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Showing posts with the label garden diary

What is Legibility in Gardens? January 2025

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I've posted a few times about the notion of 'repetition' in the garden and how it is a technique that helps create an eye-pleasing and easy-to-navigate visually garden.  I've taken up the idea of repetition a little bit in more recent years by focusing on a could of core, foundational plants that I can carry throughout the backyard.   I was happy with the idea of getting to know the concept of reptition in our garden.  Until....I came accross this piece on Meristem Horticulture by Jared Barnes, Ph.D where he introduced me to the idea of "Legibility in the Garden".  Here's a link to the piece and below is a screenshot of the lede. First things, first.  Dr. Barnes knows his stuff.   And, he takes pretty wonderful photos and is an engaging garden writer. He says: "I love cultivating plants and cultivating gardeners. Over the years, Iā€™ve helped thousands of people of all ages learn to garden better. " He's been doing that with me for a while ...

Clean Edges and Paths As Part of Garden Legibility - January 2025

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Yesterday, I published a post detailing the idea of "Legibility in the Garden" and talked how Dr. Jared Barnes introduced me to the concept via his Meristem blog.  Barnes has developed a set of elements that he feels are the core components of "Legibility" and how we as gardeners can achieve it :   1. Clean edges 2. Desire lines and paths 3. Primary and secondary axes 4. Sightlines 5. Focal points 6. Entrances 7. Seeing over plantings Edging is something that I've posted about a number of times .  And, it seems to check a few of Dr. Barnes' components:  clean lines, paths and entrances.   Edging is something that I posted about last Fall when I included some inspiration from a YouTube channel (Moxie Gardens) and talked about how he used railroad ties and other wood beams cut up into chunks to edge various parts of his garden and beds.   A couple weeks ago, Amy at Pretty Purple Door sent a newsletter that talked about creating a dog-frie...

Jim Putnam HortTube - Green Giant Thuja Video - January 2025

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Jim Putnam over at HortTube has a video up all about Green Giant Thujas .   I've embedded it below.  I've long watched Jim's videos and always learn something, despite him gardening in Raleigh, North Carolina where the conditions are much different than my backyard Zone 5b/6a garden.   His video taught me a few things about these Thujas - that I've posted about before - that I didn't know before.  Jim says that these Green Giant Thujas don't "off-color" as much as other conifers during the Winter and that's been my experience as well.   He also talks about their fast-growing nature and how they get B I G.  I'm growing them in a little bit of part shade and lightly irrigated, so they haven't been 'rockets'.  He said that they 'pick up speed over time' - once they are well-established.  Here's hoping that mine are in that 'well-established' place and we'll see them shoot up tall. He also talks about how they...

Dormant Pruning A Bald Cypress - January 2025

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A few years back, I learned my lesson when it comes to pruning young trees:  don't.  Don't prune them.  Let them go a few years before you touch them at all.  No limb'ing up.  No removing limbs/branches.  If you have to do anything, just clip off the tips of some of the lower branches, but leave them in place - attached to the tree.   In trying to 'hurry the tree up', I thought I could prune off all the lower branches and focus the energy near the top of the tree - to drive the leader UPWARDS.  Turns out, the tree needs limbs and branches and leaves to collect the necessary energy to grow.   That 'leave the tree' advice is what I've followed with the Bald Cypress tree that is planted IB2DWs.    It went in the ground in 2018 .    The Bald Cypress is probably my most 'successful tree'.  I planted it as a tiny, pencil-thin pot-grown tree.  Today, it is probably fifteen feet tall and growing.   Be...

Removing Ornamental Grasses - Rabbit Winter Hiding Spot - January 2025

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Yesterday, I posted photos of how the (dang!) rabbits had removed the bark from the ground all the way up about 18" on all eight trunks of the apple (fruit) trees that I planted in 2020 as part of a Belgian Fence espalier .  The removal of bark by rabbits during Winter is called "Girdling" and essentially kills the tree.   I said that it is time to 'play for keeps' with these rabbits and the first step took place today with the removal of - what I think - is their hiding place.  These Miscanthus grasses that are in front of the Belgian Fence. See below for the current state of these grasses: They provide a TON of 'Winter Interest' - so like all the other ornamental grasses, I've left them up.  But, that's also provided a place for the rabbits to shelter during the Winter. Now...pay no attention to the fact that we are a Certified Wildlife Habitat.  In fact....look away, please. Because I'm taking these grasses down to the ground and removing t...

