Why I Oughta...

We have a miniature variegated hosta that sits right below the large Northern Red Oak tree that our tree swing hangs from that I really like.  I'm not sure where it came from, but I am guessing that I pulled it from my Sister-in-laws lot right before they started to build their house back in 2018 .  I ended up stashing a bunch of that stuff back in the far reaches of our yard and mostly forgot about all of it. It was planted near a larger Catalpa tree in the back that the kids like to climb and that meant that it was getting trampled by little and looked a little neglected.  So, I dug it up in June 2019 and transplanted it around the large Oak tree on the north side of the lot.  In that post in 2019, I talked about how I admired this thing and said that as it grows, it was one that I should try to divide to make even more. I posted a follow-up photo of this hosta last Summer (June 2020) and showed off even more new growth as it began to spread out a little bit. Here, below, is a

I have a section of our backyard that calls for a bunch of Ferns.  Ostrich Ferns, to be precise.  Last year, I transplanted a bunch of them (10) to this area just to the West of the Large Northern Red Oak tree that has our swing on it.  You can see some of those in the photo below - the Ostrich ferns are the lime green ones that are vase-like.   But, with the newly expanded beds, I also needed to fill in the section in front.  I did that by transplanting three MORE Ostrich ferns in front.  But, then I had a little gap between those in the border and the ones from last year.  So, I when I came across a pair of ferns that I've never seen before (at a good price), I grabbed them and decided to use them here.   First up, a pair of Shaggy Shield Ferns.  I didn't know anything about them, but they caught my eye.  From the Missouri Botanic Garden comes this listing  that mentions they are native to Japan: Dryopteris cycadina, commonly called wood fern or shaggy wood fern, is native to

The area that (earlier this Spring), I labeled " Priority Area #2 " has begun to be addressed this Spring ahead of the mulch being applied.  Last year, I planted three Guacamole Hostas in this area that calls for nine total Guacamole Hostas and after I increased the bed size, it was time to add even more to get this area filled out.  Of the three that I planted last year, one of them has been having some trouble (with the cold weather + drought), so I decided to plant seven new ones - to bring the total to ten.  Nine + one troubled one.  Here (below) is the layout of these new Guacamole hostas in their nursery containers.  Four one gallon pots and three quart pots with smaller ones. And, here below, is an annotated version of that same photo.   Red circle = 2020 planted hostas. Green circle = new 2021 Guacamole hostas.  The four larger ones came from Hinsdale Nursery.  The smaller ones from Johannsen Farms in Bolingbrook. Purple circle = one of the Praying Hands hosta. Blue

Last Fall, I bought my first ruffled hosta - a Waterslide Hosta - from the Morton Arboretum Fall Plant Sale.  At that time, I hadn't really come across ruffled hostas, but was struck by this one.  Unfortunately, I made a very common gardening mistake ; I bought just one of them. I planted it in the canopy of the Japanese Kanzan Flowering Cherry tree and the green foliage lasted a few weeks before going into dormancy for Winter.  This Spring, this Waterslide Hosta has come back and is quite healthy and full.  This growing season, I've had my eyes on finding a few more of this cultivar, but so far no such luck.  The Morton Arboretum Spring Plant Sale was sold out.  And I haven't seen them at various growing centers.  There are LOTS of Whee hostas (which are VERY similar, but not quite the same) at Home Depot, but so far, I've resisted buying those.  I'd like to add a few more of these to a drift or ruffled hosta colony. In terms of hosta cultivars, here's what I

Last Summer, we bought and planted a dozen Fanal Astilbe #1 containers in the south bed of our backyard .  They immediately struggled as we went up to Wisconsin and they dried out.   When we got back, I baby'd them with a brand new soaker hose and hoped for the best that they'd all come back.  Well, this Spring, I'm seeing some good news:  All twelve are back.  Some are more vigorous than others.  But, they're all showing some purple/maroon little growth coming from the mulch. I've mentioned this before, but one of the projects that I have slated for this Spring is to set the final edges of our backyard beds in a curvilinear layout .  A month or so ago, I laid out what I called the "Order of Operations" with the backyard that details the steps that I intend to take: remove the wire (done), extend beds, transplant, clean up, plant new stuff, mulch, and lay down the wire again. As part of the 'extend the beds' project, I wanted to be sure that the c

