UNDER CONSTRUCTION - digging up the monet garden

 In order to have foundation work done in our basement, the Old Sun Garden and the back of the Monet Garden outside our living room windows have been completely dug up.

August 13

The back of the Monet was not stellar looking by any stretch yet, yet it had been set on its path and I was not planning on adding much else to the Monarda, Anchusa azurea 'Loddon Royalist' Ostrich Ferns, Tree Lilies, New England Asters and Foxglove.

Oct. 15-30

Originally I wanted as much colour in this garden as possible, I was tired of the shade gardens I had in Ontario and wanted to have more sun and new options - what I have come to realize is that wanting something does not make it so. It is time for a new look at old favourites, time to  revive my appreciation for shades of green and embrace, rather than fight, the Monet Garden's shady character.

I am going to raise up the height of the back bed by bringing in a few more inches of quality soil and then expanding the patch of Ostrich Ferns so they stretch across the entire front wall.  A mix of purple Astilbe and Calla Lilies will help fill the space, should the callas survive their first winter in our basement.  The Tree Lilies were cut back but not dug out and so should return and spring forth from amongst the ferns.

The Monarda and Foxglove have been permanently moved forward into the new part of the Monet Garden while both the Asters and Anchusa have made their way to the Sun Garden now that I have become more flexible with my colour design.

I have six purple tree lilies to add to the garden, do you think they would work well interspersed amongst the Iris toward the front, creating the opportunity for visitors to pass through a 'forest' of sweet smelling lilies, or mixed with the existing tall lilies towards the back, building on an already successful choice?

I would love to know your thoughts.

BACK YARD PRIORITY - follow up

Last week I explained that I would be renewing my focus on the backyard gardens which up to this point have been lower priority.

My how fast things can change - as you can see, the garden is quickly filling up!

The first step was to remove the enormous quantity of chives which immediately made it look much cleaner.

The biggest source of plants to fill the void have been:

• those that the deer eat in my unfenced front gardens
• those that I find on sale once they are past their best for this year
• those that are unsuited to where I originally planted them

Deer rescues include:

- lovely orange Oriental Lilies that were completely eaten by the deer last year and heavily pruned by them again last week when they were just about to bloom!

- a few Malva and the lone Lupine from the Monet Garden that the deer also snacked on last week

Sale plants include:

- 5 "Popsicle Mix" Lupine.  Regular price $11 on sale for $3.50, done blooming for this year. I have  to admit it feels quite freeing to purchase a colour mix and it will be exciting to see what comes up next year!

- 3 red and white carnations that would not have fit into my colour-themed gardens, which after a hard pruning should come back for a second bloom this fall. Also on sale for $3.50 from $11.
- 5 Primula with a great spike of purple bloom for the Monet Garden where I have created space by taking out the deer-chomped Malva.

Plants getting a second chance include:

-5 or 6 Rudbeckia that have grown much larger than I imagined when I direct sowed their seeds last spring
- 5 or 6 large-flowering, yellow Primula that have been completely overshadowed by their enormous Rudbeckia neighbours and need to see the sun again

Next I need to dig up the Dutch Iris that clearly did not get enough sun in the Monet Garden. While they may have been the perfect colour match but that does not matter if they do not bloom, does it?

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CLOSING UP SHOP

Short of getting my order from Van Fleur with literally still dozens of things to plant and freezing temperatures creeping in, I am done and ready to finish closing up shop.  

Thank goodness the weather has been hospitable.

I grew lots of plants in the Sun Garden this summer I had never grown before so I had to learn about their pruning procedures and it turns out they almost all get severely cut back:

Blanket Flower

Monarda

Bearded Iris

Helenium

Peony

Crocosmia

Lilies

Echinacea is either/or.

Asclepias should stay up "until spring".

Rudbeckia laciniata 'Goldquelle

Rudbeckia wavers from keep the seed heads up for the birds to trim almost to the ground.

I will leave them until last and see how I am feeling...

Let us hear it for tomorrow, one of the season's final days to be spent outside.
Hip hip hooray!

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MACRO MONDAY - asiatic lily

 I love the simplicity of taking all  my shots (macro or otherwise) with my iPhone since I pretty much have it with me at all times, so I went with an Olloclip that pops on and off of my phone with ease.

Here is an Asiatic Lily from my sun garden with my regular lens.

Here is the same flower with my macro lens.

I am thrilled with the results. 

                                              What camera do you use for your macro shots? 

