Why I Oughta...

The clumps of spreading (kind-of) groundcover named Ajuga 'Chocolate Chip' are at their peak in early May this growing season.  After a period of foliage growth in April (that followed a seemingly mild Winter) on these, they're now in full bloom.  Purple/blue flowers standing tall.  In various pockets of the garden including these three clusters in the 'nook' garden bed along the front edge of that border. You can see them below.  These went in as part of a 'garden edit' in 2024 .   There were more back a few years, but I think that some of them were impacted by Winter 2024/2025.   #20 on my 2026 to-do list this year is to 'keep going with groundcover' .  Moments like this with Ajuga are a good reminder why that's a good idea.  

All three of the treeform Doublefile Viburnum shrubs are in bloom right now in the garden and they're putting on a pretty good show with their white flowers and horizontal branching.  Standing tall on top of that 'treeform' base, they look really good right now. I've posted about these in-bloom over the years.  Here's a post from May 2024 .  Here they are in late May 2025 - last year .  These are a bit further ahead than the past two years as they began blooming at the end of April.   Below are photos of all three of the treeform versions.  First up is the largest one and the shrub that is closest to the house.  It has branches that cascade down and out.  Here's a close-up of those lace-cap flower clusters below.  They start as tight balls and open-up into creamy-white petals.   Next up is the second one along the same fenceline, just a little bit further back.  This one is slightly smaller and not as far along, but still ...

In the Fall of 2021, I planted a pair of SugarTyme Crabapple (flowering) trees along the south-face of our house in a sunny spot .  These were my third set of espalier'd trees following my pair of Greenspire Lindens and the Apple-tree Belgian Fence.   My goal was to transform the big blank wall into something more 'green'.   Over the years, these small trees began to grow and branch-out to what they've become today:  four-tiered horizontal cordons.    Here, below is a photo showing how they look today.   The tree on the left has the lowest tier still to grow outward.  But, the tree on the right is further-along.   These trees are beginning to bloom.  Below is a photo showing some of the blooms beginning to open on the branches: These needs a little bit of work this growing season.  My plan is to try to create a support system for them that will help straighten-out the branches and remove the arching curves to som...

When we inherited our property, there were a few things here that I discovered in the garden: we had some hostas, a couple of peonies, a bunch of daylilies and (at the time), I thought a bunch of Spring leafy-weeds that flowered.  Those Spring-time leafy-weeds were clustered around our south fenceline and were migrating from our neighbor to the south.  For the first few Springs after I created a mulch bed along the fenceline, I didn't like seeing these weeds and presumed them to be invasive.  So, I chopped them off and the ground level and moved on. Only to discover that I was totally wrong.  And, what I was seeing is a native Spring ephemeral named Virginia Bluebells.   A few years ago, our neighbor dug up a couple of clumps of hers and handed them to me over the fence .  What a treat.  I planted them both and now, a few years later they're thriving.   Here, below is a photo of one of those clumps of this flowering (in bloom) Spring eph...

The flowering tree in our front yard - a Saucer Magnolia that was planted in Summer 2017 - is in bloom this week.  It is always a nice treat to see the pink blooms that are ephemeral, show up this time of year.  The form of the tree continues to grow (mostly) upright with some branching out of the tips which is creating a ball-shape standing on top of the multi-trunk base.  I haven't pruned this tree much, but it might be time to think about a 'limb'ing up' of some of the edges after it finishes this year's bloom cycle.   Below is a photo showing the tree (and the Chamber of Commerce day) in Downers:  Last year, the tree appears to have had MORE blooms than this year.  Here's the post (and photo) from a week later in the year that shows a more vibrant tree (at least to my eye).   This tree has now had nine growing seasons ('17, '18, '19, '20, '21, '22, '23, '24, '25) and sure has grown quite a bit from what it looked like whe...

This post is going up in early July, but these photos are from a week ago - in late June.  The combination of the pink blooms from a pair of Stachys 'hummelo' paird with the long, white barrel-shaped blooms on the Little Henry Sweetspire erupted together.  At the same time.  They're both planted in our front yard, right along the front walk from our driveway.  Below is a look at the Little Henry Sweet Spire Spirea in full bloom: And, tucked right in front of the shrub are a pair of Stachys Hummelo with their pink blooms standing tall on the top of stalks.  I *really* need to plant more of these. Stachys monieri 'Hummelo' with Little Henry Sweetspire Spirea It was humid out when I took this photo, but below you can see them working together: Stachys monieri 'Hummelo' I also should expand this bed out this Fall - with the 'lazy bed' method.  Noted for my [Fall 2025] task list.  

The treeform Doublefile Viburnums that we have in our backyard are in their full, Spring-blooming glory this week.  At least one of them, that is.  The shrubs have a layered set of branches that are home to clusters of white flowers that spread out from these little green dots.  The result is dramatic pop of white.  Below are a few photos - showing the full treeform viburnum and some close-ups of the white Doublefile Viburnum flowers.   Here's a post from a year-ago that shows the blooms on these same shrubs in Spring 2024 .  They were a few weeks ahead of this year.   A couple weeks ago, I added two more Doublefile Viburnums to the backyard - Pink Beauty .  They are shrubs - not treeform - versions that (I hope) will provide some pink-hued blooms in the coming years.  

Pops of chartreuse have been showing up in our backyard shade garden in various ways over the years.  One of the most successful was born out of a whim:  this Lemony Lace Elderberry shrub that I planted in the Fall of 2022 as part of a [Fall Planting] sprint .   The Lemony Lace Elderberry provides late Winter/Early Spring interest with wild-looking purple buds and some deep-red foliage .   This week, it started to bloom.  Below are a couple photos showing how it has filled out this Spring: I have a pair of Eiffel Tower Elderberries on the other side of the backyard that are a little behind this one.