One of the many plants that I bought at last Fall's plant sale at the Morton Arboretum was one (yes...I know.... it was a mistake to buy just one ) of these Chocoholic Black Snakeroot plants .  It is a shade plant and gets between four and five feet tall and 2.5' to 3' wide.  So, I planted it in a spot near the fence, thinking it could be one of the 'back' pieces of a layer puzzle where our plan calls for some shade-oriented hydrangeas.  Last fall, it has these beautiful white flowers on some long stalks, so I was hopeful when I bought it that it would add some new drama to this side of the yard.   Well, this Spring brings good news that this plant has come back for the first full season.  That makes the Morton Arboretum Plant Sale plants 2-for-2.  The Twinkle Toes Lungwort popped up a couple weeks ago and today, it is even flowering.  Note to self:  I should take some current photos.   Here's what the Chocoholic Black Snakeroot looks like today below.  Some pu

Over the course of my gardening history, I think I've only bought ONE "plant of the year".  Back in 2013, I bought a single Blue Indigo (Baptisia Australis) from Luurs Nursery based on the sign calling it out as "Perennial Of The Year in 2010"  and planted it in front of our fence in Elmhurst.  I always liked that plant and thought that I should have bought more (see yesterday's post about mistakes ).   But, that might change this year.  I came across the 2021 Hosta of the Year from Proven Winners named Shadowland Wheee Hosta .  Walter's Garden bills this as the third Hosta of the Year (the 2021 version) and somehow they've already called next year's (2022) Hosta of the Year (Hosta Shadowland Diamond Lake).  Here's what it looks like: Source via Proven Winners . This year's winner (Whee) is described : Extremely ruffled, cream colored margins extend from the tip of each green leaf all the way down the petiole to the crown. This ruffled m

 Most of our hostas in the backyard are now looking like this one you see below.  It has a blend of seasonal decline (the yellowing) and what I'm pretty sure is frost damage from very early this Spring.   We had a late frost - after these. had emerged and while they didn't show this much damage all year long, based on watching Monty Don's Instagram handle, he mentioned 'frost damage' on his hostas.  Here, below, is one of our hostas underneath the hornbeams in our backyard: And here, below, is Monty Don's post on Instagram talking about frost damage on his hostas: View this post on Instagram The hostas are dying back - but the damage caused by a frost on May 15th only apparent in the past week or so. I have often observed this very delayed effect. A post shared by Monty Don (@themontydon) on Oct 5, 2020 at 12:00am PDT Seems like the same situation, right?  He's calling it a 'delayed effect'.

Back in late September, I posted some photos and details of three Twinkle Toes Lungwort plants that I bought at the Fall Plant Sale .  These are pretty interesting plants in that they have hairy foliage, are variegated and throw off blue flowers.  All while being shade plants.  I got around to planting them in a mass right to the yard-side of the Dwarf Albert Spruce tree - that is having some stress right now.   You can see them below:   I'm going to keep watering these in every few days to try to help them get established and hope that they'll stick around come next Spring.  ( Note:  I labeled this planting in September, yet the date of the post is October. )

 Back in July, on a whim, I bought a small Lady Fern from Home Depot and decided to plant it in the bed adjacent to my Ostrich Ferns a couple of weeks later. The fern was looking very healthy when it went in near mid/late July .  But, then something happened.  It went from green and healthy to dry, brown, limp and seemingly dead.   It felt like that transformation happened one day.  I was looking at the fern one day and the next it was dead.  I panic'd and grabbed the hose and soaked it.  Then I applied some wood chip mulch around it and watered it again the next day and the day after that.  A week later or so....I saw some new growth.   Since then, I've watered it and tried to keep it going.   Today?  This is what it looks like below.  It seems that between the water and the cooler temperatures, this Lady Fern seems to have recovered.   Will this recovery be enough for the fern to establish itself and prepare for the coming Winter?  We'll know next Spring.  