Rabbit Pressure In Winter - Tree Bark Destroyed - Girdled Trees - Belgian Fence Espalier of Apple Trees - January 2025

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I went out back to have a look around at the garden a few days ago and I noticed something odd - that drew my eyes to them as being sort-of...out of place.  I noticed what appeared to be some BRIGHT, UPRIGHT lines along the fence that were easily contrasted from the dark(er) grey of the wood fence behind them.   What the what?   I went over to take a closer look and this is what I saw - in the photo below.   See the bright, upright lines that stand out?   DEEP SIGH..... These are the trunks of the eight fruit apple trees that I planted in 2020 - during the height of COVID lockdowns .  Three Golden Delicious trees.  Five Honeycrisp trees.  They're pollinators of each-other, so they were selected deliberately.   Right after planting, I held my breath...and cut off their heads to limit the trunk height to like 18" tall from the ground . A year later, they had ALREADY put out a bunch of limbs and were climbing the trell...

Adding More Green Giant Thujas To Back Yard Along Fence - January 2025

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A big part of writing a [garden diary] all-year-around is using the dormant season - like RIGHT NOW, deep in the coldest part of the year - to noodle on garden edits and additions.  I've done it most Winters - educating myself about plants, shrubs and trees.  Sketching out edits to beds.  Thinking about what I should/could add to the garden in various spots. With the temps so low lately, I only get out to the backyard garden to dump our kitchen scraps into the compost bins.  I scurry from the backdoor to the bins in the back of the yard.  And then scurry right back.  So, I only have brief glimpses to notice/document the garden. But, one of the spots that I have been looking at (on these walks) is along the south fence line where we have three Green Giant Thujas that are spaced about five-feet apart.   These three went in the ground in April of 2022 and were small(ish).  Looking back at the photos from when they were planted , the tips of the...

2024 Yard and Garden To-Do List Final Scorecard - January 2025

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Each season that I've put together a 'to-do list' for the yard and garden, I've also done an end-of-season accounting on how well I was able to complete the items on the list. Last year, I had 25 items on my list .  This post serves as the final scorecard of those 25 items. Historically, I've had REALLY good years.  And some not-so-good years. In 2023, I completed 22 out of 25 items on the list . 88%. In 2022, I marked 17 complete .  3 'mixed' and 5 not-completes.  68%. In 2021, I marked 17.5 complete .  2 'semi-complete' and 5.5 not-completes.  70%.  In 2020, I marked 22 complete .  3 not-complete.  88%. In 2019, I marked 12 of 17 complete .  70%. That means over five growing seasons ('19, '20, '21, '22, '23), I have had 117 items on my list. And, I have 90 marked complete (Math: 22+17+17.5+22+12 = 90.5). 90.5/117 = 77% overall. My 2024 list was full of BIG and little items.  I last did a 'late season' check-in on the li...

Green Velvet Boxwoods Under Linden Trees - Winter Interest via Evergreen Shrubs - January 2025

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In the Summer of 2023, I planted eleven (11) small (I mean...REALLY small, 1# nursery pots that were on sale for $5 a piece) Green Velvet Boxwood shrubs in a staggered pattern at the feet of the two Greenspire Linden Trees that are currently being trained into a horizontal cordon espalier.   I wanted to add some evergreens to this bed to provide structure, formality and Winter interest.   Today, 18-months-later, those boxwoods are starting to fill-out and provide exactly what I was looking for:  winter interest.   See below for a photo showing the Green Velvet boxwoods and the pair of Linden trees in the snow: I posted a photo of these in May of 2024 when they were putting on their annual, shaggy growth .  This past Summer marked their first full year in the ground.  While still small-in-size, these Boxwoods are providing contrast against the bright-white snow.   These will, with time, get to between three-and-four-feet tall and w...