***

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& Floral Love

SPREADING THE LOVE - again

Last week I wrote about dividing lilies in the side garden and the other day I did it again in the back garden.

I did not make plans for the back gardens. All the hours I spent this winter imagining, researching and planning were dedicated to the front gardens. Funny that, considering we will spend more time in the backyard than front.

Once I had the font more or less planted I could not help but shift my attention to the rest of the yard and walking past those four clumps of lilies and that massive clump of daylilies was beyond me. I can see that they have not been divided in...well perhaps ever, and with a little help they could actually fill the whole side garden.

Both the daylilies and asiatic lilies are from the previous owners and while perhaps I should have waited to see what colour they are so that their move would be to their permanent home, I just could not wait.  They needed to spread their wings.  Now.

Step 1 - get the tarp. Trying to get all of the soil out of the lawn is a lost cause, best to avoid it from the outset.
Step 2 - survey your riches.  Breaking everything apart gives a good idea how much you have to plant, but I have found that the roots can dry out quite quickly once the soil is removed so I try and eyeball the volume while they are still in clumps to get an idea of density and spread.
Step 3 - knock of some dirt and jostle the root systems between your hands. With slow and gentle teasing it is possible to break them apart and leave them in good health.
Step 4 - plant and water

Now look at how the whole garden is filled to the brim with these lilies. Picture it again in three years - overflowing with blooms I predict.

 While I love daylilies, they are common and I have loads of them so the other lilies are the priority here; most of the daylilies were moved around the corner.

I just hope these lilies are not pink.

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FOR A GUY WHO DOES NOT LIKE PINK

Along with the enormous benefits of having someone else having done all the work, there can be some drawbacks when you inherit a garden.  Chances are the previous artist-in-residence did not share exactly the same aesthetic.

I have always been of the mindset to work with what you are given, it is part of the challenge.  Where I have felt the impact of someone else's conflicting tastes has been with colour selection.

A lot of the flowers in my Cabbagetown garden were pink.

Hardy Geranium front right

Hardy Geranium's blooms are discrete but pink nonetheless

• Pink Spirea (bottom left) I eventually transplanted to the cottage for its stature as much as for its colour; it was simply too big to be at the front of the garden.
• And let's face it, a good reason to say 'Echinacea' instead of  "Purple Coneflower" is because the latter is somewhat misleading - the blooms fall more into the pink than purple camp if you ask me.
• And way in the back some beautifully tall Asiatic Lilies that fell pray to hungry red lily beetles a couple of years ago.

And earlier that spring, this amazing Bearded Iris. Very tall and very sturdy, but for a plant named after the Greek goddess of the rainbow you might think the odds against me getting another pink bloom were in my favour.   

• 

In the back yard the Rose of Sharon on the left was pink.

As was the Weigela.

Unlike Beth at  "Beyond the Garden" gate who has sung the praises of pink in a few  posts, it is my least favourite colour in the garden. Over time I replaced pink plants when they died, moved some to the cottage, and simply added many other colours so it became less prominent.

Every garden I have had, I have inherited and now that I have two blank canvasses (one of them in full sun!) with my new lasagna gardens the planning can sometimes feel quite daunting. One thing is for sure though, there will not be a fraction of the pink in the gardens I will plan from scratch as there were in their inherited predecessors.

I better get back to planning!

COTTAGE GARDEN - 40 year plan

What is the big plan for the Ontario cottage?  Is there one?

You bet.

Just because I am now in Winnipeg does not mean I have stopped thinking about my beloved Cottage Garden. My ultimate goal for the Cottage Garden is simple: get as much blooming as possible everywhere possible for as long as possible.  That of course means keeping with my habit of plucking up local roadside "weeds" and wildflowers of course, including Oxeye daisies, Black-Eyed-Susans, Ferns, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Columbine, Trillium, Viper's Bugloss, Buttercups and more!

Lakefront Garden

 I started with the Oxeye daisies on the Lakefront Garden, Septic Garden and  North Deck Garden. I have a good amount in all of those places but can easily see myself adding more each year.

I will also add Black-Eyed-Susans to the Lakefront Garden, they are sure to do well there in the sun.  Last year I added them to the Septic Garden and the North Deck Garden where a few of them are coming back.  Two years ago I transplanted them and had to return to the city right away, so they struggled whereas last year I added a lot to North Deck Garden and was able to stay and water them for a couple of weeks and they did much better and should easily return next year.  Hurrah!