This post is about the 10th variety or cultivar of plants/trees that we bought at the Morton Arobretum Fall Plant Sale .  At the very bottom of this post, you can see a list of all ten of them - including one tree, two varieties of grasses and a some shade-tolerant plants.  That list now includes another shade-tolerant plant called Amber Queen Barrenwort.   This is an Epimedium - the first we have in our garden - that is described at Walter's Garden like this : A dazzling unique Epimedium that will catch your eye-it certainly caught ours! Epimediums are uncommon in the market and in high demand. The airy, delicate-looking flowers have bright yellow spurs with orange-red centers, looking light orange from a distance. Flowers are produced along the length of the flower stems, which are up to 24" long. Bright green leaves have a blush red color close to the crown. ...Epimedium are one of the few plants capable of surviving in dry shade. Although slow to establish, mature plants

 A couple of weeks back, I posted a photo of a pretty unique hosta - called Praying Hands - that I bought at the Morton Arboretum Fall Plant Sale.  Praying Hands is 'unlike any other hosta' and was named "Hosta of the Year in 2011".  When I bought it, I wasn't sure where I was going to plant it, but new it needed shade and I wanted to put it in the spot where I could enjoy it.  I thought about planting it close to our house.  In this post showing off our Linden Cordon Espalier trees , you can see that I was thinking of planting it beneath those trees.   In fact, I did a 'shade study' of that location.  Here, below, is a photo from 1 pm when I was trying to see if the spot stayed in shade during the middle of the day.  You can see that it is, indeed, in the shade.  But, I'm pretty sure that the sun is in a lot lower spot (already) than it is during the heat of the Summer.  So, while the Lindens are in shade in September....I'm not sure they are in

We have no blue flowering plants in our yard - so when we came across a full shade, blue-flowering perennial at the Fall Plant Sale - Nat said that we had to buy them.  These are NOT on my plan, but since they're Full Shade, they can go just about anywhere.   We bought three of these (and one more for Nat's Mom) for our backyard.   Walter's Garden describes these as being complimentary to hostas and ferns:  This beautiful shade perennial will make you dance with its impressive spring flowers and unique foliage. Starting in mid-spring shortly after Hellebores are finished booming, dainty light periwinkle blue flowers cover a low, mounded habit. After the flowers fade, you can enjoy its dark green leaves that are lightly sprinkled with silver. This plant will thrive in part shade to full shade as long as you provide moisture. Pulmonaria is an underused perennial that grows well in shady gardens. It is especially attractive when planted among hostas, ferns, and brunneras. Its

The next up in my purchase(s) at the Morton Arboretum Fall Plant Sale is one of these Chocoholic Black Snakeroot (Actacea 'Chocoholic' ).    The sign from the sale is below, but for the short-hand reason for why I bought it?  It flowers in Full Shade.  And, like it or not, I'm a shade gardener.   This snakeroot grows to 4-5' tall and a three-to-four foot spread.   The description from the sign reads: Bronze purple foliage is a welcome addition to the shade garden.  Rich mauve-pink flowers lighten to white as they age.  Forms a dense, upright clump.   Below is a photo of the full plant showing the current height and clump size.   I haven't thought about Snakeroot before, but when I saw this one flowering, I couldn't pass it up.   The ball-like flower buds have started to explode into white flowers.    The Chocoholic Version is one of many versions of Snakeroot.  Walter's Garden thinks highly of this cultivar : This lovely native cultivar adds wonderful textur

The third variety of plant material that I brought home from the Morton Arboretum Fall Plant Sale last week is the second cultivar of hosta.  And it is (maybe?) even more unique than the Waterslide one that has ruffled edges.  This one is called Praying Hands Hosta and according to Walter's Garden , it is "unlike any other hosta."  It also was "Hosta of the Year" in 2011.   Here - below - is the plant tag that shows the height being 14-18" and the spread being 12-16".   Here - below - is a look at the plant that I brought home.  It is really interesting looking.   If you looked closely at the photo of my Linden trees that I posted a few days ago, you might have viewed this hosta at the base of one of them.  I've been watching the sun/shade patterns of that area to see if it is the right place to plant this hosta.  I'd like it in a spot that can be viewed and highlighted - so underneath those trees feels good right now.  I'll do a shade stud