Winter Interest IB2DWS - Low Snow Pile with Plants - January 2025

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Four-season gardening has been a goal of mine for a number of years.  Or...at least...considering the impact of the four-seasons on the garden vs. thinking *just* about bloom-time and Summer in the garden.  Conifers are a big part of that Winter Interest season and while my garden LACKED them for many years, I've begun to correct that in the past few seasons.  ( I've admitted to making a mistake on conifers and NOW believe in the advice:  "Conifers should come first." ) The original IB2DWs bed (closer to the garage) is a continuous work-in-progress.  I started with some Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grasses and have added things over the years.   This section typically gets piled high with snow during the Winter; as it is a natural place to put snow that is shoveled off the driveway.  I've posted photos of this area piled high with snow before: h ere's a post from one-year-ago (January 2024) showing that the snow was piled to the top of the Weeping N...

Snow-Covered Spine Tingler Epimedium - January 2025

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A few days back, I posted a photo of some snow-covered Angelia Sedum groundcover that was providing a little bit of Winter Interest near our back stoop.  On my way out to dump the kitchen compost bin in the larger bins in back, I stopped to look at some other groundcover that was 'showing up' in the snow:  Spine Tingler Epimedium.   Below is a photo showing the three plants - that I put in the ground in Spring 2023 :  There, amongst the light snow and leaf litter is the dried-out, rigid and spike-edged foliage of Spine Tingler.   These have fared a bit better than the Amber Queen varieties, so perhaps a few more of these should be on my list at the Morton Arboretum Plant Sale in 2025.  

Project Notebook: Musing On The Order of Operations - Pizza Oven Buildout - January 2025

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I've done this sort of 'notebook' posts in the past and it has been helpful in organizing my thoughts when it comes to project planning.  Here's an 'order of operations' post on a big, 'new bed' backyard overhaul from 2021 that - just by writing - helped me get my head wrapped-around what I needed to do.   I've done similar 'notebook' or 'musing' posts on retaining walls and our boardwalk on the side of our house .  I've referenced Paul Graham's post about WRITING previously - but the gist his POV is: Writing doesn't just communicate ideas; it generates them.  The act of writing about something (in this case...the process around my pizza oven project) shows me that I'm in the MIDST of my learning journey on said process.    Hopefully...by the end of this, I'll have a v1 of what I need to do. I've recently updated a few posts with oven construction, but haven't shown the completed project - just yet.  The...

Snow-Covered Angelina Sedum - January 2025

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The Angelina Sedum that is planted as a groundcover in the square beds on either side of our back stoop are looking really good with the thin layer of snow (and ice) that is blanketing our garden this week.   I've noted this particular Sedum in previous Winters.  Here's a post and photo from a year ago - January 2024 .  Here's how MUCH brighter it gets by late Spring:  Have a look at May 2024 .  Something to think about in 2025:  Digging up plugs of this to transplant. 

Rabbits Eating Our Oakleaf Hydrangeas (Again) - January 2025

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I think this might be my breaking point on Oakleaf Hydrangeas.  Every Winter since we planted them, the (dang!) rabbits have gnawed away the tips on our Oakleaf Hydrangea shrubs.  They 'clip' the tips right off and if you know anything about Oakleaf Hydrangeas....you know that they bloom on 'old wood'.  The (dang!) rabbits are eating just that:  the 'old wood'. Below is a shot of some of the damage: I've protected some of them with chicken wire cages, but the small ones (dwarf) are just about eaten back to the trunks.  And some of the Alice (larger ones) have been reduced, too.   I *REALLY* like Oakleaf Hydrangeas.  But, I don't know if our garden is going to work for them.   My plan is to go out and buy even more rabbit repellent and try to apply it (in the cold) and see if that dissuades these (dang!) rabbits.