And of course the SunDrops are doing well everywhere... The Lakefront Garden is their priority since they are doing so well there, and they they are a great height to mix and mingle with the Wood Ferns in the South Deck Garden. In fact there should be enough for the North Deck Garden as well.

I am currently grouping Violets in the North Fern Garden, but with a 40 year plan I will eventually have enough there and then add them beside the gravel path with the Trillium I planted last year.

In the foreground about 200 Red Trillium line this path , along with Periwinkle and later ferns & white Impatiens.

And of course I will continue to simply bring more and more (and more!) plant material from the surrounding forest - ferns of all kinds in particular.  Not just lining the path, but throughout the property.  Why look at a brown forest floor when you can green it up?

My goal is to have the cottage feel like it is a tropical rainforest on Vancouver Island. Like it is on steroids.
Greener and more alive than it has a right to be naturally, though naturally beautiful.

***
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OOPS I DID IT AGAIN - AGAIN

The other weekend I went to the Manitoba Lily Society's annual fall sale despite 'trying' not to spend more on plants this year.  Oops.
I am liking attending these local plant sales.  Sorry Vesey's and Becks, but I do not need to order anything from you this fall!

That was after I had already returned to Costco's for more Bulbs to Blooms bulbs.  After all, I had to buy some stuff to plant at the cottage - as opposed to our new city home.

I purchased 17 assorted lilies from the bulk bin at the sale, so it will be a surprise to see what comes up.

I inter-planted them with 'Split Coronoa' daffodils of mixed colour.

In the city I do not want pinks, but at the cottage there is more leeway.  Bulk purchase gives up control of the colours but gives a great discount - and Winnipeggers, including me, love a good deal. so if there are pink lilies, so be it.

The bulbs looked very healthy and large and many of them ready to divide and multiply already.

At this point I am done buying plants or bulbs and just need to spend on some compost / soil mix and have a few yards delivered to the new house in the next few weeks.
I will be glad I did come spring.

Do any of you freshen up your soil in the fall?

DAYLILIES 2011

I am so busy with the move to Winnipeg and searching for work that I can only squeeze in a little time for an update, so I am going to share a couple of photos of daylilies that I took last year to reassure you that I am still alive and kicking.

Funny, it almost feels like cheating, but who am I kidding? There are no rules about this, so enjoy!

If I recall this one might be called Strawberry Candy.

                        

COMMON DITCH LILY - photo update

I just love this flower.  I love that it naturalizes freely, I love its colours and I love that it will be available to me in Zone 3. 

 I also really love its doubles.

Sometimes I don't love doubles, they can be too frilly where simple would serve well, but in this case the more petals the more robust and intriguing I find it.

 Compare side-to-side with another daylily I got from Veseys. 

There is nothing wrong with it, and I like variety in the garden, but these simple reds don't hold a candle to the more complex orange for me. 

They also come in singles of course - check out the top left hand corner of the pic above - but I find a have more doubles than singles with these. 
Is that common or have I lucked out?  I am not sure.

Another shot that allows us to compare the 'double ditch' to its simpler neighbour.

To think these beauties grow wild at the side of the highway.

Amazing.

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PHOTO UPDATE

Let's start in the Lily Garden today.

 This is my favourite, mostly because it is so different form the rest.  The deep red is pretty much black in the middle which contrasts nicely with the white tips.  In searching for the name for this species (which I did not find, so if you know, speak up!) I believe I found that the orange and yellow lilies I thought were "Grand Cru" are "Giraffe", or they certainly look it to me at any rate.

 This is more orange than red in the garden.

Taken with a flash since it was a dusk - sure makes the flecks on the  petals stand out.

 This is actually one of the pinks I am not that fond of.

However between the pinks I prefer this spotted version to the more plain varieties.

Now on to the LakeFront Garden

 I was quite worried that we would be done with the cottage and moved to Winnipeg before we got to see any daylilies in bloom, but the banana yellow one above was the second to bloom so far.  Clearly the majority (which are the beautiful but common orange ditch lily) bloom later in the season than the varieties I have added form Vesey's

This is a close up of the Yellow Loosestrife, which I have to say has been in bloom for quite a long time.  Can it be three weeks already? 

This beautiful iridescent  roadside weed is Viper's Bugloss  according to this amazing site for looking up Ontario Wildflowers.  
I have expanded the LakeFront Garden to incorporate a lot of them as well as Oxeye Daisies and Chicory.  

The overall effect of the blues and white together is quite nice, but more on that addition another day.