Yesterday, I posted a photo of a multi-trunk (3-trunk) River Birch tree that continues to grow up in our backyard and mentioned in that post that you could peek at a few of the Guacamole Hostas lined up alongside the bed the River Birch clump is located.  Today, are a couple of photos showing the rest of these large (and one small) Guacamole Hosta. We had six of them purchased for us at Hinsdale Nursery earlier this Summer - five really large ones and one smaller one.  I toyed with the idea of planting a few of them out front under the large Maple tree , but after seeing them there, I decided to plant them in the backyard.  And back in July, when I planted the contorted Harry Lauder Walkingstick tree, I took one of the larger ones and planted it in the bed next to the tree .  As for the other five, this post shows their current state and location.  At the top of the post, you can see three more - two large ones and the one small one - planted in a small cluster on the northsi

Last year, we filled our cast iron urn that is out front adjacent to our driveway with a variety of annuals and perennials including a purple Coral Bells or heuchera plant .   In our zone, Coral Bells - which prefers part shade - is typically a perennial, so when I was cleaning out the urn at the end of the gardening season (before we swapped it out for Mums), I stuck it in the bed next to our garage on the north side of our house.  This area is - almost entirely - shade, so I figured it might be something that could grow there. Fast forward to this Summer and have a look at the maroon/purple Coral Bells that you see in the photo at the top of this post.  It seems that the plant made it through the Winter and has come out the other side with some new growth and even some tiny flower stems that have shot out the top. I actually am NOT sure what the specific name is, but I bought it at a big box garden center - and I'm guessing it is this Purple Palace variety that Monrovia l

Yesterday, I posted a photo of a teardown hosta that I've determined is a Ventricosa Hosta with deep purple flowers , and today, I wanted to share another photo of a unique hosta that we have in our backyard:  the Christmas Tree hosta.  I planted this Christmas Tree hosta back in May of 2018 after finding it at the garden center of Menards .  What is a Christmas Tree hosta?  From this listing on New Hampshire Hostas , they describe it like this: 'Christmas Tree' Hosta produces dark green leaves with a thin yellow margin that fades to creamy white in the summer, and occasionally streaks to the center of the leaf.  Forms an attractive mound of rounded leaves that are cupped and heavily corrugated. This is the third growing season and while the plant has grown, it isn't a massive clump just yet - so I haven't attempted to dig it up and divide it just yet.  It is planted around the large Oak tree (with the swing) on the side of the tree that is facing the yard

This hosta is planted in the far back of our property - where I put down a base of wood chips earlier this Spring.  Based on where it is planted and how it is pretty unique in color/texture from the rest of our hostas, I'm thinking that I dug it out of Nat's sister's lot before she tore down her house.  Here's a photo of a garden cart full of stuff that came from there .  I don't see any hosta leaves in the photo, but I, do, mention them in the post.  I also mention ferns in the post and I know the " teardown fern " that I post about is from her lot - and it is adjacent to this hosta.  Hence...my pretty strong suspicion that it came from across town.  In terms of gardening debate, I think that hosta flowers might be the 'hot button' between Nat and myself.  They are something that she just doesn't care for.  Me?  I love them.  Now, I can't be certain, but I'm pretty sure why I love them goes back to my Mom.  And my childhood.  I

I recently got around to sticking the new Lady Fern in the ground in our backyard.  That's it - in the photo above - with the most  vibrant green foliage on the middle/right.  The story of how I bought this thing on a whim at Home Depot is here on the blog from a couple of weeks ago.  I took the photo here for the [ garden diary ] showing the location of the planting in relation to the River Birch tree.  Another way to think about the location is to take a peek at the photo above and notice the location of the River Birch and the clump of fern stems that you see in the top right.  Then, go here , and have a look at the reverse side of this from the lawn.  That post showing the 10 transplanted ferns is talks about the area where this one is located.  The bulk of those transplanted ferns were planted to the East of the River Birch, so this Lady Fern is going to hang out to the West of the River Birch.  The plan called for "12 Ostrich Ferns" in this area.  I initially