Two More (New, Replacement) Disneyland Floribunda Roses for 2025 - January 2025

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2025 will continue to be a season of cut flowers (hopefully) with the dahlia tubers that I bought and were gifted to me.  Those dahlias are what carried me through all of 2024, but I also had some setbacks with my other 'cut flowers':  the Disneyland Roses.  I lost two that I planted in 2023 and the three that I've had historically suffered from various stresses.   But, I'm getting back into the game with two more - from the same elf that has gifted us all the previous five:  Nat's Mom. Here, below, is the order form showing two more will be shipped in Spring.  These arrive as bareroot plants, so I'll get them in the ground as soon as they arrive to give them the best shot in 2025.  Planning out the planting location(s) of all the tubers and these two new Roses will be a fun project this Winter - filed under 2025 to-do/2025 planning.  

Even More Dahlia Tubers Ordered - January 2025

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Back in mid-December, I posted the details of my own Dahlia tuber order from Longfield Gardens that included some Maarn Ball Dahlias, Sweet Nathalie Decorative Dahlias and a bulk oder of Pablo Decorative Border Dahlias.   I say 'my own' Dahlia order because below are the details of a gift order that I was given for Christmas.  So...this is a 'gift order' of tubers and it includes one duplicate and a couple of new-to-me ones. Below is a screenshot of the order showing the tuber varieties:  I'll now be receiving some Wizard of Oz tubers, a few more Sweet Nathalies, some Zundert Mystery Fox Ball tubers and my first set of Collerette dahlias - this one named Pooh.  How can we not love a Winnie the Pooh themed Dahlia flower, right? This means I'll have (at least): 2 Ball varieties (Maarn and Mystery Fox) 1 Pompon variety (Wizard of Oz) 1 decorative variety (Sweet Nathalie) 1 collerette variety (Pooh) 1 decorative gallery variety (Pablo) Next job is to plan on where ...

Exotic Star Amaryllis - In Bloom - January 2025

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We grew two Amaryllis bulbs this Christmas season - an Exotic Star Amaryllis and a Double Dream Amaryllis .  Both were 'nice' bulbs from the garden center - not a big box store kit-type bulb.  I don't seem to have posted about these in December, but one of them - the Exotic Star - took off.  While the other one (Double Dream) stayed dormant.  That has held true all the way until today - early January. The Double Dream is still dormant.  But, the Exotic Star is in full bloom with three flowers opening up and showing their stripes.   See below for a what the Exotic Star looks like currently.  Note those bottom (and side) petals being a tad LONGER than the one sticking up at the top.  That's part of the 'design' of Exotic Star Amaryllis .  So, too are the red stripes on white petals and the 'green apple' highlights.   Once the stalk(s) started to get a couple inches from the bulb, I started to water this one with the diluted alco...

Hemlock Tips - Winter Interest - December 2024

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There's growth on the tips of this Hemlock tree just waiting for Spring to arrive.  

Green Gem Boxwoods - Backyard Cluster - December 2024

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In the Fall of 2021, I planted three Green Gem Boxwoods in the backyard, about half-way back on the south side of the garden .  They were tiny, $5-ONE-GALLON shrubs that *barely* lifted their crown about the soil.  Today, they're starting to stand on their own.  See below for current state of the three Green Gem Boxwoods in early Winter along with a lot of leaf litter. Some nice moss on a couple of those small boulders, too.  

Even More Praise for Autumn Ferns - December 2024

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The garden is sleeping.  It has put itself to bed - with everything going dormant.  Everything...that is....except for some evergreens and semi-evergreens.  Evergreens - like conifers - are what I think of when it comes to winter interest.  But...semi-evergreens are something that I continue to learn about every season.  And...the shining star of my own semi-evergreens continues to be Autumn Ferns.   Have a look at these Ferns below.  This is Christmas Day.  And, everything is bare, brown and dry.  But...these?  Still showing off with their green fronds.  More Autumn Ferns needs to be near the top of my 2025 planting list.  I've said it before, but I haven't delivered as much as I'd like to on Autumn Ferns.  Yesterday's post about a Fairy Garden?  I mention removing Ostrich Ferns.  What should I replace them with in that spot?  Autumn Ferns need to be part of the equation.