strap-y foliage that had emerged for the year .  Today, they're in bloom.  Well... *some* of them are in bloom.   Below is a look at the colony of daffodils and a close-up of the yellow bloom that are on these.  (Note: to the top, right of this photo is the pile of material that I excavated for the pizza oven and tried to smother with arborist wood chips .).  By my count, I see just six flowers this year.  More than 2021 .  This spot in the garden has not been addressed yet, so I see NO reason to do anything other than enjoy these yellow blooms.  For now.  

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

The three Disneyland Roses (Floribunda roses) that are planted in full sun on the south side of our house are currently in the midst of their second bloom cycle of the growing season.  The first set of blooms this season were in early/mid June .  Now, about six-weeks later, we're seeing the next flush of pink/orange/salmon blooms.  See below for a look at some of the Disneyland Roses in mid-Summer: Here, below, is a look at the three Disneyland Roses (along with the pair of Sugar Tyme Crabapple trees that are in espalier) along the side of our house: In 2022, I saw four bloom cycles - June, August, late September and again in early November .  Yes...November.   My plan is to feed these this week and then one more time (September) before putting a stop to the seasonal fertilizer for the season.  

Nobody grows hostas for their flowers.  Is that a 'hot take'?  I don't think so.  Foliage gardeners (I'm a self-proclaimed foliage gardener) grow hostas because of what they do:  shade-garden workhorses that add some texture and fill in spaces. But...they also flower.  With these tall, odd, scapes of flowers.  Are they scapes ? I think so .  I remember my mom's garden, filled with hostas.  And popping the purple flowers that emerged each Summer.  I don't think I've ever tracked the flower emergence in my own garden, so I figured I'd start a little bit right now. Why now?   Because I was walking around the garden one morning recently and was struck by one set of flowers in back.  On these hostas: The flowers seem VERY dark purple (for hostas).  Thanks to the Hosta Library, it appears that these are Venticosa hostas .   The Delaware Hosta Association has this description : The Dark Green One with Purple Flowers: H. ventricosa This one also has shiny heart-

Last year, we had just ONE tiny, white bloom on ALL of our Oakleaf Hydrangeas .  It was a bloom on one of the dwarf Munchkin varieties.  The other ones?  All taken by the dang rabbits the previous Winter.   In Summer 2021, we had our first REAL set of blooms on these things (that were planted in Summer 2020).    That makes this our fourth growing season (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) and the plants ( knock wood ) have rebounded from a tough battle with the dang rabbits.   Over those years, I've been able to 'get to know' these and the kind of care they need - at least when they're young.  As many people know, Oakleaf Hydrangeas bloom on 'old wood' - which means that THIS SEASON - after these blooms decline, the shrub will put up some new stem growth.  It is THOSE STEMS (from this year) that will lead to blooms NEXT YEAR.   How did I help keep those important stems in tact all year?  With Chicken Wire cages starting last Fall and through the Spring here in Zone 5b. 

It was just six-or-so weeks ago that I planted three small, bareroot Disneyland Roses in our front porch beds .  I wasn't expecting much out of these in their first season.  When they arrived, they were, indeed, bareroot.  But, they were also pretty bare in terms of foliage.  Two of the Floribunda roses that arrived via UPS showed some tiny, yellow flowers.  I applied some rooting compound, buried them deep - per the instructions I found - and hoped for the best. I was assuming that I'd see mostly foliage growth this first year.  Something like 60% below-ground growth (roots) and 40% above-ground growth (leaves).  But, to my surprise, I'm seeing blooms.  See below for a look at one of the new Disneyland Roses.    I've stuck to a feeding schedule - once per month - with a granular rose food.  And, this soil was amended pretty heavily last Fall with a mix of 10 bags of composted manure and 4 bags of mushroom compost .  Along with a heavy dose of municipal biosolids this

It has taken six growing seasons, but we *finally* have enough peonies to make a bouquet.  Just one bouquet.   But, it is still a bouquet.  That's a major victory for me.  We had a major set of Peony tubers in our first house in Elmhurst.  We also had a full sun backyard.  In Downers Grove we have had peonies that have grown, but never really flowered.  And, mostly shade. So, over the years, I've moved the plants around.  And, it seems that I've found a few spots that work for peonies.  We have (this year) three flowering peony plants.  First, a darker, purple-ish single blom: That opened up to look like this: We had one white peony that bloomed - a Duchesse de Nemours white peony that is also in our backyard.  See below for that bloom after I cut it and brought it in: And, finally...the largest of the peony plants:  Sarah Bernhardt pink peonies .  This peony plant is out front, IB2DWS and this is what it looked like when the blooms were still closed and felt like 'mar